Hard Science Fiction Films that Predict Future Technology“As the breakneck advance of technology takes us into a world that is both exciting and menacing, sci-fi films give us an inkling of what is to come, and what we should avoid.” —Seth Shostak, senior astronomer at the SETI Institute, and host of Big Picture Science#1 Best Seller in Nanotechnology, Computers & Technology, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Mechanical Engineering, and ...

How do you rediscover what makes you you in a world where AI can replicate everything you do?In AI and the Art of Being Human, leading experts Jeffrey Abbott and Andrew Maynard explore how to embrace your full humanity at a time when machines are increasingly able to mirror your every move. Blending storytelling and practical insight while drawing on their own work and experiences, they reveal what becomes possible when technology reflects who we ...

An awareness of one’s own ethical assumptions and how these inform everyday practice is crucial for all student social workers. Social workers who genuinely wish to do the right thing by their services users have no alternative but to constantly think and rethink the principles and assumptions that inform their actions, and this book supports them on their journey to do just that.This third edition is set out in two parts: Part I deals with broad ideas about values and ethics in ge...

Nanotechnology, clean technology, and geoengineering span the scale of human ingenuity, from the imperceptibly small to the unimaginably large. Yet they are united by a commonality of ethics that permeates how and why they are developed, and how the resulting consequences are managed. The articles in this volume provide a comprehensive account of current thinking around the ethics of development and use within each of the technological domains, and addresses challenges and opportunities th...

A Compelling Vision of the Future. If you enjoy nonfiction like Homo Deus, Sapiens, and A Short History of Nearly Everything, then you'll love FUTURE RISING.Over the course of 14 billion years, humanity has gained the ability not only to imagine the future, but to design and engineer it. Entertaining and profound, Future Rising by Dr. Andrew Maynard, provides a highly original perspective on our relationship with the future. Written to be easy to pick up and hard to put down, Futur...

Learn how movies reveal the future of technologyFans of The Science of Interstellar, The Second Machine Age, and Physics of the Future will love Films from the Future.Science, technology, and society: In Films from the Future, former physicist Andrew Maynard threads together his love of science fiction movies with his expertise on emerging technologies to engage, entertain, and m...

Who owns the past and the objects that physically connect us to history? And who has the right to decide this ownership, particularly when the objects are sacred or, in the case of skeletal remains, human? Is it the museums that care for the objects or the communities whose ancestors made them? These questions are at the heart of Plundered Skulls and Stolen Spirits.Today, hundreds of tribes use the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act to help them recover...

In this acclaimed biography that earned him a spot on Nixon's infamous "enemies list," Garry Wills takes a thoughtful, in-depth, and often "very amusing" look at the thirty-seventh US president, and draws some surprising conclusions about a man whose name has become synonymous with scandal and the abuse of power (Kirkus Reviews).Arguing that Nixon was a reflection of the country that elected him, Wills examines not only the psychology of the man himself and his relationshi...

The Profits of Religion: An Essay in Economic Interpretation by Upton Sinclair is a scathing critique of organized religion as an institution entangled with wealth, power, and class oppression. Sinclair argues that religious establishments often serve the interests of the rich, legitimizing social inequality and discouraging reform. Drawing on historical and contemporary examples, he exposes financial corruption, dogma, and the exploitation of faith for profit. From mainstream denomination...

What is a country? While certain basic tenets—such as the clear demarcation of a country's borders, and the acknowledgment of its sovereignty by other countries and by international governing bodies like the United Nations—seem applicable, journalist Joshua Keating's book explores exceptions to these rules, including "breakaway," "semi-autonomous," or "self-proclaimed" countries such as Abkhazia, Kurdistan, Somaliland, a Mohawk reservation straddling the U.S.-Canada border, and an island n...

Long before space travel was possible, the idea of life beyond Earth transfixed humans. In this fascinating book, astronomer Jon Willis explores the science of astrobiology and the possibility of locating other life in our own galaxy.Describing the most recent discoveries by space exploration missions, including the Kepler space telescope, the Mars Curiosity rover, and the New Horizons probe, Willis asks listeners to imagine—and choose among—five scenarios for fin...

**“This book is required reading for everyone who cares about education.”—Adam Grant, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Hidden Potential and Think Again, and host of the podcast Re:Thinking“Read this book. It’s the most fascinating and important account of how AI will transform the way we learn.”—Walter Isaacson, #1 New York Times bestselling authorFrom the founder of Khan Academy, the first book on the AI rev...