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Robots -- especially their most human-like
incarnation, androids -- by now are a staple of popular
culture. But in labs around the world, scientists and robotics
experts are tinkering with the next generation of 21st-century
beings, turning science fiction into science fact. At MIT,
for example, you can meet COG, obviously constructed of
metal and wires, yet eerily human in its aspect. While you're
there, you can drop in on COG's "cousin," Kismet.
With a friendly, sort of clownish appearance, its body language
signals a change in moods, complete with frowns, smiles,
and a child-like babble. And if you happened by ROBODEX
2003 in Yokohama, Japan, you'd have had a chance to meet
and greet the smartest robots around -- they walk, they
talk, and they are almost guaranteed to produce a hair-raising,
gut-level reaction. Because just as we connect to R2D2,
Commander Data, and even the Terminator, the merest hint
of human-like action or appearance in an artificial being,
invariably engages us on a deep and meaningful level.
Digital People examines the ways
in which technology is inexorably driving us to a new and
different level of humanity. As scientists draw on nanotechnology,
molecular biology, artificial intelligence, and materials
science, they are learning how to create beings that move,
think, and look like people. Other researchers are routinely
using sophisticated surgical techniques to implant computer
chips and drug-dispensing devices into our bodies, designing
fully functional man-made body parts, and linking human
brains with computers to make people healthier, smarter,
and stronger.
In short, we are going beyond what was once
the stuff of books and films to create genuine people with
fully integrated artificial components -- and it will not
be long before we reach the ultimate goal of constructing
a completely synthetic human-like being. While we hope to
produce a better humanity, we nevertheless harbor fears
that our power to create will ultimately debase the human
spirit. Certainly this God-like ability brings us face-to-face
with a host of troubling spiritual, ethical, and legal dilemmas.
In Digital People, scientist and
acclaimed author Sidney Perkowitz examines the achievements
of contemporary science at the highest level, makes bold
predictions about the evolution toward the next level of
humanity, and contemplates what this development means for
our vision of ourselves. This thoughtful and provocative
book shows us just where technology is taking us, in directions
both wonderful and terrible, and asks us to ponder what
it means to be human.
Sidney Perkowitz is the Charles Howard
Candler Professor of Physics at Emory University. He has
presented and written about science, technology, and culture
for CNN, NPR, The Sciences, Technology Review,
Encyclopedia Britannica, American Prospect,
The Washington Post, and other outlets. His books
include Empire of Light, about science and art; and
Universal Foam: From Cappuccino to the Cosmos. Professor
Perkowitz lives in Atlanta, Georgia.
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