Is the universe simply one big machine, made up of countless smaller machines (human beings, for example)? Or is there something more to living creatures, some vital, directive force? In The Vital Machine , David Channell explores the history of our relationship with technology, arguing for a framework for dealing with the tension between the mechanical and organic world views. Our fears of such things as genetic engineering and artificial intelligence, he suggests, lie in this outmoded distinction between organic life and ...
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Is the universe simply one big machine, made up of countless smaller machines (human beings, for example)? Or is there something more to living creatures, some vital, directive force? In The Vital Machine , David Channell explores the history of our relationship with technology, arguing for a framework for dealing with the tension between the mechanical and organic world views. Our fears of such things as genetic engineering and artificial intelligence, he suggests, lie in this outmoded distinction between organic life and machines. He presents these polar views in a fascinating chronicle of human thought and achievement, from Galileo to Descartes to Marx to Einstein. He then sketches the emerging third, all-embracing philosophy, born of genetics, quantum mechanics, and artificial intelligence.
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Seller's Description:
Minor rubbing. VG., dustwrapper. 24x16cm, xi, 192 pp. Contents: Introduction: The Mechanical & the Organic; The Mechanical World View: The Clockwork Universe; Mechanical Organisms: From Automata to Clockwork Humans; The Organic World View: From Magic to Vitalism; Organic Machines: Technology as Plant; The Emergence of the Bionic World View; The Vital Machine; Conclusion: Ethics in the Age of the Vital Machine.
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Seller's Description:
Very Good. Very Good condition. Very Good dust jacket. A copy that may have a few cosmetic defects. May also contain light spine creasing or a few markings such as an owner's name, short gifter's inscription or light stamp.
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Seller's Description:
Very Good. Very Good Dust Jacket. 1st printing of 1st edition, from a private collection. Tight and clean with unclipped DJ. DJ has rubbing, otherwise shelfwear is very minor. Ships from Dinkytown in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
