Winner of the Wellcome Book Prize 2018
Shortlisted for The Royal Society Science Book Prize 2017
Shortlistedfor the Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction 2017
What is transhumanism Simply put,it is a movement whose aim is to use technology to fundamentally change the human condition,to improve our bodies and minds to the point where we become something other,and better,than the animals we are. It's a philosophy that,depending on how you look at it,can seem hopeful,or terrifying,or absurd.
In To Be a Machine,Mark O'Connell presents us with the first full-length exploration of transhumanism: its philosophical and scientific roots,its key players and possible futures. From charismatic techies seeking to enhance the body to immortalists who believe in the possibility of'solving'death; from computer programmers quietly re-designing the world to vast competitive robotics conventions; To Be a Machine is an Alice's Adventures in Wonderland for our time.
To Be a Machine paints a vivid portrait of an international movement driven by strange and frequently disturbing ideas and practices,but whose obsession with transcending human limitations can be seen as a kind of cultural microcosm,a radical intensification of our broader faith in the power of technology as an engine of human progress.
It is a character study of human eccentricity,and a meditation on the immemorial desire to transcend the basic facts of our animal existence - a desire as primal as the oldest religions,a story as old as the earliest literary texts. A stunning new non-fiction voice tackles an urgent question... what next for mankind
Publisher: Granta BooksISBN: 9781783781980Number of pages: 256Weight: 183 gDimensions: 198 x 129 x 15 mm
MEDIA REVIEWS
'Extraordinary'- Financial Times
'(It's) O'Connell's lack of stridency,as well as his often splendid writing,that makes him such a companionable guide.'- The Guardian
'O'Connell is a very,very funny writer and he inserts himself Ronson-like into a series of absurd,ironic and alarming situations... By exposing the ludicrous yet terrifying serious ideologies behind transhumanism,To Be a Machine is an important book,as well as a seriously funny one'- The Sunday Times
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