ABSTRACT
A system of symbols related according to preestablished rules may be called an algorithm. The simplest example of an algorithm is the mathematical system of decimal notation, popularized by a man named al-Khowarizmi. An algorithm is essentially a “thinking” machine, a means of performing operations on symbols that give results difficult or impossible to attain otherwise. The symbolic system of language, and particularly of the artificial languages called mathematics and science, develops into a colossal thinking machine. The unique characteristic of human behavior is the ability to make decisions at the symbolic level. As a social force, the universe of symbols, which is unique in man, creates the sanguinary course of history. American psychology, in its various forms from behaviorism to recent pseudo-“humanistic” developments, has consistently denied what is specifically human in man’s psychology and behavior. It has given no answer to “human” problems and, in effect, has contributed to the bestialization of our age of non-culture.
