I ordered a few things from amazon.com and they soon after started sending me advertisements which I *think* must be tuned to my tastes according to what I have purchased from them. Or did they send this ad out to everybody? Has anyone else out in the writhing amoeba heard of Neil Gershenfeld? If their ads are tuned, they sure have *my* number. {8^D spike
When Things Start to Think
by Neil A. Gershenfeld A computer in your shoe? Maybe so. Neil Gershenfeld, director of MIT's Media Lab, joins the ranks of techno-prognosticators with When Things Start to Think, and his focus is on how the future of computing will fit into our physical realities. This sensorial focus allows Gershenfeld to explore such science fictional ideas as wearable computers, nanotech circuitry implants, as well as such concerns as emotions, money, and civil rights in the new age of artificial intelligence. Gershenfeld provides a historical overview of the development of computers and extrapolates a world in which we will be forced to deal with things that think all the time. This can't help but reshape our society in ways we must try to imagine. You may be surprised at how far along this road we are--Gershenfeld is in exactly the right place to tell this story, and it's a whole lot of fun (and a little scary) to ride this wave with him. --Adam Fisher