Encyclopedia of Computer Science and Technology

wikis and Wikipedia 511Walter Pitts were working together toward a mathematicaldescription of neurological processes such as the firingof neurons in the brain. This research, which startedout with the relatively simple analogy of electromechanicalrelays (as in the telephone system) would eventually resultin the development of neural network theory (see neuralnetwork and Minsky, Marvin). More generally, these scientistsand others (see von Neumann, John) had begun todevelop a new discipline for which Wiener in 1947 gave thename cybernetics. This word is from a Greek word referringto the steersman of a ship, suggesting the control of a systemin response to its environment.The field of cybernetics attempted to draw from manysources, including biology, neurology, logic, and whatwould later become robotics and computer science. Wiener’s1948 book, Cybernetics or Control and Communicationin the Animal and the Machine, was as much philosophicalas scientific, suggesting that cybernetic principles could beapplied not only to scientific research and engineering butalso to the better governance of society. (On a more practicallevel Wiener also worked with Jerome Wiesner ondesigning prosthetics to replace missing limbs.)Although Wiener did not work much directly with computers,the ideas of cybernetics would indirectly influencethe new disciplines of artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics.However, in his 1950 book, The Human Use of HumanBeings, Wiener warned against the possible misuse of computersto rigidly control or regiment people, as was theexperience in Stalin’s Soviet Union. Wiener became increasinglyinvolved in writing these and other popular works tobring his ideas to a general audience.Wiener received the National Medal of Technology fromPresident Johnson in 1964. The accompanying citationpraised his “marvelously versatile contributions, profoundlyoriginal, ranging within pure and applied mathematics, andpenetrating boldly into the engineering and biological sciences.”He died on March 18, 1964, in Stockholm, Sweden.Further ReadingConway, Flo, and Jim Siegelm. Dark Hero of the Information Age: InSearch of Norbert Wiener, The Father of Cybernetics. New York:Basic Books, 2005.Heims, Steve J. John von Neumann and Norbert Wiener: From Mathematicsto the Technologies of Life and Death. Cambridge, Mass.:MIT Press, 1980.Wiener, Norbert. Cybernetics, or Control and Communication in theAnimal and Machine. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 1950 (2nded. 1961).———. The Human Use of Human Beings: Cybernetics and Society.Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1950. (2nd ed., Avon Books,1970).———. Invention: The Care and Feeding of Ideas. Cambridge, Mass.:MIT Press, 1993.wikis and WikipediaA wiki (from the Hawaiian word for “quick”) is a generallyWeb-based software application that allows users to collaborativelycontribute and edit articles on various topics.Developed by Howard G. “Ward” Cunningham in the mid-1990s, the best-known example today is Wikipedia.Structure and SoftwareWiki software varies in details such as use of markup languages,programming interface, and platform. However,most wikis include the following features:• Users can create new pages (articles) or edit existingones.• Pages contain links to related pages, sometimes using“wiki words” where WordsAreScrunchedTogether-WithIntialCaps.• Simple markup can be used to create such effects asboldface, headings, or lists. The wiki software usuallytranslates this to HTML for rendering.• A record is kept of each contribution or edit, oftendisplayed on a “Recent Changes” page.• many wikis use a database (such as MySQL) to storeand retrieve pages. Some wikis simply store each pageas a file, and a few (such as TiddlyWiki) store allpages together as a single document.• Wikis can be public (open to anyone) or restricted,such as to members of an organization.• The administrator of the wiki establishes guidelinesor standards (such as for citing sources for facts) andprocedures for dealing with disputes and controversialtopics.There is now a great variety of wiki software for justabout every computing platform. At one end there is MediaWiki,the software used to implement Wikipedia, and“enterprise wikis” such as BrainKeeper and Twiki, providingcomplex features for large-scale knowledge bases. Socalledpersonal Wikis such as DidiWiki and TiddlyWikican be used by individuals for note-taking, research, ormanaging personal information.Wikipedia and Its CriticsFounded in 2001 (see Wales, Jimmy), Wikipedia is theworld’s largest and best-known wiki. As of mid-2008 Wikipediahad more than 2,500,000 articles in English and7,500,000 in more than 250 other languages. At any giventime there are about 75,000 people from all backgroundsand walks of life contributing or editing articles.Wikipedia has a number of strengths. Its ubiquity anddiversity enable it to cover tens of thousands of topics(including the obscure or the simply local) that would bedeemed unsuitable or impracticable for traditional encyclopedias.Emerging topics, including recent news events, canbe covered quickly and comprehensively (though perhapsblurring the lines between reference and journalism).The principal problem raised by critics stems from issuesof “quality control.” Unlike the case with traditional encyclopedias,there are no requirements that contributors haveacademic training or otherwise demonstrate their expertisein their chosen area. Further, the ability of anyone to editan article has led to “edit wars” as people on different sides