The rocky 1960s origin of online dating

00:00:01 the PanAm building Manhattan Bryant Park behind Central Library Columbus Day this year 6:00 in the evening a big open air party 2,000 guests they just have to mix all quite normal except for one thing the host wasn’t there computers don’t travel well as well as laying on parties like this one the computer can also lay on dates if you answer its questionnaire first what do you think of it well I filled mine out about two months ago and I received nine names girls names and I called up two of them they’re very nice the idea was to

00:00:48 have a fun time and give your name and the name of the person present with whom you thought you were most compatible to the computer it decides who in fact was the most compatible couple present and the winners get a big night out on the town perhaps a half a million individuals applying to these various computer organizations uh we feel that this indicates a great social need a need to streamline and to streamline our our surgeons for people whom we can find compatible and with whom we can make

00:01:22 friendships that’s Dr salvator though talking to some Skeptics at the party he’s described as an authority on love sex dating and marriage he’s the psychologist who approved the questionnaire do match people they say that they match people on many many uh variables but it winds up that they match them only on age sex religion and height or something like that which are the obvious ones and yet what how what you had what somebody 20 years older no almost and this is you know it’s fairly basic she specified you know an age

00:02:00 limit and she gets some guy 20 years old as she is that’s not with our with our project tax no but this this has been the problem and I just wonder how you know what you what you do to avoid the same problem other than you just get a larger Group Well we get a larger sample and we also refine our responses to the point where we can make more accurate judgments about what goes into making a happy couple a good pair you know a um a contented match tact uh stands for technical automated compatibility

00:02:32 testing and it’s a computerized dating service for young people throughout the large cities in America tact is not a lonely HS Club it’s not a marriage brokerage service it’s a new fun way of meeting new people it charges $5 which is a little under 2 lb to supply from 4 to 20 to 30 dates over a 4month period we work on what we call sociocultural factors which are interest common uh background education we work on opinions and values which is a second level of compatibility we try to match people who

00:03:11 share the same kinds of opinions and values and a third level which is psycho psychological level of compatibility which we try to match people who have needs complimentary needs for each other or who are similar in psychological ways if you’re attempted the present question questionaire may not seem very sophisticated sex and then your own and your ideal dates age height religion education stature the boys say I’m unusually attractive very attractive attractive average not particularly attractive my

00:03:49 hairstyle my eyes my date SI dislikes affected people birth control foreigners free love home homosexuals interracial marriage pseudo intellectuals rock and roll socialism select four only I worry over my relationships with people yes I worry over possible misfortunes no my sexual attitudes very liberal very conservative very liberal I enjoy close physical contact on a first or second date if my date is very appealing to me yes I enjoy people who Express affection freely yes most of the time I act as an

00:04:35 independent no in most situations I am a sociable person yes I seek close friendships with most people I know no I enjoy going to parties yes we’ve had some funny kinds of things happening with with our matching system we’ve matched uh an older brother with his younger sister uh that didn’t work out too well and we’ve matched was funny we matched boy who had broken up with his girlfriend they had been engaged but they broke up and they were rematched by the computer it seems they both had filled out tact and and when they were

00:05:08 matched they decided that they were probably men for each other and they got back together and now they’re getting married

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Scenario:

It’s 1965, and computer dating services are starting to become popular. However, many people don’t trust them yet! You and your partner will have a debate about whether computer matchmaking is a good idea.

Roles:

• Student A: You are a marketing executive working for TACT, the first computer dating service. You need to convince the public that it’s the future of romance.
• Student B: You are a newspaper journalist who is sceptical about the idea. You think relationships should happen naturally, not through a computer!

Task Instructions:

1. Step 1 (2 minutes individual brainstorming):

   • Marketing Executive: Prepare 3 reasons why computer dating is a great idea.
   • Journalist: Prepare 3 reasons why it might not work or could be risky.

2. Step 2 (10 minutes debate in pairs):

   • Each person presents one argument at a time. Try to challenge your partner’s points!
   • Be persuasive—your goal is to convince the other person.

3. Step 3 (Group Discussion):

   • Join another pair and explain your best arguments.
   • As a group, vote: Is computer dating a good or bad idea?

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