Reflections on science, technology, and computing — leavened by personal experience


There was a time, not that many years ago, when international travel meant one was largely inaccessible to colleagues at home, wherever home might be. Today, I struggle to stay afloat in a deluge of email, regardless of my international location.

Even with an army of government clerks, there is a limit to how many pieces of paper the federal government could produce. However, the explosive growth of digital communications and document preparation has far outstripped the processes and technology available to the Library of Congress and the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). However, it…