Computer technology has become a mirror of what we are and a screen on which we project both our hopes and our fears for the way the world is changing. Earlier in this century, particularly in the post-World War II era of unprecedented growth and prosperity, the social contract between citi zens and scientists/engineers was epitomized by the line Ronald Reagan promoted as spokesman for General Electric: "Progress is our most impor tant product. " In more recent decades, post-Chernobyl, post-Challenger, post-Bhopal, post-Microsoft, the social contract has undergone a transfor mation. More...