"[One early 1945 night, von Neumann] woke up and started talking at a speed which, even for him, was extraordinarily fast. “What we are creating now is a monster whose influence is going to change history, provided there is any history left, yet it would be impossible not to see it through, not only for the military reasons, but it would also be unethical from the point of view of the scientists not to do what they know is feasible, no matter what terrible consequences it may have. And this is only the beginning!” The concerns von Neumann voiced that night were less about nuclear weapons, and more about the growing powers of machines. “From here on, Johnny’s fascination and preoccupation with the shape of things to come never ceased,” concludes Klári’s account. For the next seven years he neglected mathematics and devoted himself to the advance of technology in all forms. “It was almost as if he knew that there was not very much time left.”"
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From Chapter 7 "Johnny" of "Grasshopper in Very Tall Grass", the unpublished memoir of Klára Dán von Neumann, written circa 1962-1963. Quoted in Turing's Cathedral (2012) by George Dyson. The memoir is available at Library of Congress (Washington DC), Collection: John von Neumann and Klára Dán von Neumann Papers, Call-number MSS 99600, Box 56, Addition III.
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