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Steven Johnson: The playful wonderland behind great inventions
Steven Johnson: 音樂與現代電腦發明嘅淵源
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需求係發明之母，唔係咩？之但係，呢個其實唔係鐵律。Steven Johnson 話畀我哋知，最具改革性嘅諗法同科技，好似電腦，根本就唔係因為需求而誕生，而係因為玩樂而誕生。當你了解完呢段發明史之後，你就可以同人講解啦，兼且從啲人得到最多樂趣嘅地方睇得到未來。
Steven Johnson - Writer
Steven Berlin Johnson examines the intersection of science, technology and personal experience. Full bio
Steven Berlin Johnson examines the intersection of science, technology and personal experience. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
00:12
(Music)
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（音樂）
00:16
Roughly 43,000 years ago,
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大概四萬三千年以前
00:19
a young cave bear
died in the rolling hills
died in the rolling hills
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一頭後生嘅穴熊喺今日斯洛文尼亞
西北邊境嘅綿延山巒上去世
西北邊境嘅綿延山巒上去世
00:22
on the northwest border
of modern day Slovenia.
of modern day Slovenia.
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00:25
A thousand years later,
a mammoth died in southern Germany.
a mammoth died in southern Germany.
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一千年之後
一頭長毛象喺德國南部去世
00:29
A few centuries after that,
a griffon vulture also died
a griffon vulture also died
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幾個世紀之後，一隻兀鷲
喺同一片地區去世
00:33
in the same vicinity.
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00:35
And we know almost nothing
about how these animals met their deaths,
about how these animals met their deaths,
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我哋唔知道呢啲動物係點樣去世嘅
但呢啲存在於唔同時空嘅生物
卻最終殊途同歸
卻最終殊途同歸
00:39
but these different creatures
dispersed across both time and space
dispersed across both time and space
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00:43
did share one remarkable fate.
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00:46
After their deaths,
a bone from each of their skeletons
a bone from each of their skeletons
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佢哋去世之後，骨骸中嘅一塊骨頭
00:50
was crafted by human hands
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都經由人類嘅巧手變成咗一支長笛
00:52
into a flute.
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00:54
Think about that for a second.
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等我哋嚟諗返頭先嘅嘢
00:56
Imagine you're a caveman,
40,000 years ago.
40,000 years ago.
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想像你係一個四萬年前嘅穴居人
00:59
You've mastered fire.
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你識得點樣用火
01:00
You've built simple tools for hunting.
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又已經整咗一啲用嚟打獵嘅簡單工具
01:02
You've learned how to craft
garments from animal skins
garments from animal skins
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你已經學識點樣摞獸皮嚟整衫
嚟抵禦凜冬嘅寒冷
嚟抵禦凜冬嘅寒冷
01:05
to keep yourself warm in the winter.
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01:07
What would you choose to invent next?
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咁下一步你會去發明咩呢？
01:10
It seems preposterous
that you would invent the flute,
that you would invent the flute,
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發明長笛似乎好荒謬
01:13
a tool that created
useless vibrations in air molecules.
useless vibrations in air molecules.
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因為呢個工具只能發聲
01:17
But that is exactly
what our ancestors did.
what our ancestors did.
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但實際上呢個就係我哋祖先做嘅事
01:21
Now this turns out
to be surprisingly common
to be surprisingly common
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喺發明嘅歷史長河中
01:24
in the history of innovation.
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無用嘅發明竟然係比比皆是
01:26
Sometimes people invent things
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儘管有時候人發明事物
01:28
because they want to stay alive
or feed their children
or feed their children
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係為咗生存，或者養育下一代
或者征服隔籬嘅村莊
或者征服隔籬嘅村莊
01:31
or conquer the village next door.
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但係往往，新諗法嘅誕生
01:33
But just as often,
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01:34
new ideas come into the world
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01:36
simply because they're fun.
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其實只係因為佢哋畀到人樂趣
01:39
And here's the really strange thing:
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實在令人覺得奇怪嘅係：
01:41
many of those playful
but seemingly frivolous inventions
but seemingly frivolous inventions
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好多好玩但似乎微不足道嘅發明
最終都會喺科學、政治同社會上
帶嚟極為重要嘅轉變
帶嚟極為重要嘅轉變
01:45
ended up sparking
momentous transformations
momentous transformations
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01:47
in science, in politics and society.
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01:51
Take what may be the most
important invention of modern times:
important invention of modern times:
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就以可能係依家最為重要嘅發明——
01:54
programmable computers.
