Computer must know how to forget data

High-speed processing equipment, low-cost storage drives are inadvertently creating "information prisons" where data is maintained for a long time and easily restored.

Computers help remember, which is difficult for people, to become simpler. But Professor Viktor Mayer-Schönberger of Harvard University (USA) sees this as a bad sign for society.

Mayer-Schönberger's " The art of forgetting the computer era " describes the plan to restore " the process of oblivion that society has gone through for thousands of years ". According to him, the systems must also become "absurd" like the human brain, meaning they will not be able to remember files that have been stored for too long in the computer.

No one can guarantee information like search results on Google, thousands of family photos, hundreds of e-books, financial data, e-mail . in the future is harmless or not. . " Anything, from the digital image to the impulsive comment, can be pulled and fought against me, " Mayer-Schönberger said. " Developers and lawmakers need to ensure that storage products must know 'forget' over time ."

That means the song purchased on the iTunes online music store is only stored on the computer for a certain period of time and the user will adjust it if he wants to renew it. Even files created by themselves such as digital photos will "expire" in 2, 3 years.

Mayer-Schönberger thinks that for many people, this project sounds extreme. But for those who are "imprisoned" and troubled by their data, it will feel like an escape.