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God, Human, Animal, Machine: Technology, Metaphor, and the Search for Meaning by Meghan O'Gieblyn
vishwesh's review against another edition
4.0
"The most successful metaphors become invisible through ubiquity. The same is true of ideology, as it becomes thoroughly integrated into a culture, sheds its contours and distinctive outline, and dissolves finally into pure atmosphere."
I love how the author could tie up philosophy, science and technology, and personal learnings from experiences together.
Some ideas like re-enchantment are excellent. Some hard questions on singularity, rationalism, AI-driven world are discussed very well by the author in this book.
Gist is - "How to be human in the age of AI"
I love how the author could tie up philosophy, science and technology, and personal learnings from experiences together.
Some ideas like re-enchantment are excellent. Some hard questions on singularity, rationalism, AI-driven world are discussed very well by the author in this book.
Gist is - "How to be human in the age of AI"
cwscott27's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
tense
medium-paced
4.25
jessicasonley's review against another edition
challenging
funny
informative
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
jeffcarlson96's review against another edition
3.0
Not at all what I expected, but an interesting read nonetheless. O’Gieblyn writes from a very different worldview than my own, which I appreciated, but still had a hard time relating to. So much of this was way over my head as well. Her background in fundamentalist Christianity was fascinating in relating to the topics of consciousness and meaning in human existence. Well written, but I couldn’t get on board with a lot of her conclusions and was saddened by her movement away from God in tough questions.
dkatreads's review against another edition
5.0
4.5 illuminating and haunting. Deeply unsettling for a modern reader living in a world on the verge of singularity, perhaps. A world that is increasingly unknowable to us inside a “black-box” of algorithms, computational processes and AI that may or may not be conscious. And as a result, a world inhabited by a people that must now ask what it means to be human at all.
I found the author’s layers of questioning challenging and insightful. Her skill at weaving philosophical dialogue, scientific and technological theory, and personal anecdote is simply luminous. It made the book’s themes imminently more readable. Nevertheless, her conclusions and analysis were quite complex. At times, it was hard to follow a clear line of reasoning. But as much as we were joining with her in her search for humanity’s meaning, we were also joining with her in her search for her own. Our journeys for meaning are never linear or clear as we know. In this way, her writing may have felt uncomfortable, but it felt familiar. I found that to be a brilliant choice.
What I appreciated most about this book was the way O’Gieblyn was willing to interrogate her worldview—both prior and current. She concludes quite astutely that for all of the progress and development we’ve made, the world still remains at its most fundamental level a mystery to us. We are once again finding ourselves as a civilization re-enchanting the world—only this time with a name other than God. Yet the mystery, reverence, and awe remain. Which compels the reader to ask the question, whether she says it or not: was it worth getting rid of God in the first place?
Fascinating questions. Thoughtful stories. Esoteric (-0.5) and a bit eccentric. But worth many discussions, and many essential silent ponderings.
I found the author’s layers of questioning challenging and insightful. Her skill at weaving philosophical dialogue, scientific and technological theory, and personal anecdote is simply luminous. It made the book’s themes imminently more readable. Nevertheless, her conclusions and analysis were quite complex. At times, it was hard to follow a clear line of reasoning. But as much as we were joining with her in her search for humanity’s meaning, we were also joining with her in her search for her own. Our journeys for meaning are never linear or clear as we know. In this way, her writing may have felt uncomfortable, but it felt familiar. I found that to be a brilliant choice.
What I appreciated most about this book was the way O’Gieblyn was willing to interrogate her worldview—both prior and current. She concludes quite astutely that for all of the progress and development we’ve made, the world still remains at its most fundamental level a mystery to us. We are once again finding ourselves as a civilization re-enchanting the world—only this time with a name other than God. Yet the mystery, reverence, and awe remain. Which compels the reader to ask the question, whether she says it or not: was it worth getting rid of God in the first place?
Fascinating questions. Thoughtful stories. Esoteric (-0.5) and a bit eccentric. But worth many discussions, and many essential silent ponderings.
brian_the_reader's review against another edition
reflective
slow-paced
2.0
Intriguing start, ultimately disappointing.