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The Tundra Trials
by Monica TeslerJasper learns that secrets can strain even the strongest bonds as the Bounders adventure continues in The Tundra Trials.After discovering that Earth Force is waging a covert alien war, Jasper and his friends return to space and continue their training. This time, Earth Force brings them to the remote planet of Gulaga, where the cadets compete in the Tundra Trials: a grueling pod race across the planet's frigid landscape. But when their pod leader asks Jasper and Mira to secretly test a dangerous new technology that will take their Bounder abilities to the next level, the kids begin to suspect that there are rifts within Earth Force. The worst part? Jasper must keep the truth from everyone--even his own pod mates. When Earth Force prepares for an attack against the aliens, the kids are tasked with a treacherous mission. With their loyalties torn, will Jasper and his friends once again fulfill their duty and fight for their planet? And if they do, will the secret tech work as planned or lead their enemies to their doorstep?
The Turbulence Problem: A Persistent Riddle in Historical Perspective (SpringerBriefs in History of Science and Technology)
by Michael EckertOn the road toward a history of turbulence, this book focuses on what the actors in this research field have identified as the “turbulence problem”. Turbulent flow rose to prominence as one of the most persistent challenges in science. At different times and in different social and disciplinary settings, the nature of this problem has changed in response to changing research agendas. This book does not seek to provide a comprehensive account, but instead an exemplary exposition on the environments in which problems become the subjects of research agendas, with particular emphasis on the first half of the 20th century.
The Turn of Moore’s Law from Space to Time: The Crisis, The Perspective and The Strategy
by Liming XiuThis book states that a space-induced crisis is recognized as the cause of trouble that Moore’s Law is currently facing. The contemporary practice of this empirical law can be considered as happening within a space-dominant paradigm. An alternative of exploiting potential in the dimension of time is identified as an emerging paradigm in microelectronics. The new practice is termed a time-oriented paradigm. It is justified as the turn of Moore’s Law from space to time. The resultant Time-Moore strategy is envisioned as the next-generation enabler for continuing Moore’s Law’s pursuit of everhigher information processing power and efficiency. It also serves as the perpetuation of the spirit that Moore’s law is nothing but a collective storied history of innovations. In the first part of this book, by following Thomas Kuhn’s seminal work around the concepts of paradigm and scientific revolution, the argument for the Time-Moore strategy (Time-Moore: to use time more) and the paradigm shift from space to time is carried out heavily through philosophical persuasion rather than technical proof due to the difficult challenge of change-of-mindset. The second part of the book provides solid technical materials for supporting this transition from the old paradigm to the new one. In short, the goal of this book is to reevaluate the contemporary practice of microelectronics, identify the cause of the current crisis, advocate a change-of-mindset to circumvent the crisis, and ultimately point out a new route for advancing. After achieving so many unprecedented accomplishments through several decades of relentless endeavor, it’s time for the big ship of Moore’s Law (i.e., the art of microelectronic system design) to make a turn.
The Twenty-First Century Commercial Space Imperative
by Anthony YoungYoung addresses the impressive expansion across existing and developing commercial space business markets, with multiple private companies competing in the payload launch services sector. The author pinpoints the new markets, technologies, and players in the industry, as well as highlighting the overall reasons why it is important for us to develop space. NASA now relies on commercial partners to supply cargo and crew spacecraft and services to and from the International Space Station. The sizes of satellites are diminishing and their capabilities expanding, while costs to orbit are decreasing. Suborbital space tourism holds the potential of new industries and jobs. Commercial space exploration of the Moon and the planets also holds promise. All this activity is a catalyst for anyone interested in joining the developing space industry, from students and researchers to engineers and entrepreneurs. As more and more satellites and rockets are launched and the business of space is expanding at a significant pace, it is increasingly important for scientists and engineers of many disciplines to understand how the business evolved and where it is continuing to develop. The growing field is fully explored in this concise overview to the players in this changing landscape.
