HUM The Music of Rolling Presses DRUM: March 2014

Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Patrick McGovern
August 11, 1937- March 19, 2014

PHOTO/ ROBERT SPENCER FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES
Highlight of Obituary Items From the 03/26/14
National Edition of The New York Times
'Patrick McGovern Dies at 76; Founded Publishing Empire'
By William Yardley

A Humble Legend for a Great Legacy
After Mr. McGovern and his wife Lore Harp McGovern gifted $350 million
to his alma mater the Massachusetts Institute of Technology--------------------

'Mr. McGovern often told a story about the inspiration
for the donation and his interest in computers. As a
teenager in Philadelphia, he discovered a book at the
public library that transformed him. It was called "Giant
Brains or Machines That Think," by Edward Callis
Berkeley, published in 1949.
"It was the first book that talked about computers and
their role as an amplifier of the human mind," Mr.
Govern said in 2000 for an oral history. "They said that
these devices would essentially be able to build huge
storage, which is like an extension to human memory.
When when you wanted to have facts, you wouldn't
have to rely upon this sometimes irregular associative
memory to recall something. You would be able to
draw it out from these huge databases."-----------------'

'Mr. McGovern often said he had a larger goal than publishing magazines.
He said he believed that information stimulated trade, and that trade led to world peace.'

"Ben Franklin is my role model," he told the Times.
"Like him, I have a lot of enthusiasm for what
information technology can do to improve the
quality of life for mankind."

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