The computer / has, to a considerable extent, solved / the problem / of acquiring, preserving, and retrieving information.

Data / can be stored / in effectively unlimited quantities / and in manageable form.

The computer / makes available / a range of data / unattainable / in the age of books.

It packages / it effectively; / style / is no longer needed / to make it accessible, / nor is memorization.

In dealing with a single decision / separated from its context, / the computer / supplies / tools unimaginable / even a decade ago.

But / it also diminishes / perspective.

Because information is so accessible / and communication instantaneous, / there is a diminution / of focus on its significance, / or even on the definition / of what is significant.

This dynamic / may encourage / policymakers / to wait for an issue to arise / rather than anticipate it, / and to regard / moments of decision as a series of isolated events / rather than part of a historical continuum.

When this happens, / manipulation of information / replaces / reflection / as the principal policy tool.