The Twenty-First Century Mechanistic Theory of Human Cognition: A Critical Analysis (Cognitive Systems Monographs #41)
by Diego Azevedo LeiteThis book presents a theoretical critical appraisal of the Mechanistic Theory of Human Cognition (MTHC), which is one of the most popular major theories in the contemporary field of cognitive science. It analyses and evaluates whether MTHC provides a unifying account of human cognition and its explanation. The book presents a systematic investigation of the internal and external consistency of the theory, as well as a systematic comparison with other contemporary major theories in the field. In this sense, it provides a fresh look at more recent major theoretical debates in this area of scientific research and a rigorous analysis of one of its most central major theories. Rigorous theoretical work is integrated with objective consideration of relevant empirical evidence, making the discussions robust and clear. As a result, the book shows that MTHC provides a significant theoretical contribution for the field of cognitive science. The content is useful for those interested in theoretical and empirical issues concerning major theories in the contemporary field of cognitive science.
The Two-Second Advantage: How We Succeed by Anticipating the Future--Just Enough
by Kevin Maney Vivek RanadiveWhat made Wayne Gretzky the greatest hockey player of all time wasn't his speed on the ice or the uncanny accuracy of his shots, but rather his ability to predict where the puck was going to be an instant before it arrived. In other words, it was Gretzky's brain that made him exceptional. Over the past fifteen years, scientists have found that what distinguishes the greatest musicians, athletes, and performers from the rest of us isn't just their motor skills or athletic abilities--it is the ability to anticipate events before they happen. A great musician knows how notes will sound before they're played, a great CEO can predict how a business decision will turn out before it's made, a great chef knows what a recipe will taste like before it's prepared.In a powerful narrative that takes us from the research in the labs to the implementation of predictive technology inside companies, Vivek Ranadivé and Kevin Maney reveal how our understanding of human mastery is being applied to the way computers "think." In the near future, the authors argue, the most advanced computer systems and the most successful businesses will anticipate the future much like Wayne Gretzky's brain does. As a result, companies will be able to use a new generation of technology to anticipate customer needs before customers even know what they want, and see production snafus before they occur, traffic jams before they materialize, and operational problems before they arise. Forward-thinking companies will be able to predict the future just a fraction ahead of everyone else with a little bit of the right information at the right time--what the authors call the two-second advantage--and it will transform the way businesses are run and offer companies an enormous competitive edge in the marketplace.In the bestselling tradition of Blink, Sway, and How We Decide, The Two-Second Advantage will change our understanding of what makes a company successful.From the Hardcover edition.
The U.S. Army Stability Operations Field Manual: U.S. Army Field Manual No. 3-07
by Caldwell Iv William Flournoy Michele Brimley Shawn Davidson JanineField Manual 3-07,Stability Operations, represents a milestone in Army doctrine. With a focus on transforming conflict, managing violence when it does occur and maintaining stable peace,The U. S. Army Stability Operations Field Manual(otherwise known as FM 3-07) signals a stark departure from traditional military doctrine. The Army officially acknowledges the complex continuum from conflict to peace, outlines the military's responsibility to provide stability and security, and recognizes the necessity of collaboration, coordination, and cooperation among military, state, commercial, and non-government organizations in nation-building efforts. The manual reflects a truly unique collaboration between the Army and a wide array of experts from hundreds of groups across the United States Government, the intergovernmental and non-governmental communities, America's allies around the world, and the private sector. All branches of the armed forces, U. S. agencies ranging from the State Department to Homeland Security to Health and Human Services, international agencies from the United Nations to the Red Cross to the World Bank, countries from the United Kingdom to India to South Africa, private think tanks from RAND to the United States Institute of Peace to the Center for New American Security, all took part in the shaping of this document. The U. S. Army Stability Operations FieldManual,marks just the second time in modern history that the U. S. Army has worked with a private publisher to produce a military doctrinal document. Lieutenant General William B. Caldwell, IV is Commander of the Combined Arms Center at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Michèle Flournoy, Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Shawn Brimley, Fellow, Center for a New American Security Janine Davidson, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Plans "It is a roadmap from conflict to peace, a practical guidebook for adaptive, creative leadership at a critical time in our history. It institutionalizes the hard-won lessons of the past while charting a path for tomorrow. This manual postures our military forces for the challenges of an uncertain future, an era of persistent conflict where the unflagging bravery of our Soldiers will continue to carry the banner of freedom, hope, and opportunity to the people of the world. " -From the foreword by Lieutenant General William B. Caldwell, IV, Commander of the Combined Arms Center at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas
The U.S. Combat Aircraft Industry, 1909-2000
by Mark A. LorellDrawing on primary and secondary sources on the aircraft industry, this report provides a brief survey of industry structure, innovation, and competition in the U.S. fixed-wing combat aircraft industry from its earliest days to the present. It supports a much larger research effort examining the future of the structure, innovation, and competition of the U.S. military aircraft industrial base that responds to congressional concerns about that future.