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可編程電腦為例
01:56
Now, the standard story is that computers
descend from military technology,
descend from military technology,
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依家一般講法係，電腦起源於軍事技術
02:01
since many of the early computers
were designed specifically
were designed specifically
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因為好多早期嘅電腦專門設計
嚟破解戰時密碼或者計算火箭彈道
嚟破解戰時密碼或者計算火箭彈道
02:04
to crack wartime codes
or calculate rocket trajectories.
or calculate rocket trajectories.
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02:07
But in fact, the origins
of the modern computer
of the modern computer
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但事實上，現代電腦嘅起源
02:11
are much more playful,
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比你想像中仲要有趣得多
02:12
even musical,
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02:14
than you might imagine.
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甚至同音樂有關
02:15
The idea behind the flute,
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長笛背後
利用空氣通過管道嚟發聲嘅諗法
利用空氣通過管道嚟發聲嘅諗法
02:16
of just pushing air through tubes
to make a sound,
to make a sound,
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02:19
was eventually modified
to create the first organ
to create the first organ
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最終喺兩千幾年前演變為第一部風琴
02:22
more than 2,000 years ago.
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02:24
Someone came up with the brilliant idea
of triggering sounds
of triggering sounds
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有人諗到用手指敲擊細槓杆
嚟發聲嘅絕世好竅
嚟發聲嘅絕世好竅
02:27
by pressing small levers with our fingers,
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02:30
inventing the first musical keyboard.
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從而發明咗第一個琴鍵
02:33
Now, keyboards evolved
from organs to clavichords to harpsichords
from organs to clavichords to harpsichords
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從風琴、古鋼琴、大鍵琴，到鋼琴
琴鍵都一直演變緊
琴鍵都一直演變緊
02:37
to the piano,
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02:38
until the middle of the 19th century,
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直到十九世紀中期
02:41
when a bunch of inventors
finally hit on the idea
finally hit on the idea
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一班發明家突發奇想
02:44
of using a keyboard
to trigger not sounds but letters.
to trigger not sounds but letters.
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摞鍵盤嚟寫信，而唔係摞鍵盤演奏
02:48
In fact, the very first typewriter
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事實上，最初期嘅打字機
原來係被稱為「識寫字嘅大鍵琴」
原來係被稱為「識寫字嘅大鍵琴」
02:50
was originally called
"the writing harpsichord."
"the writing harpsichord."
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02:55
Flutes and music led
to even more powerful breakthroughs.
to even more powerful breakthroughs.
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但原來，長笛同音樂
曾經引致更加勁嘅突破
曾經引致更加勁嘅突破
02:59
About a thousand years ago,
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大概一千年之前
03:01
at the height of the Islamic Renaissance,
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喺「伊斯蘭復興運動」嘅鼎盛時期
03:03
three brothers in Baghdad
designed a device
designed a device
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嚟自巴格達嘅三兄弟
設計咗一部自動風琴
03:05
that was an automated organ.
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03:08
They called it "the instrument
that plays itself."
that plays itself."
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命名為「自動演奏風琴」
03:11
Now, the instrument
was basically a giant music box.
was basically a giant music box.
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依家睇嚟，呢個樂器其實就係
一個巨型嘅八音盒
一個巨型嘅八音盒
03:15
The organ could be trained to play
various songs by using instructions
various songs by using instructions
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通過將凸點加注喺一個轉動嘅音筒上
03:19
encoded by placing pins
on a rotating cylinder.
on a rotating cylinder.
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風琴就可以演奏曲目
03:23
And if you wanted the machine
to play a different song,
to play a different song,
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如果你想機器演奏一首唔同嘅曲目
只需要換上一個有唔同凸點排列嘅音筒
03:26
you just swapped a new cylinder in
with a different code on it.
with a different code on it.
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03:29
This instrument was the first of its kind.
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呢個樂器係同類中嘅首創，可以編寫
03:33
It was programmable.
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03:35
Now, conceptually,
this was a massive leap forward.
this was a massive leap forward.
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依家，從概念上嚟講，呢個係一大進步
03:38
The whole idea of hardware and software
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因為呢個發明嘅面世
將硬件同軟件嘅概念形象化
將硬件同軟件嘅概念形象化
03:41
becomes thinkable for the first time
with this invention.
with this invention.
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03:44
And that incredibly powerful concept
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而呢個不可思議嘅犀利諗法
唔係嚟自一個用於戰爭嘅工具
唔係嚟自一個用於戰爭嘅工具
03:47
didn't come to us as an instrument
of war or of conquest,
of war or of conquest,
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03:50
or necessity at all.
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亦都唔係嚟自需求
03:52
It came from the strange delight
of watching a machine play music.
of watching a machine play music.
