Resumen
In the field of computing people have become accustomed to measures that double every few years, processor speeds, communication bandwidths, the number of sites on the Internet, so author plots them on a scale that shows each order of magnitude as an equal step. By plotting on a log-labeled scale one can imagine progress as a straight line moving steadily upwards with the advance of time. This gives a comfortable illusion of predictability. If one uses a linear scale to plot the same curve, they would be exponential, shooting uncontrollably off the page. The two ways of plotting progress correspond to different attitudes about technological change have their own merits. This century, 50 years back and 50 years forward, is one of those rare times in history when humanity transforms from one type of human society to another. To use a physical analogy, people are in the midst of a phase transition. It is self-amplifying agent of change, in the sense that each improvements tends to increase its capacity to improve. Faster computers let people design more faster computers faster.