The U.S.-Honduras Remittance Corridor: Acting on Opportunity to Increase Financial Inclusion and Foster Development of a Transitional Economy
by Kamil Borowik Isaku Endo Sarah Hirsch Jan RoggeThis paper provides an overview of remittances and migration between Honduras and the United States and analyzes the remittance regulatory and market environment, including financial inclusion strategies, transnational economic activities, and the impact of remittances on the Honduran economy. 'The U.S.-Honduras Remittance Corridor' makes policy recommendations to the authorities of Honduras and the United States, especially for regulatory reforms that promote the integrity and efficiency of money transfer businesses. We also recommend the development of financial infrastructures in rural areas for better distribution of remittances. Furthermore, we suggest that public policy should be more focused on building an environment for investment in the community and developing local businesses that export to Honduran communities abroad.
The UN Sustainable Development Goals for the Textile and Fashion Industry (Textile Science and Clothing Technology)
by Subramanian Senthilkannan Muthu Miguel Angel GardettiThis book highlights the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. These universally agreed-upon aspirational goals for people, the planet, prosperity, and peace will not be achieved without all global and local actors – governments, the private sector, and civil society – playing their part. The SDGs offer a unique opportunity to align existing sustainability initiatives through a common framework and accelerate the industry’s efforts to address important challenges in the global textile value chain. Future sourcing models will largely be redefined by how this sector addresses the underlying themes as sourcing countries prioritize the goals and integrate them into their national plans. Stimulating discussion and exploring the many different ways in which the textile and clothing industry can implement the UN SDGs, this informative book provides readers with a comprehensive understanding of the topic, and presents various approaches, including reflexive, empirical, hands-on or applied theoretical.
The US Military Profession into the 21st Century: War, Peace and Politics (Cass Military Studies)
by Sam Sarkesian Robert ConnorThis brand new edition of The US Military Profession into the Twenty-First Century re-examines the challenges faced by the military profession in the aftermath of the international terrorist attack on the United States on September 11, 2001. While many of the issues facing the military profession examined in the first edition remain, the 'new war' and international terrorism have compounded the challenges. The US military must respond to the changed domestic and strategic landscapes without diminishing its primary function—a function that now many see that goes beyond success on the battlefield. Not only has this complicated the problem of reconciling the military professional ethos and raison d’etre with civilian control in a democracy, it challenges traditional military professionalism. This book also studies the notion of a US military stretched thin and relying more heavily on the US Federal Reserves and National Guard. These developments make the US military profession increasingly linked to public attitudes and political perspectives. In sum, the challenge faced by the US military profession can be termed a dual dilemma. It must respond effectively to the twenty-first century strategic landscape while undergoing the revolution in military affairs and transformation. At the same time, the military profession must insure that it remains compatible with civilian cultures and the US political-social system without eroding its primary function. This is an invaluable book for all students with an interest in the US Military, and of strategic studies and military history in general.
