Those limitations notwithstanding, Otlet’s version of
  hypertext held a few important advantages over today’s Web.
  For one thing, he saw a smarter kind of hyperlink. Whereas 
  links on the Web today serve as a kind of mute bond between 
  documents, Otlet envisioned links that carried meaning by, 
  for example, annotating if particular documents agreed or 
  disagreed with each other. That facility is notably lacking 
  in the dumb logic of modern hyperlinks.

Otlet had some fascinating ideas that even now could change the way information is stored and effect how relationships between data are analyzed.

Another interesting thought: how do we find the modern geniuses like Otlet and learn from them now rather than waiting until they're gone?