Mihai Nadin, who established the Program in Computational Design at the University of Wuppertal, described the evolution from pre-literate to literate to post-literate society in all their characteristics. He shows how audio-visual technology (photography, cinema, television), various art forms (painting, drawing, sculpting), digital technology, and virtual realty are leading the way from the civilization of literacy to the civilization of illiteracy. Instead of one dominant literacy, he points to a variety of open-ended, partial literacies that people will master according to need. "The paradox is that the more educated a professional is, the less he or she needs to rely on literacy in the exercise of his or her profession. With the advent of video and cassette tapes or disks, with digital storage and networks, literacy loses its supremacy as transmitter of knowledge." In a land like Germany, with few natural resources, we have always relied on our intellectual power to make the most of scarce resources. Today, as we progress from an industrial to a post-industrial, information-based nation and society, there are still many shortsighted individuals who find comfort in the order built up over millennia. Nadin's book alerts us to the dangers of this attitude as he makes clear the broad new paths to follow.