The Ultimate Book of Saturday Science: The Very Best Backyard Science Experiments You Can Do Yourself
by Neil A. DownieThe best backyard experiments for hands-on science learningThe Ultimate Book of Saturday Science is Neil Downie's biggest and most astounding compendium yet of science experiments you can do in your own kitchen or backyard using common household items. It may be the only book that encourages hands-on science learning through the use of high-velocity, air-driven carrots.Downie, the undisputed maestro of Saturday science, here reveals important principles in physics, engineering, and chemistry through such marvels as the Helevator—a contraption that's half helicopter, half elevator—and the Rocket Railroad, which pumps propellant up from its own track. The Riddle of the Sands demonstrates why some granular materials form steep cones when poured while others collapse in an avalanche. The Sunbeam Exploder creates a combustible delivery system out of sunlight, while the Red Hot Memory experiment shows you how to store data as heat. Want to learn to tell time using a knife and some butter? There's a whole section devoted to exotic clocks and oscillators that teaches you how.The Ultimate Book of Saturday Science features more than seventy fun and astonishing experiments that range in difficulty from simple to more challenging. All of them are original, and all are guaranteed to work. Downie provides instructions for each one and explains the underlying science, and also presents experimental variations that readers will want to try.
The Ultimate Engineer: The Remarkable Life of NASA's Visionary Leader George M. Low (Outward Odyssey: A People's History of Spaceflight)
by Richard JurekFrom the late 1950s to 1976 the U.S. manned spaceflight program advanced as it did largely due to the extraordinary efforts of Austrian immigrant George M. Low. Described as the &“ultimate engineer&” during his career at NASA, Low was a visionary architect and leader from the agency&’s inception in 1958 to his retirement in 1976. As chief of manned spaceflight at NASA, Low was instrumental in the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo programs. Low&’s pioneering work paved the way for President Kennedy&’s decision to make a lunar landing NASA&’s primary goal in the 1960s. After the tragic 1967 Apollo 1 fire that took the lives of three astronauts and almost crippled the program, Low took charge of the redesign of the Apollo spacecraft, and he helped lead the program from disaster and toward the moon. In 1968 Low made the bold decision to go for lunar orbit on Apollo 8 before the lunar module was ready for flight and after only one Earth orbit test flight of the command and service modules. Under Low there were five manned missions, including Apollo 11, the first manned lunar landing. Low&’s clandestine negotiations with the Soviet Union resulted in a historic joint mission in 1975 that was the precursor to the Shuttle-Mir and International Space Station programs. At the end of his NASA career, Low was one of the leading figures in the development of the space shuttle in the early 1970s, and he was instrumental in NASA&’s transition into a post-Apollo world. Afterward, he embarked on a distinguished career in higher education as a transformational president of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, his alma mater. Chronicling Low&’s escape from Nazi-occupied Austria to his helping land a man on the moon, The Ultimate Engineer sheds new light on one of the most fascinating and complex personalities of the golden age of U.S. manned space travel.
The Ultimate Guide on How to Build Credit for Your Business: The Ultimate Step-by-Step Guide on How
by Diego RodriguezOnce you have an established business, discover how to organize and position your business for credit approval. Identify what criteria to meet before applying. <P><P>Receive direction on how to complete applications correctly to secure approvals and exactly where to apply! Once approved, learn how to continue building your business credit.
The Ultimate Guide to Informed Wearable Technology: A hands-on approach for creating wearables from prototype to purpose using Arduino systems
by Christine FarionMaster wearable technology with this book including colored images and over 50 activities using Arduino and ESP32, build useful, stylish, and smart wearable devices, and create interactive circuits that react to us and our environmentKey FeaturesLearn wearable technology and build electronic circuits with fun activities using Arduino systemsGet an in-depth understanding of e-textiles and ESP32 microcontrollers to create interactive wearablesApply a design innovation approach and best practices to address real-world issuesBook DescriptionWearable circuits add interaction and purpose to clothing and other wearable devices that are currently widely used in medical, social, safety, entertainment, and sports fields. To develop useful and impressive prototypes and wearables, you'll need to be skilled in designing electronic circuits and working with wearable technologies.This book takes you on an interesting journey through wearable technology, starting from electronic circuits, materials, and e-textile toolkits to using Arduino, which includes a variety of sensors, outputs, actuators, and microcontrollers such as Gemma M0 and ESP32. As you progress, you'll be carefully guided through creating an advanced IoT project. You'll learn by doing and create wearables with the help of practical examples and exercises. Later chapters will show you how to develop a hyper-body wearable and solder and sew circuits. Finally, you'll discover how to build a culture-driven wearable to track data and provide feedback using a Design Innovation approach.After reading this book, you'll be able to design interactive prototypes and sew, solder, and program your own Arduino-based wearable devices with a purpose.What you will learnConstruct sewable electronic circuits with conductive thread and materialsDiscover the features of LilyPad, Gemma, Circuit Playground, and other boardsUse various components for listening, moving, sensing actions, and visualizing outputsControl ESP32 development boards for IoT explorationUnderstand why and how to prototype to create interactive wearablesGet skilled in sewing and soldering sensors to Arduino-based circuitsDesign and build a hyper-body wearable that senses and reactsMaster a Design Innovation approach for creating wearables with a purposeWho this book is forThis book is for electronics engineers, embedded system engineers and designers, and R&D engineers, who are beginners in the wearable technology domain as well as makers and hobbyists who have an interest in creative computing. It will also be useful for teachers, students, and researchers, who are learning interaction design, physical computing, technology, fashion, or arts. Having a basic understanding of Arduino-based systems will help in easily comprehending the contents of the book.
The Ultimate Guide to Raising Farm Animals: A Complete Guide to Raising Chickens, Pigs, Cows, and More (The\joy Of Ser.)
by Laura Childs Kate Rowinski Jessie Shiers Jennifer Megyesi Michael Levatino Audrey LevatinoImagine putting together a big breakfast using the eggs straight from your own chickens, or bacon straight from the pig. This is a sort of ideal that many dream of, but few ever get to experience. Now with The Ultimate Guide to Raising Farm Animals, that dream can be turned into a reality, and also be so much more.In The Ultimate Guide to Raising Farm Animals, you will learn how to take care of chickens, pigs, sheep, cows, and other livestock. Each chapter will be dedicated to a different animal, and you will not only learn how to take care of them, but also what sort of things you can get from them. If you want to save money, become more self-sufficient, or enjoy healthier locally sourced food, The Ultimate Guide to Raising Farm Animals is the book you need.
The Ultimate Guide to Smoking Meat, Fish, and Game: How to Make Everything from Delicious Meals to Tasty Treats
by Monte BurchIn an easy to follow manner, writer-outdoorsman Monte Burch explains how to properly preserve meat in a way that is both delicious and healthy. Whether you get your meat from a grocery store or hunt it in the wild, The Ultimate Guide to Smoking Meat, Fish, and Game will teach you how to smoke such animals as: * Cow * Pork * Salmon * Venison * Buffalo * And much more! Learn how to preserve meat, fish, and game and create delicious smoked and cured foods. Whether you are a serious hunter or angler seeking to cure and smoke your harvest or a consumer simply looking to save money while creating delicious treats at home, The Ultimate Guide to Smoking Meat, Fish, and Game can help you!
The Ultimate Kid's Guide to the Universe: At-Home Activities, Experiments, and More! (The Ultimate Kid's Guide to...)
by Jenny MarderWith stunning photos of outer space and easy at-home experiments, this is the only guide kids need on their journey of learning about all things astronomy: the stars, the planets, the moon, and so much more!Buckle up and let Jenny Marder, a senior writer for NASA, be your guide to the universe! First stop: the moon!A perfect read for kids, just in time for the April 2024 total solar eclipse!
