Schenectady, N.Y. (April 8, 1998) – Former astronomer Clifford Stoll will give a talk titled “Silicon Snake Oil” on Tuesday, May 12, at 7:30 p.m. in Union College's Nott Memorial.
Clifford Stoll became an unexpected computer guru when, in 1986, he found a 75-cent discrepancy in the telephone charges for his laboratory's computer. His year-long quest to find the source of the problem led him to collaborate with the FBI in catching a German computer spy. Stoll's sleuthing was the subject of his first book, The Cuckoo's Egg, and propelled him into the spotlight as an expert on computers and hackers.
Since that time, however, this legend on the Internet has become suspicious of computer hype including the virtues of the Internet and the public's embrace of electronic gadgetry. In his speech he will ask if computers are truly assets or if they are Silicon Snake Oil, the title of his second book.
Stoll's talk is free and open to the public.
The 16-sided Nott Memorial is located at the center of campus and parking is available on campus and on nearby side streets.
For more information, call 388-6131.