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[[underlined]] Exhibition on the Information Revolution [[/underlined]]

The Museum of American History has proposed a major new exhibition on "The Information Revolution," which will address recent changes in the processing and communication of information and their profound effects on all parts of society.  It is planned that this exhibition, for which intensive fund-raising efforts will be required, could be a forerunner of a long-term project to establish a museum of the information age.

The exhibition will trace the growth of information technology and will show that computers arose from the same human concerns, societal needs, and inventive processes that have shaped earlier technologies; in addition, the exhibition will explore how the use of computers has brought, and will continue to suggest, new possibilities for social and commercial structures and relationships.

In addition to using the talents and expertise of existing staff, an advisory committee composed of individuals from the computer industry and computer history field will be established to review the scholarly content of the exhibition and to serve as liaison with a consortium to be formed by members of the communications and information technology industry to provide necessary funding for the exhibition.

Total funding required is about $5 million, and a fund-raising drive will begin early this fall.  To this end, a descriptive brochure has been prepared for publication and distribution at the start of the campaign.  The Smithsonian has received private assurances from IBM that, if others in the industry contribute, it will meet the remaining financial needs.