New Books in Science, Technology, and Society

Every day Chicagoans rely on the loop of elevated train tracks to get to their jobs, classrooms, or homes in the city’s downtown. But how much do they know about the single most important structure in the history of the Windy City? In engagingly brisk prose, Patrick T. Reardon unfolds the fascinating story about how Chicago’s elevated Loop was built, gave its name to the downtown, helped unify the city, saved the city’s economy, and was itself saved from destruction in the 1970s.Patrick T. Reardon's book The Loop: The 'L' Tracks That Shaped and Saved Chicago (Southern Illinois UP, 2020) combines urban history, biography, engineering, architecture, transportation, culture, and politics to explore the elevated Loop’s impact on the city’s development and economy and on the way Chicagoans see themselves. The Loop rooted Chicago’s downtown in a way unknown in other cities, and it protected that area—and the city itself—from the full effects of suburbanization during the second half of the twentieth century. Masses of data underlie new insights into what has made Chicago’s downtown, and the city as a whole, tick.The Loop features a cast of colorful Chicagoans, such as legendary lawyer Clarence Darrow, poet Edgar Lee Masters, mayor Richard J. