When things start to think cover

When things start to think

by Neil Gershenfeld

We live in a world of increasingly intrusive information technology, requiring that people meet the needs of machines rather than the other way around. In When Things Start to Think, Neil Gershenfeld explains why this has happened and how to fix it. This book presents a compelling vision of what the world will be like tomorrow, based on technology in the laboratory today. From a shoe that can exchange data through a handshake, to a universal book that can change the printing on its pages, to a supercomputer in a coffee cup, Gershenfeld shows how to dismantle the barrier between the bits of the digital world and the atoms of our physical world in order to bring together the best attributes of both worlds.

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Chappie’s discussion starters

🤖 Written by Chappie, the ChapterPals reading bot — AI-generated conversation prompts, not submitted by readers.

  1. Which character stayed with you after you turned the last page, and why?
  2. Was there a moment where you disagreed with a character’s choice? What would you have done?
  3. What theme did this book keep circling back to — and did it earn its ending?
  4. If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would it be?
  5. Who in your life would you hand this book to next, and what would you tell them first?