The Fifth Generation Computing Project
This entertaining essay captures things well without getting distracted by some of the really funny stories, many of which cannot be repeated as the protagonists are still alive.<p>Programming in Japan is typically a low-status job considered a blue collar occupation (Nintendo and SCEI are notable exceptions) despite Japan having produced quite a few globally notable computer scientists.  I remember visiting a 5 Gen project om 1984.  I was shocked by the open plan office (how did anyone get any work done?).  At the row of desks was one ASCII terminal for each two desks (to a KL-20 I assume but can no longer remember).  I spoke with one of the developers asking him what he thought of the environment.  &quot;Great: I only have to share the terminal with one other person&quot;.<p>The next year I myself was employed at MCC in their AI group (they had a database and CAD group, and perhaps one other) working for Doug Lenat and designing the Cyc system (when I got there they were working in Interlisp on Dandelions, not surprisingly as Doug&#x27;s office had been around the corner from mine at PARC).  The first thing I did was toss the Interlisp implementation and redo it on for a 3600.<p>5Gen and MCC actually were 2 and 3 of another transformational hype effort, the Center Mondial d&#x27;Informatique and Ressource Humaine (World Center for Computer Sciences and Human Resources) launched in France in 1983 on the back of an influential book by a major French intellectual, Jean-Jaques Servan-Schreiber.  They had a KL-20, a Vax (with a copy of BSD I carried over there in my luggage) and a few CADR Lispms (two or four, I can&#x27;t remember).  With swanky offices in central Paris around the corner from the presidential palace and a lobby full of Apple 2s that anyone could walk in and try out they didn&#x27;t do much for the third world I&#x27;m afraid, idealistic goals notwithstanding, but they did launch quite a few very good computer scientists, so were probably worth the effort.<p>So I worked for CMIRH and MCC, and spent some time at 5Gen.  Fun times.