This diagram illustrates the evolution of mainstream data types throughout computing history, showing how the complexity and volume of processed data has grown exponentially across different eras.
Evolution of Mainstream Data by Computing Era:
- Calculate (1940s-1950s) – Numerical Data: Basic mathematical computations dominated
- Database (1960s-1970s) – Structured Data: Tabular, organized data became central
- Internet (1980s-1990s) – Text/Hypertext: Web pages, emails, and text-based information
- Video (2000s-2010s) – Multimedia Data: Explosive growth of video, images, and audio content
- Machine Learning (2010s-Present) – Big Data/Pattern Data: Large-scale, multi-dimensional datasets for training
- Human Perceptible/Everything (Future) – Universal Cognitive Data: Digitization of all human senses, cognition, and experiences
The question marks on the right symbolize the fundamental uncertainty surrounding this final stage. Whether everything humans perceive – emotions, consciousness, intuition, creativity – can truly be fully converted into computational data remains an open question due to technical limitations, ethical concerns, and the inherent nature of human cognition.
Summary: This represents a data-centric view of computing evolution, progressing from simple numerical processing to potentially encompassing all aspects of human perception and experience, though the ultimate realization of this vision remains uncertain.
With Claude
Lechuck Park 