This text presents an exposition of humankind's insatiable desire for technological mastery, the predicament this is leading us into and the action we must take to ensure the very survival of the human race as we know it. The book is an uncompromising examination of the dangers of knowledge without constraints. Bill Joy details his concerns about the technologies of the 21st century that are leading us to the brink of apparent mastery of the natural world and develops a manifesto of how to avoid the dangers, while harnessing the positive potential, of future technologies.Joy describes the historical path our desire for technological mastery has taken, including the devastating effects of nuclear energy, and the formidable power of the information age. As cofounder and Chief Scientist of SunMicrosystems, he is no enemy of science or progress, however. In refreshingly accessible prose, he both elucidates and celebrates the coming benefits of the advances in science and technology, especially in genetic engineering, nanotechnology (the manipulation of molecules and atoms) and robotics (GNR), which, he believes, will make the 21st century an amazing period of discovery.But the new dangers inherent in these technologies are intimidating: by 2030 we are likely to be able to build machines a million times as powerful as the personal computers of today.
Combine this power with the manipulative advances of the physical sciences and the new advances in genetics, and enormous transformative power may be unleashed. When machines of superior intelligence are capable of replication and evolution the dystopian possibilities are endless.Yet all is not lost. Through a discussion of the ethical and moral issues in GNR, Joy suggests that we must now choose our own future by deciding what it means to be human so that extremists or accidents don't make the decision for us. The "post-scarcity" future Joy envisages - if we can navigate past these dangers - is certainly worth the effort. The future may still need us. But only, according to Joy, if we act now.