Sapiens was the breathtaking work from the same author, which propelled me to read this book, but for me, it was not an easy job. The book has reaped plenty of my time to finish reading.
The book is a treasure of wisdom on so many developments in the history of humankind. The author is connecting these experiences to make the dots, which will, in turn, picturise the future of Homo Sapiens. Don't read this book with the expectation of screenplay of any English movie about robotics or alien invasions. This is about the future of the human thinking process and about the up-gradation of human culture to cope with the advancements of Science. In the opening section of the book, the author is presenting illustrations on how various corporates and countries are proposing for the future years. As per the author, humankind is striving towards becoming "GOD" by attaining a biological longer life expectancy and by achieving superpowers. Considering I was reading this book during COVID -19 Lockdown time, my cognizance was swinging in two directions, one towards the micro-biological war that changes the appearance of conflicts and another towards the inadequacy of our Research & Development in facing an Epidemic.
"For the first time in history, more people die today from eating too much than from eating too little; more people die from old age than from infectious diseases, and more people commit suicide than are killed by soldiers, terrorists and criminals combined".
The above lines from the book excited me a lot, which struck me a new sense of thinking towards the contemporary journey of humankind. I was a little upset about the middle parts of the book because I believe the author has deviated from the topic and was converging more on establishing his feelings. However, the points he was explaining were worth readable and knowledgeable. A considerable share of the book is addressing the algorithmic representation of mind and thoughts and how far Science has achieved in constructing an artificial mind.He is concluding the book with a series of mysteries which makes us debate on the following questions
Are organisms really just algorithms, and is life really only data processing?
What's more valuable – intelligence or consciousness?
Nevertheless, the book is an excellent collection of historic revelations based on scientific proofs. Regarding the future, the author has explained to us that, along with embracing artificial intelligence, carving a fresh mindset of data sharing and versatility will be the hurdles before us in the future. The book is a must-read for non-fiction lovers and history lovers. After finishing the book, you will have a perception of moving from history to the future of life.
My rating is 4.9 out of 5