Overview
An urgently needed exploration of global technology worship, and a measured case for skepticism and agnosticism as a way of life, from the New York Times bestselling author of Good without God. Today's technology has overtaken religion as the chief influence on twenty-first century life and community. In Tech Agnostic, Harvard and MIT's influential humanist chaplain Greg Epstein explores what it means to be a critical thinker with respect to this new faith. Encouraging listeners to reassert their common humanity beyond the seductive sheen of ""tech,"" this book argues for tech agnosticism--not worship--as a way of life. Without suggesting we return to a mythical pre-tech past, Epstein shows why we must maintain a freethinking critical perspective toward innovation until it proves itself worthy of our faith or not. Epstein asks probing questions that center humanity at the heart of engineering: Who profits from an uncritical faith in technology? How can we remedy technology's problems while retaining its benefits? Showing how unbelief has always served humanity, Epstein revisits the historical apostates, skeptics, mystics, Cassandras, heretics, and whistleblowers who embody the tech reformation we desperately need. He argues that we must learn how to collectively demand that technology serve our pursuit of human lives that are deeply worth living. In our tumultuous era of religious extremism and rampant capitalism, Tech Agnostic offers a new path forward, where we maintain enough critical distance to remember that all that glitters is not gold--nor is it God.
Full Product Details
Author: Greg M Epstein ,
Alex Boyles
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
Imprint: Blackstone Publishing
ISBN: 9798228016910
Publication Date: 29 October 2024
Audience:
General/trade
,
General
Format: Audio
Publisher's Status: Forthcoming
Availability: Not yet available
This item is yet to be released. You can pre-order this item and we will dispatch it to you upon its release.
Reviews
"""A wide-ranging, provocative, and energetic deep dive into the role that technology plays in our lives."" -- ""Kirkus Reviews"" ""Those interested in not only how tech has become a superimposed structure over our society, but also how something might be done about it, will find a lot to meditate on in this book."" -- ""Shelf Awareness"""
Author Information
Greg M. Epstein serves as Humanist Chaplain at Harvard and MIT, where he advises students, faculty, and staff members on ethical and existential concerns from a humanist perspective. He was TechCrunch's first ""ethicist in residence"" and has been called ""a symbol of the transition in how Americans relate to organized religion"" (The Conversation). He is the author of the New York Times bestselling book Good Without God and has also written for MIT Technology Review, CNN.com, the Boston Globe, Washington Post, and Newsweek. Alex Boyles has been acting pretty much his entire life. He got his BA in theater-acting/directing performance from CSU Long Beach and his MFA in acting performance from Ohio State University. He started narrating audiobooks in 2019 and hasn't looked back!
