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Informatie over het werkImmortality, Inc.: Renegade Scientists, Silicon Valley Gurus, and the Future of Cheating Death door Chip Walter
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Meld je aan bij LibraryThing om erachter te komen of je dit boek goed zult vinden. Op dit moment geen Discussie gesprekken over dit boek. Useful reportage on this young century's research efforts to slow or even arrest human aging. The people and companies most focused on are Art Levinson, Craig Venter, Ray Kurzweil, Aubrey de Grey, Calico Labs LLC, and Human Longevity Inc. "A series of profound advancements will follow in the next five to ten years." (p 281) In a couple of places, the author's words took me aback: (1) Page 186 (and the endnotes referenced thereon) suggests that his grasp of mathematics and the Greek alphabet is shockingly poor. (2) As people like Susan Schneider (in _Artificial You_) and Christof Koch (in _The Feeling of Life Itself_) have pointed out, stating that mind uploading by copying (e.g. to the computational "Cloud") would provide "true immortality" (p 256) is quite mistaken. geen besprekingen | voeg een bespreking toe
This gripping narrative explores today's scientific pursuit of immortality, with exclusive visits inside Silicon Valley labs and interviews with the visionaries who believe we will soon crack into the aging process and cure death. We live in an age when billionaires are betting their fortunes on laboratory advances to prove aging unnecessary and death a disease that can be cured. Researchers are delving into the mysteries of stem cells and the human genome, discovering what it means to grow old and how to keep those processes from happening. This isn't science fiction; it's real, it's serious, and it's on track to revolutionize our definitions of life and mortality. In Immortality, Inc., veteran science journalist Chip Walter gains exclusive access to the champions of this radical cause, delivering a book that brings together for the first time the visions of molecular biologist and Apple chairman Arthur Levinson, genomics entrepreneur Craig Venter, futurist Ray Kurzweil, rejuvenation trailblazer Aubrey de Grey, and stem cell expert Robert Hariri. Along the way, Walter weaves in fascinating conversations about life, death, aging, and the future of the human race. Geen bibliotheekbeschrijvingen gevonden. |
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Google Books — Bezig met laden... GenresDewey Decimale Classificatie (DDC)612.68Technology Medicine and health Human physiology Reproduction; Development; Maturation LongevityLC-classificatieWaarderingGemiddelde:
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To me, the most interesting part was Walter's thesis about why research into these technologies have take off now; basically, he argues that the baby boomers are the first generation to see most people actually die of aging, and they're also the first generation where you can see a doctor and get cured of most things, thanks to widespread vaccination and the use of antibiotics. So they would also be the first generation to think of aging itself as a problem that can be medically solved, as opposed to an inevitability.
The focus of the book is on the people funding and doing this research; I found this kind of interesting, but maybe not interesting enough in proportion to the amount of time spent on the bios of a bunch of (frequently obnoxious sounding) venture capitalists. He also discusses some of the science behind it all. If there's a weakness to this book, it's that it's all a bit breathless and credulous; it felt to me like it was repeating these people's talking points instead of, say, interrogating them. I would have appreciated an outside scientific voice in the narrative, someone who could say if these people were actually pursuing viable lines of research, or if it was all an incredibly expensive vanity project.
It's very well researched (Walter did a lot of original interviews) and it gives you a lot to chew on, but I do wish the book had done some of this chewing for you, so to speak. (Okay, that's a bad metaphor.) I don't know enough about the science to know if I should believe in these technologies as they are presented. But maybe that's asking too much for what is clearly meant to be an easy-read pop science book. I think it will be very useful to teach, and with some good framing, I think our students will get a lot out of it.