Audiobook6 hours
The Age of Living Machines: How the Convergence of Biology and Engineering Will Build the Next Technology Revolution
Written by Susan Hockfield
Narrated by Andrea Gallo
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
4/5
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About this audiobook
From the former president of MIT, the story of the next technology revolution, and how it will change our lives. A century ago, discoveries in physics came together with engineering to produce an array of astonishing new technologies: radios, telephones, televisions, aircraft, radar, nuclear power, computers, the Internet, and a host of still-evolving digital tools. These technologies so radically reshaped our world that we can no longer conceive of life without them. Today, the world's population is projected to rise to well over 9.5 billion by 2050, and we are currently faced with the consequences of producing the energy that fuels, heats, and cools us. With temperatures and sea levels rising, and large portions of the globe plagued with drought, famine, and drug-resistant diseases, we need new technologies to tackle these problems. But we are on the cusp of a new convergence, argues world-renowned neuroscientist Susan Hockfield, with discoveries in biology coming together with engineering to produce another array of almost inconceivable technologies?next-generation products that have the potential to be every bit as paradigm shifting as the twentieth century's digital wonders. The Age of Living Machines describes some of the most exciting new developments and the scientists and engineers who helped create them. Virus-built batteries. Protein-based water filters. Cancer-detecting nanoparticles. Mind-reading bionic limbs. Computer-engineered crops. Together they highlight the promise of the technology revolution of the twenty-first century to overcome some of the greatest humanitarian, medical, and environmental challenges of our time.
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Reviews for The Age of Living Machines
Rating: 3.8448275586206897 out of 5 stars
4/5
29 ratings3 reviews
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5The focus of the book is about her self. It’s junk.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Combination memoir of how Hockfield became president of MIT and report on cutting edge molecular biology innovations. I like the positive tone of this book. It gives us hope for the future in making progress toward solving global problems.
Hockfield addresses such topics as using viruses to produce more efficient (and ecologically sound) batteries, producing lower cost water purification, developing earlier detection methods for cancer, connecting prosthetics directly to the brain, and genetically engineering improvements in food production.
I was previously unaware of some of these topics and found it fascinating. At times the author employs rather technical terminology. This is not an exhaustive analysis of risks and benefits – it is more for raising awareness of areas where microbiology is currently being pursued to improve our world. - Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5A well-written science book. The author shows a great sign of intelligence by being able to take highly scientific specific subjects to a level of explanation that the layperson can understand. I am not so sure about the safety of Roundup and scientists takes on agriculture. I am more about diversity in lieu of monoculture. MIT takes a lot of money from Koch Industries. To say that does not play into MIT's culture is to be naive. It seems like MIT believes that engineering will solve all the planet's problems especially climate change.