After a hectic summer of writing and editing, I’m pleased (if a little frazzled) to report that the book formerly known as “The Moviegoer’s Guide to the Future” is on schedule to be published mid-November of this year.
Just to whet your appetite, here’s a quick update on where things stand:
What’s the new title?
After reading the first draft of the book, my publisher thought the book would have much wider appeal with its intending audience with the title “Films from the Future: The Technology and Morality of Sci-Fi Movies“. I agree–plus, it plainly says what’s between the covers.
Who’s the book for?
Everyone–obviously! Actually, the target audience is anyone who’s curious about emerging science and technology, is intrigued by some of the more knotty societal challenges and opportunities they present, and is looking for an entertaining and engaging read that’s not to taxing, but makes them think.
I’m expecting the book to be especially interesting to anyone working in the tech sector who’s currently grappling with how to develop their products responsibly while staying in business.
And just in case you were wondering, you don’t have to be into sci-fi movies to enjoy it.
What’s the book about?
This is a book about cool tech, responsible innovation, and our relationship with powerful and complex emerging technologies. The movies are a fascinating way to explore these themes, but this is not a book about the films themselves, so much as the ideas and insights they inspire. beyond the movies, it’s a journey of discovery into the transformative nature of emerging and converging technologies, and how we help ensure these benefit people’s lives.
Okay, so what are the actual contents?
Here’s the full table of contents:
- Chapter One. In the Beginning
- Beginnings
- Welcome to the Future
- The Power of Convergence
- Socially Responsible Innovation
- A Common Point of Focus
- Spoiler Alert
- Chapter Two. Jurassic Park: The Rise of Resurrection Biology
- When Dinosaurs Ruled the World
- De-Extinction
- Could We, Should We?
- The Butterfly Effect
- Visions of Power
- Chapter Three. Never Let Me Go: A Cautionary Tale of Human Cloning
- Sins of Futures Past
- Cloning
- Genuinely Human?
- Too Valuable to Fail?
- Chapter Four. Minority Report: Predicting Criminal Intent
- Criminal Intent
- The “Science” of Predicting Bad Behavior
- Criminal Brain Scans
- Machine-Learning Based Precognition
- Big Brother, Meet Big Data
- Chapter Five. Limitless: Pharmaceutically-Enhanced Intelligence
- A Pill for Everything
- The Seduction of Self-Enhancement
- Nootropics
- If You Could, Would You?
- Privileged Technology
- Our Obsession with Intelligence
- Chapter Six. Elysium: Social Inequity in an Age of Technological Extremes
- The Poor Shall Inherit the Earth
- Bioprinting our Future Bodies
- The Disposable Workforce
- Living in an Automated Future
- Chapter Seven. Ghost in the Shell: Being Human in an Augmented Future
- Through a Glass Darkly
- Body Hacking
- More than “Human”?
- Plugged In; Hacked Out
- Your Corporate Body
- Chapter Eight. Ex Machina: AI and the Art of Manipulation
- Plato’s Cave
- The Lure of Permissionless Innovation
- Technologies of Hubris
- Superintelligence
- Defining Artificial Intelligence
- Artificial Manipulation
- Chapter Nine. Transcendence: Welcome to the Singularity
- Visions of the Future
- Technological Convergence
- Enter the Neo Luddites
- Techno-Terrorism
- Exponential Extrapolation
- Make Believe in the Age of the Singularity
- Chapter Ten. The Man in the White Suit: Living in a Material World
- There’s Plenty of Room at the Bottom
- Mastering the Material World
- Myopically Benevolent Science
- Never Underestimate the Status Quo
- It’s Good to Talk
- Chapter Eleven. Inferno: Immoral Logic in an Age of Genetic Manipulation
- Decoding Make Believe
- Weaponizing the Genome
- Immoral Logic?
- The Honest Broker
- Dictating the Future
- Chapter Twelve. The Day After Tomorrow: Riding the Wave of Climate Change
- Our Changing Climate
- Fragile States
- A Planetary “Microbiome”
- The Rise of the Anthropocene
- Building Resiliency
- Geoengineering the Future
- Chapter Thirteen. Contact: Living by More than Science Alone
- An Awful Waste of Space
- More than Science Alone
- Occam’s Razor
- What if We’re Not Alone?
- Chapter 14. Looking to the Future
- Acknowledgements
And where can I get a copy of the published book?
Amazon is already accepting pre-orders, and the book’s scheduled to be released on November 15