Arthur C. Clarke Quotes
1. When a distinguished but elderly scientist states that something is possible, he is almost certainly right. When he states that something is impossible, he is very probably wrong. 2. The only way of discovering the limits of the possible is to venture a little way past them into the impossible. 3. Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.
Clarke, Arthur C. Profiles of the Future: An Inquiry into the Limits of the Possible. Rev. ed., Harper & Row, 1973.
In 2006, the George W. Bush administration had contracted with Boeing for a $5 Billion network of motion sensors and camera towers on part of the Mexican border. This was after a 2004 previous contract for $2.5 billion had failed. The system did not work very reliably, often warning of border crossers that turned out to be small animals. The system was too complex for the staff of the border patrol to handle and unlike the military did not bring in or train highly technical personnel to replace the regular border patrol agents who were not very well educated and had a hard time learning the now digital technology. The Bush administration spent the first $1 Billion of the $5 Billion project when further failures finally persuaded the administration to end this failed scheme despite the President's statement herein.
Sir Arthur Charles Clarke CBE FRAS was an English science-fiction writer, science writer, futurist, inventor, undersea explorer, and television series host.
