In the 1950s, automation promised to liberate humans from "drudgery" and reorient us on the "human use of human beings", in the words of computer scientist Norbert Wiener. On the 1956 campaign trail, incumbent Republican Vice President Richard Nixon predicted that Americans could look ahead to a four-day work week in the "not-too-distant future", thanks to automation. Less work meant more play.
In California, an independent animation studio opened up a plucky little amusement park in 1955 to capitalise on all this newfound leisure time: Disneyland.
While the general optimism around what automation could offer humanity has faded, Disneyland remains closely linked to the story of this technology. The amusement park was inspired by the wondrous machines and systems that Walt Disney saw during a fortuitous trip to Ford's River Rouge plant in 1948. Since then, Disneyland has systematically turned new forms of automation into unique experiences that shatter the normal bounds of conventional entertainment. Under the guise of leisure, Disneyland continues to create spaces for the public to familiarise themselves with the technology and gadgets that run their lives.