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佢嚟自於望住一個機器
演奏音樂時嘅神奇愉悅感
演奏音樂時嘅神奇愉悅感
03:57
In fact, the idea of programmable machines
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事實上，可編程機器嘅諗法
04:00
was exclusively kept alive by music
for about 700 years.
for about 700 years.
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一直只出現喺音樂世界裏面大概七百年
04:05
In the 1700s, music-making machines
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喺十六世紀，音樂演奏機器
成為巴黎上流社會嘅玩物
成為巴黎上流社會嘅玩物
04:07
became the playthings
of the Parisian elite.
of the Parisian elite.
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04:11
Showmen used the same coded cylinders
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表演者用同樣嘅編碼音筒
04:14
to control the physical movements
of what were called automata,
of what were called automata,
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嚟控制一種叫做自動玩偶嘅
早期機器人嘅動作
早期機器人嘅動作
04:18
an early kind of robot.
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04:20
One of the most famous of those robots
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其中一個最出名嘅機器人
04:22
was, you guessed it,
an automated flute player
an automated flute player
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就係由一位才華橫溢嘅法國發明家
04:25
designed by a brilliant French inventor
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Jacques de Vaucanson 設計嘅
自動長笛演奏玩偶
自動長笛演奏玩偶
04:27
named Jacques de Vaucanson.
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04:30
And as de Vaucanson
was designing his robot musician,
was designing his robot musician,
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當 de Vaucanson 設計緊佢嘅
機器人音樂家嗰時
機器人音樂家嗰時
04:33
he had another idea.
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佢有另一個諗法
04:35
If you could program a machine
to make pleasing sounds,
to make pleasing sounds,
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佢諗，既然可以編程
一個發出優美樂聲嘅機器
一個發出優美樂聲嘅機器
04:39
why not program it to weave
delightful patterns of color out of cloth?
delightful patterns of color out of cloth?
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咁點解唔摞佢織出色彩斑斕嘅布匹？
04:44
Instead of using the pins of the cylinder
to represent musical notes,
to represent musical notes,
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佢哋與其用凸點音筒播歌
04:49
they would represent
threads with different colors.
threads with different colors.
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佢哋用唔同顏色嘅線頭織成布匹
04:52
If you wanted a new pattern
for your fabric,
for your fabric,
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如果你想要一匹有新圖案嘅布
04:54
you just programmed a new cylinder.
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咁編程一個新嘅轉筒就得啦
04:57
This was the first programmable loom.
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呢個就係第一個可編程織布機
05:00
Now, the cylinders were too expensive
and time-consuming to make,
and time-consuming to make,
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但係整轉筒實在係太貴又浪費時間
05:04
but a half century later,
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於是半個世紀之後
05:06
another French inventor named Jacquard
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另一位叫做 Jacquard 嘅
法國發明家靈光一閃
法國發明家靈光一閃
05:08
hit upon the brilliant idea
of using paper-punched cards
of using paper-punched cards
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諗到摞打窿卡嚟代替金屬轉筒
05:13
instead of metal cylinders.
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05:15
Paper turned out to be
much cheaper and more flexible
much cheaper and more flexible
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原來用紙編程一個裝置會更加靈活同平
05:18
as a way of programming the device.
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05:20
That punch card system inspired
Victorian inventor Charles Babbage
Victorian inventor Charles Babbage
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之後嗰個窿片穿孔系統啟發
維多利亞時代發明家 Charles Babbage
維多利亞時代發明家 Charles Babbage
05:25
to create his analytical engine,
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砌出一台分析引擎
05:27
the first true programmable computer
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於是，有史以嚟第一部
真正能夠編程嘅電腦就咁誕生咗
真正能夠編程嘅電腦就咁誕生咗
05:30
ever designed.
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05:31
And punch cards were used
by computer programmers
by computer programmers
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穿窿卡片去到二十世紀七十年代
都仲俾電腦程序員用緊
都仲俾電腦程序員用緊
05:34
as late as the 1970s.
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05:37
So ask yourself this question:
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試問：
05:39
what really made
the modern computer possible?
the modern computer possible?
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到底係咩真正令到現代電腦成為現實？
05:43
Yes, the military involvement
is an important part of the story,
is an important part of the story,
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冇錯，軍事需要確實係好重要嘅原因
05:47
but inventing a computer
also required other building blocks:
also required other building blocks:
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但係發明一部電腦都離唔開其他因素：
05:51
music boxes,
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八音盒、玩具長笛演奏機器人
05:52
toy robot flute players,
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05:54
harpsichord keyboards,
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大鍵琴鍵盤，同埋印上布匹嘅斑斕圖案
05:55
colorful patterns woven into fabric,
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05:58
and that's just a small part of the story.
