Combining myth, biography, and wit -- a highly original depiction of cutting-edge science -- told through the scientists who are rewriting life on earth
While the future of human existence is literally being forged by today's genetic scientists and biotechnology leaders, the media, policymakers, ethicists, and fellow scientists alike have not been adequately communicating the tremendous potential that is contained in these individuals' work. With the public only vaguely aware of what is really happening, a new coterie of geniuses, tinkerers, tycoons, and genetic soothsayers are -- for better or worse -- about to alter life on earth forever.
Now award-winning journalist David Ewing Duncan has written an insightful narrative about science and personality, delving into stem cell research, cloning, bioengineering, extending life span, and genetics by telling the stories of the characters at the fulcrum of the science. Calling to mind age-old stories and myths -- Prometheus, Faustus, Eve, and Frankenstein -- Duncan asks the question: Can we trust these scientists?
Duncan has spent the last three years reporting on and studying these masterminds, from the co-solver of the DNA structure James Watson to a man who is creating synthetic life, Craig Venter. The Geneticist Who Played Hoops with My DNA tells their stories, revealing their quirky, fascinating, and sometimes vaguely unsettling personas as a way to understand their science and the implications of their work.

The Geneticist Who Played Hoops with My DNA: . . . And Other Masterminds from the Frontiers of Biotech

Science & Math

David Ewing Duncan

Biological Sciences

William Morrow

An expose of the nation's medical training programs looks at the lives of overburdened medical residents and the intense life-and-death situations they must handle and concludes with a call for radical, lifesaving reform

Residents: The Perils and Promise of Educating Young Doctors

Medical Books

Administration & Medicine Economics

Scribner

Calendar: Humanity's Epic Struggle to Determine a True and Accurate Year

Astronomy & Space Science

Diane Pub Co.

Experimental Man

Turner Publishing

One of Time magazine's '32 Books You Need to Read This Summer' -- 'a riveting read'. 
PERFECT FOR FANS OF YUVAL NOAH HARARI'S SAPIENS AND HOMO DEUS.\n'A refreshing variation on the will-intelligent-robots-bring-Armageddon genre . . . this colorful mixture of expert futurology and quirky speculation does not disappoint' 
Kirkus Reviews 
'A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.' Isaac Asimov, The First Law of Robotics 
What robot and AI systems are being built and imagined right now? What do they say about us, their creators? Will they usher in a fantastic new future, or destroy us? What do some of our greatest thinkers, from physicist Brian Greene and futurist Kevin Kelly to inventor Dean Kamen, geneticist George Church and filmmaker Tiffany Shlain, anticipate for our human-robot future? For even as robots and AI intrigue us and make us anxious about the future, our fascination with robots has always been about more than the potential of the technology - it also concerns what robots tell us about being human. 
From present-day Facebook and Amazon bots to near-future 'intimacy' bots and 'the robot that swiped my job' bots, bestselling American popular science writer David Ewing Duncan's Talking to Robots is a wonderfully entertaining and insightful guide to possible future scenarios about robots, both real and imagined. 
Featured bots include robot drivers; doc bots; politician bots; warrior bots; sex bots; synthetic 
bio bots; dystopic bots that are hopefully just bad dreams; and ultimately, God Bot (as 
described by physicist Brian Greene). 
These scenarios are informed by discussions with well-known thinkers, engineers, scientists, artists, philosophers and others, who share with us their ideas, hopes and fears about robots. David spoke with, among others, Kevin Kelly, David Baldacci, Brian Greene, Dean Kamen, Craig Venter, Stephanie Mehta, David Eagleman, George Poste, George Church, General R. H. Latiff, Robert Seigel, Emily Morse, David Sinclair, Ken Goldberg, Sunny Bates, Adam Gazzaley, Tim O'Reilly, Tiffany Shlain, Eric Topol and Juan Enriquez. 
These discussions, along with some reporting on bot-tech, bot-history and real-time societal and 
ethical issues with robots, are the launch pads for unfurling possible bot futures that are informed by how people and societies have handled new technologies in the past. 
The book describes how robots work, but its primary focus is on what our fixation with bots 
and AI says about us as humans: about our hopes and anxieties; our myths, stories, beliefs and 
ideas about beings both real and artificial; and our attempts to attain perfection. 
We are at a pivotal moment when our ancient infatuation with human-like beings with certain 
attributes or superpowers - in mythology, religion and storytelling - is coinciding with our 
ability to actually build some of these entities.

Talking To Robots EXPORT

Computers & Technology

Computer Science

Robinson

An astonishing tale of Wall Street and the explosion of new life-science technologies and other industries of the future as told by one of the most creative dealmakers of the past 60 years. When Fred Frank arrived on Wall Street in 1958, he became a key member of a small, whip-smart cadre of young financiers who began challenging the stodgy, risk-averse scions of old-world investment banking. He also became the first banker to specialize in biotechnology,&nbsp;pharmaceuticals, and&nbsp;health care services. Frank's perpetual search for the new--pioneering technologies and innovative business models--has transformed our world. A Philosopher on Wall Street is an intriguing tale of * a man who was a force of verve and ingenuity on Wall Street, who built and nurtured new industries that have impacted everyone;&nbsp; * Wall Street and its history since the late 1950s, the surprisingly fascinating story of how high technology in America was capitalized, and the formation and meteoric rise of the pharma and biotech industries;&nbsp; * the best and worst of Wall Street over the past sixty years, and thoughts about the future of how to fund innovation to benefit both people and the bottom line * colorful stories from top innovators, scientists, executives, and investors about deals, intrigue, genius, booms and busts. &#8203;This is the story of one of the most creative dealmakers of the past sixty years, a master artist of finance whose erudition and grace helped shape our world, who has always believed that inspired science, entrepreneurship, and investing are the keys to a better future.&nbsp;

A Philosopher on Wall Street: How Creative Financier Fred Frank Forged the Future

Biographies & Memoirs

Professionals & Academics

Greenleaf Book Group Press

Few scientific discoveries have generated as much excitement - or offered as much promise - as the creation of recombinant DNA in 1972. By "recombining" artificial DNA from multiple sources, scientists changed the face of medicine, making possible the unlimited production of human proteins and thus the potential mass production of medical, agricultural, enviromental, and industrial products. This discovery set the stage for the biotechnology revolution, offering both opportunity and risk for visionaries willing to plunge in. Amgen - now the world's largest biotechnology company - was an enthusiastic trailblazer. The Amgen Story: 25 Years of Visionary Science and Powerful Medicine traces the company from its beginning as a gleam in the eyes of three men through the fulfillment of their dream: the creation of a unique company grounded in the field of biotechnology. It chronicles determined scientists willing to stake their future on the unknown, early promises that didn't pan out, scientific perseverance that saved the young company, breakthrough discoveries that led to life-changing medicine, competitive challenges that transformed the organization, and explosive growth that, by the end of 2004, resulted in more than fourteen thousand staff worldwide. Moving between the labratory and the boardroom, the book also details the strategies of the Amgen's three CEO's, who each steered the company through vastly different territory - from cash-strapped Start-up to multi-billion-dollar protein manufacturer and medicine distributor. Finally, The Amgen Story documents the company's impact on the lives of millions of patients through its transforming products.

Amgen Story : 25 Years of Visionary Science and Powerful Medicine

Tehabi

Historia del Calendario (Spanish Edition)

Emecé Editores

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Books by David Ewing Duncan