Smoke & Mirrors: How Hype Obscures the Future and How to See Past It
- ISBN-10
- 1472143655
- ISBN-13
- 9781472143655
- Series
- Smoke & Mirrors
- Category
- Science
- Pages
- 336
- Language
- English
- Published
- 2020-04-23
- Publisher
- Robinson
- Author
- Gemma Milne
Description
'Stop following the news until you've read Gemma Milne's persuasive analysis of the hype and bullshit that distort our understanding of emerging science. As she shows, the starting point to grasping the genuine opportunities of AI, life sciences and climate tech is a healthy dose of critical thinking' David Rowan, founding editor of WIRED UK and author of Non-Bullshit Innovation: Radical Ideas from the World's Smartest Minds 'Couldn't be more timely. Fascinating and vitally important' Jamie Bartlett, author of The People Vs Tech 'A much-needed blast of fresh air! Gemma Milne expertly shows us how to separate the truth from the hype surrounding the emerging techs of today, and those of the near-tomorrow' Lewis Dartnell, author of Origins: How the Earth Made Us 'I loved this book! This is exactly the sort of sceptical, cut-through-the crap-but-still-excited-about-what's-emerging book around tech innovation that's sorely needed, yet is so hard to find . . . essential reading for anyone who's serious about how real-world advances might be effectively harnessed to build a better future' Dr Andrew Maynard, scientist and author of Films from the Future and Future Rising '[A] vital contribution in a world where technological progress promises so much, but too often disappoints. If, like me, you believe that advances in science and technology are our best hope for solving the grand challenges of our times, this book is the indispensable guide to avoiding the mirages and the charlatans along the way' Matt Clifford, co-founder and CEO of Entrepreneur First 'A refreshingly grown-up, clear-headed look at the interaction between science, technology and the media - readable without being dumbed down, acknowledging complexities without being heavy' Tom Chivers, author of The AI Does Not Hate You 'ROBOTS WILL STEAL YOUR JOB!' 'AI WILL REVOLUTIONISE FARMING!' 'GENETIC EDITING WILL CURE CANCER!' Bombastic headlines about science and technology are nothing new. To cut through the constant stream of information and misinformation on social media, or grab the attention of investors, or convince governments to take notice, strident headlines or bold claims seem necessary to give complex, nuanced information some wow factor. But hype has a dark side, too. It can mislead. It can distract. It can blinker us from seeing what is actually going on. From AI, quantum computing and brain implants, to cancer drugs, future foods and fusion energy, science and technology journalist Gemma Milne reveals hype to be responsible for fundamentally misdirecting or even derailing crucial progress. Hype can be combated and discounted, though, if you're able to see exactly where, how and why it is being deployed. This book is your guide to doing just that.
Get the book
Other editions
Similar books
-
Smoke and Mirrors: Short Fictions and Illusions
By Neil GaimanReaders will find echoes of H.P. Lovecraft, Harlan Ellison, Ray Bradbury, and Stephen King, but the voice is all Gaiman . . . Highly imaginative, to say the least.” “Gaiman is a star. He constructs stories like some demented cook might ...
-
Smoke and Mirrors
By Mike Costa, Jon ArmstrongStage magician Terry Ward must use his skills to survive in a world where magic rules.
-
Smoke and Mirrors
By S. Jason CunninghamThis book exposes secret societies and elite oligarchies and truly "connects the dots" of history with astonishing and shocking, yet truly believable, conclusions.
-
Smoke & Mirrors
By Michael FaudetRomance seldom happens overnight. Sometimes we have to grow the roses before we can give them. -- from back cover.
-
Muscle Smoke and Mirrors
By Randy RoachMuscle Smoke and Mirrors
-
Smoke and Mirrors: The Magical World of Chemical Dependency
By Dorothy Marie EnglandAs a professional working with families ravaged by addiction, and as a member of Al-Anon seeking to grow and be a good steward of the life experiences that are mine, I am challenged by this book to seek ways to apply its techniques with ...
-
Smoke & Mirrors: The Canadian Tobacco War
By Rob Cunningham... 41 , 74 , 129f , 260 Widmer , Lorne 306 Wilson , Elinor 175 Wilson , Michael 122f Wilson , Peter 296 Wilson , Reverend Robert 32 Windsor 180 Winnipeg , Manitoba 5 , 233 World Conference on Smoking and Health 68 , 122 , 295 Winston ...
-
Smoke And Mirrors
By Elly GriffithsAnnie, a dark child, wrote gruesome plays based on the Grimms’ fairy tales. Does the key to the case lie in her final script? Or does the macabre staging of the bodies point to the theater and the capricious cast of Aladdin?
-
Smoke and Mirrors: Cars, Photography and Dreams of the Open Road
By Hoxton Mini PressA car is a vehicle not just for transport but for our hopes, desires and dreams. In Smoke and Mirrors, a selection of world-renowned and up-and-coming photographers come together to pay tribute to the car.
-
Smoke and Mirrors: How Science Reflects Reality
By James Robert BrownHe was the antithesis of the latter-day positivist, Ernest Nagel. Nevertheless, the two were like-minded on this matter; both saw science as having these three distinct components. After noting that 'Scientific thought takes its ...