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'Everything that is, is information'
"If first you will solemnly swear, up and down and cross your heart, that you will let us go, we will give you information, information about infinite information, that is, we will make you your very own Demon of the Second Kind, which is magical and thermodynamical, nonclassical and stochastical, and from any old barrel or even a sneeze it will extract information for you about everything that was, is, may be or ever will be."
- Stanislaw Lem, The Cyberiad Stories, "The Sixth Sally, or How Trurl and Klapaucius Created a Demon of the Second Kind to Defeat the Pirate Pugg"
After having read this short story, I am somehow inspired and excited to go back to school next week. I think that we should adopt the title "Demon of the Second Kind" instead of "Information Professional".
srah - Thursday, 1 January 2004 - 11:28 PM
Tags: books
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Comments (3)
srah - January 2, 2004 - 10:17 AM - ℓ
"And what is the Demon of the First Kind like?"
"Oh, it's not as interesting, it's an ordinary thermodynamic demon, and all it does is let fast atoms out of the hole and keep in the slow. That way you get a thermodynamic perpetuum mobile, which hasn't a thing to do with information."
Prease to exprain, sir: What be a Demon of the First Kind?