Almsot Human : Making Robots Think

Gutkind, Lee

ISBN 10: 0393058670 / ISBN 13: 9780393058673

Published by W. W. Norton and Company, New York, 2006

About this Item

SIGNED BY AUTHOR. FIRST PRINTING of the First Edition (stated). A close look at the latest research and advances in robotics technology, particiularly the efffort to bring machines to 'think' in a human-like manner in order to ultimately replace them in many areas. Has much interesting information on the subculture of scientists and engineers who work in this field - their interests, backgrounds, goals, and passions. Hardcover with dust jacket, illustrated, notes, 284pp. A very nice copy, the jacket neatly encased in an acid-free archival protector. Very rare in this original printing and as signed by author. Size: 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall.

Seller Inventory # 00015970

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Almsot Human : Making Robots Think
• Publisher: W. W. Norton and Company, New York
• Publication Date: 2006
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0393058670
• ISBN 13: 9780393058673
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition: First Edition (stated).
• Condition: Fine
• Dust Jacket Condition: Near Fine
• Signed: Signed by Author(s)
• Book Type: Book
• Seller catalogs:
  • General

About this title

Synopsis

A remarkable, intense portrait of the robotic subculture and the challenging quest for robot autonomy.

The high bay at the Robotics Institute at Carnegie Mellon University is alive and hyper night and day with the likes of Hyperion, which traversed the Antarctic, and Zoe, the world’s first robot scientist, now back home. Robot Segways learn to play soccer, while other robots go on treasure hunts or are destined for hospitals and museums. Dozens of cavorting mechanical creatures, along with tangles of wire, tools, and computer innards are scattered haphazardly. All of these zipping and zooming gizmos are controlled by disheveled young men sitting on the floor, folding chairs, or tool cases, or huddled over laptops squinting into displays with manic intensity. Award-winning author Lee Gutkind immersed himself in this frenzied subculture, following these young roboticists and their bold conceptual machines from Pittsburgh to NASA and to the most barren and arid desert on earth. He makes intelligible their discoveries and stumbling points in this lively behind-the-scenes work.

About the Author

Lee Gutkind is the founder and editor of the literary journal Creative Nonfiction and a pioneer in the field of narrative nonfiction. Gutkind is also the editor of In Fact and Becoming a Doctor, the author of Almost Human, and has written books about baseball, health care, travel, and technology. A Distinguished Writer in Residence at Arizona State University, he lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and Tempe, Arizona.