The Ultimate Pet Food Guide: Everything You Need to Know about Feeding Your Dog or Cat
by Liz PalikaThe 2007 pet food recalls followed a multitude of pets getting sick and dying from contaminated food; now pet owners must take charge of what they feed their dogs and cats. With The Ultimate Pet Food Guide, veteran dog trainer, behaviorist, and author Liz Palika focuses on nutritional needs and covers every type of feeding, including controversial raw diets, homemade cooked food, and commercial foods. Palika also addresses introducing new foods; what "human foods” pets shouldn’t eat; free-feeding; responsibility for food safety; where ingredients come from; and red flags in ingredients. Included are over fifty veterinarian- and pet-nutritionist-approved recipes and diets tailored to special-needs pets, such as puppies/kittens and pregnant, older, overweight and/or more sedentary animals.
The Ultimate Student’s Guide to Scientific Research
by Samuel J. Rubin Nir QvitA scientific career is a long and winding journey. Many factors assemble to determine the trajectory and products of scientific inquiry. This book addresses the scientific career path comprehensively, ranging from how to build a strong foundational knowledge and skill base, to training programs, composing winning research proposals and grants, conducting excellent research, writing papers and reports, collaborative research programs, bridging academia and industry, career advancement, and more. Guides where, how, and what to study in undergraduate, post-baccalaureate, graduate, and post-graduate training programs and addresses important crossroads throughout the continuum of training and beyond. Highlights best practices, techniques, and nuances for creating a successful scientific career. Provides critical insights for traversing major milestones and decision-points in a scientific career and serves as a resources for reference throughout stages of advancement. Discusses alternative career opportunities for individuals trained in sciences. Offers students, researchers, and other scientists across all stages of their careers with accessible, engaging, and useful insider tips.
The Ultimate Vaccine Timeline: A Fact-Packed History of Vaccines and Their Makers
by Shaz KhanDive deep into a comprehensive fact-packed history of vaccines that includes information on vaccine manufacturers and their evolution over time. Browse through an extensive series of verifiable and documented facts on vaccines. For well over a century, vaccines have been routinely recommended to billions of people worldwide, mostly children and babies. With an ever-increasing portfolio of vaccines using novel technologies on the global market, it is important now more than ever to consolidate a chronology of facts relating to human vaccination. Considering the current climate of censorship around vaccines, this publication will contribute to an expanded understanding of this important medical intervention. Spanning over fifteen hundred years, this thoroughly researched timeline is an educational tool for any researcher, student, doctor, scientist, parent, or curious human being wishing to gain a broader perspective and insight into the complex and vast landscape of human vaccination. From smallpox to shingles; tetanus to tuberculosis; hepatitis B to HPV, discover when, where, and by whom these vaccines were invented and marketed. Including a historical timeline of pharmaceutical company beginnings, mergers and acquisitions since the seventeenth century, this illustrated reference book shines a light on the controversial subject of vaccines and their makers.
The Ultimate: Church Sound Operator's Handbook
by Bill GibsonThis important second edition of The Ultimate Church Sound Operator's Handbook is written to specifically address the concerns and needs of the sound person who serves ministries and churches. The modern church uses many of the same presentation tools that have become common in television, movies, and concerts, placing a unique set of technical expectations on its eager, willing, and primarily volunteer force. This updated handbook blends the relational and technical aspects of church sound in a straightforward and easy-to-understand manner, providing a leg-up to volunteer and staff church sound operators. The Ultimate Church Sound Operator's Handbook will help church sound operators gain the knowledge they need to faithfully serve their church membership, leaders, and musicians. The book includes access to dozens of video and audio examples online to further help clarify and explain the techniques being discussed.
