While watching a news program last night, I heard a quotation that electrified me. An artist (Laurie Anderson) was quoting a cryptographer (Bruce Schneier) but her quotation left out one word (“security”). Surprisingly, dropping that word turned a clever statement into a genius observation that we should all memorize.
“If you think technology is going to solve your problems, you don't understand technology and you don't understand your problems.”
[You can find an original reference from Bruce Schneier at: https://www.schneier.com/books/secrets-and-lies-pref/ . The Laurie Anderson news interview can be found at: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/laurie-anderson-60-minutes-2022-04-03/ .]
Maybe everybody has already heard a version of this and I am just late to the party.
The better you understand any problem, the more likely you are to see multiple solutions to that problem. Of course, many times we refer to a problem in the singular, but we are really referencing a system of problems. Solutions that touch one aspect of a problem can easily break other elements of that system. The best solutions can be time-consuming, complex, and often must be able to adapt to new external conditions. Engineering requires compromise and iteration before we reach a solution that is “right”—at least for right now.
Schneier was making reference to the difficulties of security in information systems and how the systems must adapt to changing threats and always keep in mind human behaviors. If we keep the master password on a sticky-note under our keyboard, our security system will always be very weak.
I am confident that you can do the abstraction necessary to view your own work and your specific problems through this lens of understanding.
“If you think technology is going to solve your problems, you don't understand technology and you don't understand your problems.”