5 Standout Non-Fiction Authors Writing About Technology
It's no secret that technology has changed all of our lives, from the spread of the Internet to the use of smartphones to the rise of cryptocurrency. Whether you consider yourself technologically literate or a neophyte, these authors have books that examine not just advances in technology past and future, but how we as individuals react to those advances and let them shape our behavior. This video was made with Ezvid Wikimaker.
5 Authors Writing About The Impact Of Technology On Our Lives
Don Tapscott on How the Blockchain is Changing Money and Business
Can Blockchain Be Used For More Than Cryptocurrency?
It's important to distinguish the difference between these two things. Cryptocurrency is a form of digital money, while blockchain is the technology behind it. The two most popular cryptocurrencies are Bitcoin and Ether, but Ethereum's blockchain has uses beyond just buying and selling coins. Thanks to the ERC-721 standard, Ether can be used to buy crypto collectibles, which includes everything from assets like Factbar to games like Ether Online or MegaCryptoPolis. Funds like a16z Crypto or Blockchain Capital are looking to invest in the blockchain, not necessarily the currency. That means they aren't buying a bunch of Ether, but rather they're purchasing a stake in companies that will use the Ethereum blockchain in new ways.
Maggie Jackson Discusses Distracted
In Depth
The rapid pace of technological development is a common source of anxiety, with many people feeling uncertain about what these changes mean for the future of business, art, and human interaction. These questions offer fertile ground for authors exploring the ways that humanity's tools shape our identities. In no particular order, here are five writers providing perspectives on life in the digital age.
Starting us off at #1 is Dr. Jussi Parikka, a media critic and professor of technological culture and aesthetics at the Winchester School of Art. He has written numerous books examining the ecological and cultural contexts of communications systems; notable examples include A Geology of Media, which delves into the physical foundations of humanity's information technology, or Digital Contagions, an analysis of the history of computer viruses.
Parikka's writings work to advance the discipline of media archaeology, which investigates the evolution of communications technology through art and historical analysis. He also highlights the often overlooked environmental costs of contemporary society's information architecture, with books like Medianatures, a curated essay collection on the physical components of electronic devices and tech waste.
He also highlights the often overlooked environmental costs of contemporary society's information architecture, with books like Medianatures, a curated essay collection on the physical components of electronic devices and tech waste.
Next up at #2 is futurist thinker and author Gerd Leonhard, whose writings discuss how emerging technologies are reshaping economics, creativity, and everyday life. He is the author of The End Of Control and Friction is Fiction, which examine how digital content can be profitable when distribution can no longer be restricted, and Technology vs. Humanity: The Coming Clash Between Man and Machine.
Along with his written works, Leonhard appears as a keynote speaker to discuss topics such as artificial intelligence, digital ethics, and the future of work. He offers insights on the development of sustainability, and on how society can enable real happiness rather than addictive computerized stimulation. Leonhard also produces films exploring ideas about the impacts of technological changes, and offers informational seminars for business audiences.
#3 in our rundown is Maggie Jackson, a writer with a particular focus on how contemporary digital media platforms alter our thinking. Jackson's book Distracted investigates the impacts on human attention resulting from continual access to information technology, and suggests methods for reclaiming focus.
Jackson's book Distracted investigates the impacts on human attention resulting from continual access to information technology, and suggests methods for reclaiming focus.
Another key focus of Jackson's writing is the encroachment of work into leisure time, aided by our increased ability to be in constant communication. She is the author of What's Happening to Home, which asks questions about the blurring of work and personal life that technology permits. Other pieces tackle themes such as the ethics of robot caregivers or the value of silence.
For entry #4 we have Don Tapscott, a leading authority on technological disruption of business and society. He is the author of The Digital Economy, an early prediction of the internet's transformation of commerce and governance, along with numerous other works delving into the implications of global interconnection. Other titles from Tapscott include Wikinomics and Radical Openness, which explore the new paradigms of collaboration enabled by web technology.
Written in partnership with his son Alex, Blockchain Revolution is Tapscott's award-winning primer on the potentials and hazards of the technology behind cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. The duo also created the Blockchain Research Institute, which generates informational reports and offers online courses on encryption-based transaction verification.
Written in partnership with his son Alex, Blockchain Revolution is Tapscott's award-winning primer on the potentials and hazards of the technology behind cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin.
Closing out our list at #5 is Amanda D. Lotz, a professor of media studies at Queensland University of Technology, who writes about the internet's impact on entertainment and cultural communication. In works like We Now Disrupt This Broadcast and Portals, she discusses how changes in distribution methods have reshaped the content of television. Lotz has also co-authored academic textbooks like Understanding Media Industries and Television Studies.
Other titles from Lotz include Cable Guys and Redesigning Women, examinations of gender depictions in modern media, and The Television Will Be Revolutionized, which offers insights on how technological changes will drive the future of serialized entertainment. She also discusses issues such as the consolidation of power by tech companies, or how society can preserve the open internet.