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軍事需要只係成個故仔中一小部份
06:01
There's a long list of world-changing
ideas and technologies
ideas and technologies
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有好多改變世界嘅諗法同科技
都係嚟自「玩」
都係嚟自「玩」
06:04
that came out of play:
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06:06
public museums, rubber,
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譬如公共博物館、橡膠
概率論、保險行業等等
概率論、保險行業等等
06:08
probability theory, the insurance business
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06:10
and many more.
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06:11
Necessity isn't always
the mother of invention.
the mother of invention.
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發明唔係總係因求而生
06:15
The playful state of mind
is fundamentally exploratory,
is fundamentally exploratory,
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就係因為鍾意玩，我哋先至會探索
06:19
seeking out new possibilities
in the world around us.
in the world around us.
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先至會發掘周圍嘅可能
06:22
And that seeking
is why so many experiences
is why so many experiences
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而嗰種探索態度
正正令原本好多只為樂趣、玩樂嘅事物
變成重大突破嘅嘢
變成重大突破嘅嘢
06:26
that started with simple
delight and amusement
delight and amusement
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06:29
eventually led us
to profound breakthroughs.
to profound breakthroughs.
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06:33
Now, I think this has implications
for how we teach kids in school
for how we teach kids in school
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依家，我覺得玩樂同我哋點樣
喺學校教育細路仔
喺學校教育細路仔
06:37
and how we encourage innovation
in our workspaces,
in our workspaces,
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同埋點樣喺工作場所鼓勵創新
都有關係
都有關係
06:40
but thinking about play
and delight this way
and delight this way
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但咁樣睇，玩樂同樂趣
都可以幫我哋預知未來
都可以幫我哋預知未來
06:43
also helps us detect what's coming next.
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06:47
Think about it: if you were
sitting there in 1750
sitting there in 1750
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試諗下：喺 1750 年，你坐喺度
06:49
trying to figure out
the big changes coming to society
the big changes coming to society
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想像緊 20、21 世紀社會
翻天覆地嘅改變
翻天覆地嘅改變
06:53
in the 19th, the 20th centuries,
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06:55
automated machines, computers,
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譬如自動化機器、電腦、人工智能
06:57
artificial intelligence,
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06:59
a programmable flute
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而一個取悅巴黎上流社會嘅可編程長笛
07:00
entertaining the Parisian elite
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07:03
would have been as powerful a clue
as anything else at the time.
as anything else at the time.
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喺當時已經成為將來發展嘅最強線索
07:07
It seemed like an amusement at best,
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雖然佢睇起身最多係一種消遣
07:10
not useful in any serious way,
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冇乜嚴肅實際嘅用處
07:13
but it turned out to be
the beginning of a tech revolution
the beginning of a tech revolution
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但係最終卻會牽起
一個會改變世界嘅科技革命
一個會改變世界嘅科技革命
07:17
that would change the world.
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最後，你可以喺啲人最多樂趣嘅地方
預見未來
預見未來
07:18
You'll find the future
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07:20
wherever people are having the most fun.
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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Steven Johnson - WriterSteven Berlin Johnson examines the intersection of science, technology and personal experience.
Why you should listen
Steven Johnson is a leading light of today's interdisciplinary and collaborative approach to innovation. His writings have influenced everything from cutting-edge ideas in urban planning to the battle against 21st-century terrorism. Johnson was chosen by Prospect magazine as one of the top ten brains of the digital future, and The Wall Street Journal calls him "one of the most persuasive advocates for the role of collaboration in innovation."
Johnson's work on the history of innovation inspired the Emmy-nominated six-part series on PBS, "How We Got To Now with Steven Johnson," which aired in the fall of 2014. The book version of How We Got To Now was a finalist for the PEN/E.O. Wilson Literary Science Writing Award. His new book, Wonderland: How Play Made the Modern World, revolves around the creative power of play and delight: ideas and innovations that set into motion many momentous changes in science, technology, politics and society.
Johnson is also the author of the bestselling Where Good Ideas Come From: The Natural History of Innovation, one of his many books celebrating progress and innovation. Others include The Invention of Air and The Ghost Map. Everything Bad Is Good For You, one of the most discussed books of 2005, argued that the increasing complexity of modern media is training us to think in more complex ways. Emergence and Future Perfect explore the power of bottom-up intelligence in both nature and contemporary society.
An innovator himself, Johnson has co-created three influential sites: the pioneering online magazine FEED, the Webby-Award-winning community site, Plastic.com, and the hyperlocal media site outside.in, which was acquired by AOL in 2011.
Johnson is a regular contributor to WIRED magazine, as well as the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and many other periodicals. He has appeared on many high-profile television programs, including "The Charlie Rose Show," "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart" and "The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer."
Steven Johnson | Speaker | TED.com