The Unaccountability Machine: Why Big Systems Make Terrible Decisions—and How the World Lost Its Mind
by Dan DaviesLonglisted for the 2024 Financial Times Book of the Year. How life and the economy became a black box—a collection of systems no one understands, producing outcomes no one likes. Passengers get bumped from flights. Phone menus disconnect. Automated financial trades produce market collapse. Of all the challenges in modern life, some of the most vexing come from our relationships with automation: a large system does us wrong, and there’s nothing we can do about it. The problem, economist Dan Davies shows, is accountability sinks: systems in which decisions are delegated to a complex rule book or set of standard procedures, making it impossible to identify the source of mistakes when they happen. In our increasingly unhuman world—lives dominated by algorithms, artificial intelligence, and large organizations—these accountability sinks produce more than just aggravation. They make life and economy unknowable—a black box for no reason. In The Unaccountability Machine, Davies lays bare how markets, institutions, and even governments systematically generate outcomes that no one—not even those involved in making them—seems to want. Since the earliest days of the computer age, theorists have foreseen the dangers of complex systems without personal accountability. In response, British business scholar Stafford Beer developed an accountability-first approach to management called “cybernetics,” which might have taken off had his biggest client (the Chilean government) not fallen to a bloody coup in 1973. With his signature blend of economic and journalistic rigor, Davies examines what’s gone wrong since Beer, including what might have been had the world embraced cybernetics when it had the chance. The Unaccountability Machine is a revelatory and resonant account of how modern life became predisposed to dysfunction.
The Unaccountable State of Surveillance
by Paul De Hert Clive Norris Xavier L’hoiry Antonella GalettaThis book examines the ability of citizens across ten European countries to exercise their democratic rights to access their personal data. It presents a socio-legal research project, with the researchers acting as citizens, or data subjects, and using ethnographic data collection methods. The research presented here evidences a myriad of strategies and discourses employed by a range of public and private sector organizations as they obstruct and restrict citizens' attempts to exercise their informational rights. The book also provides an up-to-date legal analysis of legal frameworks across Europe concerning access rights and makes several policy recommendations in the area of informational rights. It provides a unique and unparalleled study of the law in action which uncovered the obstacles that citizens encounter if they try to find out what personal data public and private sector organisations collect and store about them, how they process it, and with whom they share it. These are simple questions to ask, and the right to do so is enshrined in law, but getting answers to these questions was met by a raft of strategies which effectively denied citizens their rights. The book documents in rich ethnographic detail the manner in which these discourses of denial played out in the ten countries involved, and explores in depth the implications for policy and regulatory reform.
The Uncanny Muse: Music, Art, and Machines from Automata to AI
by David HajduAn acclaimed critic, journalist, and songwriter-musician tells the story of art’s relation to machines, from the Baroque period to the age of AI. What does it mean to be human in a world where machines, too, can be artists? The Uncanny Muse explores the history of automation in the arts and delves into one of the most momentous and controversial aspects of AI: artificial creativity. The adoption of technology and machinery has long transformed the world, but as the potential for artificial intelligence expands, David Hajdu examines the new, increasingly urgent questions about technology’s role in culture. From the life-size mechanical doll that made headlines in Victorian London to the doll’s modern AI–pop star counterpart, Hajdu traces the fascinating, varied ways in which inventors and artists have sought to emulate mental processes and mechanize creative production. For decades, machines and artists have engaged in expressing the human condition—along with the condition of living with machines—through player pianos, broadcasting technology, electric organs, digital movie effects, synthesizers, and motion capture. By communicating and informing human knowledge, the machines have exerted considerable influence on the history of art—and often more influence than humans have been willing to recognize. As Hajdu proclaims: “before machine learning, there was machine teaching.” With thoughtful, wide-ranging, and surprising turns from Berry Gordy and George Harrison to Andy Warhol and Stevie Wonder, David Hajdu takes a novel and contrarian approach: he sees how machines through the ages have enabled creativity, not stifled it—and The Uncanny Muse sees no reason why this shouldn’t be the case with AI today.