turbomandoll's review
4.0
Entertaining, informative and full of thoughtful ideas. Should be the template for popular science.
dniespal's review against another edition
funny
informative
reflective
fast-paced
3.25
Autorka pisze we wciągający sposób i wynajduje ciekawostki z historii seks robotów. Jedyny problem jaki dostrzegam w tej książce, to brak czegoś, co skonkludowałoby ją - jakiegoś podsumowania czy celu.
beckywatts's review against another edition
5.0
(uni reading list)
genuinely such a fascinating and fun read!! highly highly recommend
genuinely such a fascinating and fun read!! highly highly recommend
pistachios42's review
4.0
This a book about sex, robots, and sex robots. It's a lot of fun.
Aside from a lot of the ideas in this book, I thought the tone was really well-balanced. Sex robots are funny, and Devlin writes about them as the funny and embarrassing topic that they are. Compared to a lot of dry, ponderous and meandering non-fiction that I've read on this course, this is incredibly readable and a joy to read. Devlin understands the impression of academics as dry and stuffy writers, and stuffs her writing with anecdotes, jokes and comments creating a unique relationship with the reader.
I also think that although a lot of the book is building up the science and historical ideas around both sex and robots. But when we get to the novel's final chapter we get a sense of what kind of future Devlin envisions. Devlin describes a workshop she held where an array of artists and scientists were put into teams to design futuristic sex robots. What came out of it were about a dozen objects that resembled nothing like what we have now. Devlin's future is a sex positive one where technology can enhance pleasure for whoever wants it, in a healthy and inclusive way. I think it's a pretty great one.
Aside from a lot of the ideas in this book, I thought the tone was really well-balanced. Sex robots are funny, and Devlin writes about them as the funny and embarrassing topic that they are. Compared to a lot of dry, ponderous and meandering non-fiction that I've read on this course, this is incredibly readable and a joy to read. Devlin understands the impression of academics as dry and stuffy writers, and stuffs her writing with anecdotes, jokes and comments creating a unique relationship with the reader.
I also think that although a lot of the book is building up the science and historical ideas around both sex and robots. But when we get to the novel's final chapter we get a sense of what kind of future Devlin envisions. Devlin describes a workshop she held where an array of artists and scientists were put into teams to design futuristic sex robots. What came out of it were about a dozen objects that resembled nothing like what we have now. Devlin's future is a sex positive one where technology can enhance pleasure for whoever wants it, in a healthy and inclusive way. I think it's a pretty great one.
cindyp's review against another edition
4.0
If the title of Kate Devlin's Turned On: Science, Sex and Robots is eye-catching, mission accomplished! Devlin employs a cheeky writing style to discuss the serious academic work for which she is best known: the intersection of robots and human sexuality. Turned On, far from being salacious, covers the history, psychology and philosophical underpinnings of artificial intelligence (AI) as it relates to intimate relationships. "Most of all, it's about being human in a world of machines."
In the 21st century, robots can be purchased at department stores (Roomba vacuums, for example), and AI is ubiquitous (witness Apple's Siri and Amazon's Alexa). Humans, with a predilection to believe that any "semblance of human-like behavior" indicates a "degree of sentience," often anthropomorphize inanimate objects. If people respond emotionally to a disembodied voice, why not add a body to it? Devlin identifies the challenges and benefits of nonhuman companions as she charts the course from sex toys to humanoid sex robots. Will sex robots with AI be designed only for physical needs, or will emphasis "be placed firmly on interactions and responses"? Throughout her book, Devlin, senior lecturer in the department of computing at Goldsmiths, University of London, introduces people with sex doll fetishes and engineers who built working prototypes of sex robots. Beyond the obvious titillation of her title, she persuasively explores the need for "a serious... conversation about what it means to be human when surrounded by machines that might one day care for us and about us."
-reviewed for Shelf Awareness 1-4-19
In the 21st century, robots can be purchased at department stores (Roomba vacuums, for example), and AI is ubiquitous (witness Apple's Siri and Amazon's Alexa). Humans, with a predilection to believe that any "semblance of human-like behavior" indicates a "degree of sentience," often anthropomorphize inanimate objects. If people respond emotionally to a disembodied voice, why not add a body to it? Devlin identifies the challenges and benefits of nonhuman companions as she charts the course from sex toys to humanoid sex robots. Will sex robots with AI be designed only for physical needs, or will emphasis "be placed firmly on interactions and responses"? Throughout her book, Devlin, senior lecturer in the department of computing at Goldsmiths, University of London, introduces people with sex doll fetishes and engineers who built working prototypes of sex robots. Beyond the obvious titillation of her title, she persuasively explores the need for "a serious... conversation about what it means to be human when surrounded by machines that might one day care for us and about us."
-reviewed for Shelf Awareness 1-4-19
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