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**The New York Times Bestseller** 'Space elevators, gold asteroids, and fusion-powered toasters - who knew science could...
**The New York Times Bestseller** 'Space elevators, gold asteroids, and fusion-powered toasters - who knew science could be so much fun? Soonish is hilarious, provocative, and shamelessly informative' Tim Harford, author of Messy and The Undercover Economist From a top scientist and the creator of the hugely popular web comic Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal, an illustrated investigation into future technologies What will the world of tomorrow be like? How does progress happen? And why don't we have a lunar colony yet? In this witty and entertaining book, Zach and Kelly Weinersmith give us a snapshot of the transformative technologies that are coming next - from robot swarms to nuclear fusion powered-toasters - and explain how they will change our world in astonishing ways. By weaving together their own research, interviews with pioneering scientists and Zach's trademark comics, the Weinersmiths investigate why these innovations are needed, how they would work, and what is standing in their way. Author: Dr. Kelly Weinersmith, Zach Weinersmith ISBN:9781846148996
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From one of our leading technology thinkers and writers, a guide through the twelve technological imperatives that will...
From one of our leading technology thinkers and writers, a guide through the twelve technological imperatives that will shape the next thirty years and transform our lives Much of what will happen in the next thirty years is inevitable, driven by technological trends that are already in motion. In this fascinating, provocative new book, Kevin Kelly provides an optimistic road map for the future, showing how the coming changes in our lives--from virtual reality in the home to an on-demand economy to artificial intelligence embedded in everything we manufacture--can be understood as the result of a few long-term, accelerating forces. Kelly both describes these deep trends--interacting, cognifying, flowing, screening, accessing, sharing, filtering, remixing, tracking, and questioning--and demonstrates how they overlap and are codependent on one another. These larger forces will completely revolutionize the way we buy, work, learn, and communicate with each other. By understanding and embracing them, says Kelly, it will be easier for us to remain on top of the coming wave of changes and to arrange our day-to-day relationships with technology in ways that bring forth maximum benefits. Kelly's bright, hopeful book will be indispensable to anyone who seeks guidance on where their business, industry, or life is heading--what to invent, where to work, in what to invest, how to better reach customers, and what to begin to put into place--as this new world emerges. Author: Kevin Kelly ISBN:9780143110378
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We are on the cusp of a revolution. Mobile phones, computers and iPods are commonplace in hundreds of millions of househ...
We are on the cusp of a revolution. Mobile phones, computers and iPods are commonplace in hundreds of millions of households worldwide, influencing how we think and shaping how we interact. In the future, smart machines will compete with clever people for employment and even human affection. We are shifting to a world where knowledge will be automated and people will be rewarded instead as conceptual and creative thinkers. Hence being able to think and act in ways that machines cannot will become vital. Ideas are the currency of this new economy and curiosity and imagination are among the key raw materials. But what happens to the rigour of our thinking in a world where we never really sit still or completely switch off? What are some of the unexpected consequences of digital information on the 100 billion cells and quadrillion connections inside our brains? Future Minds illustrates how to maximise the potential of digital technology and minimise its greatest downside, addressing the future of thinking and how we can ensure that we unleash the extraordinary potential of the human mind. In this absorbing new book, discover all about: the sex life of ideas; the rise of the screenager; generations, gender and geography; delving deep inside your head; how to clear a blocked brain; why clever people make dumb mistakes; why we are so afraid of doing nothing; what we can do to reclaim our brains. Author: Richard Watson ISBN:9781857885491
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Get ready to make history... better. What would you do if you had a time machine that took you hundreds or thousands of...
Get ready to make history... better. What would you do if you had a time machine that took you hundreds or thousands of years into the past... and then broke? How would you survive? Could you rebuild civilization faster than it took us the first time? And how hard would it be to domesticate a giant wombat? In How to Invent Everything, bestselling author and time-travel enthusiast Ryan North answers all these questions so you don't have to. This guide contains all the science, engineering, mathematics, art, music, philosophy, facts, and figures required for even the most clueless stranded time traveler to build a civilization from the ground up. It will be one in which humanity matured quickly and efficiently, instead of spending 200,000 years stumbling around in the dark without language, not knowing that tying a rock to a string would unlock navigating the entire world, and thinking disease was caused by weird smells. Both fascinating and hilarious, How To Invent Everything is a deeply researched history of the key technologies that made each stage of human civilization possible (from writing and farming to buttons and birth control), but it's as entertaining as a good time-travel novel. It’s a perfect read for fans of Randall Munroe’s What If? and Thing Explainer, zombie apocalypse survivors, web comic lovers and wannabe time travellers everywhere. Author: Ryan North ISBN:9780753552568
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