Why Meta-Font Struck a Nerve

Abstract

What’s old is old. But what’s new is also old. One could argue that there are a limited number of concepts in our world and that time simply rehashes new iterations of existing concepts. And while one might argue that’s not proof that it’s true, Douglas R. Hofstadter’s article reprinted following this introduction is one data point of evidence to support that what’s new really is old. It is 44 years old but explains something important unfolding today: AI.