Chile created a computer network in the early 1970s, decades before the Internet became a feature of everyday life. This Chilean networking effort emerged in parallel with the U.S. ARPANET, but was not influenced by its more famous counterpart. Rather, Chile's was an independent endeavor fueled by a different set of political motivations and constrained by the nation's limited technological resources. This technological innovation coincided with a unique moment in Chilean political history, namely, the election of Socialist Salvador Allende Gossens to the Chilean Presidential Palace. Allende's "Chilean road to socialism" included an aggressive nationalization program. Given the scope and complexity of this nationalization process, members of the Allende government proposed creating a computer system to regulate Chile's economic transition from capitalism to socialism. The system, known as Project Cybersyn in English and Proyecto Synco in Spanish, used a mainframe computer, customized software, and a network of telex machines to transmit data rapidly from the nationalized factories to the Chilean government. This project received support from Allende and helped the government navigate the social and economic upheavals that ultimately led to the violent military coup of September 11, 1973. The proposed research will result in a history of Project Cybersyn and in scholarly articles. It will use accepted historical methods, including archival documents and oral history interviews.
Intellectual Merit. This research has intellectual merit for a number of reasons. First, it illustrates how technology contributed to Chile's socialist experiment and constituted a unique facet of the Chilean revolutionary process. It brings to light new and unstudied aspects of Chilean history, including how the government incorporated cybernetic ideas in its plans for economic change, controlled widespread strike activity and political dissent, and envisioned Chilean modernity. Second, the Cybersyn history brings a Latin American perspective as well as a developing world perspective to the history of technology and the history of computing, fields that have largely overlooked the experiences of developing nations. Third, this research breaks new ground by bridging two disparate literatures, namely, the history of technology and the history of Latin America. It aims to form the basis for a new historical subfield dedicated to studies of technology in the Latin American region. Fourth, the research exhibits methodological creativity through the use of unorthodox source materials such as computer program documentation, system diagrams, and technological artifacts.
Broader Impact. This project will have broader impact because its interdisciplinary scope will produce research of interest to those in history, Latin American studies, science studies, political science, operations research, and technology policy, among others. The published results will raise public awareness of Chilean national history and illuminate the contributions of this Latin American country to a technology used in many facets of daily life. In addition, research results will be translated into Spanish to reach a Latin American audience, thereby furthering international engagement with methods, findings, and concepts from the history of technology and broadening participation in the field. Finally, research findings will inform and enhance my teaching activities at Indiana University, where I educate students on the history of technology and the relationship of technology and politics.
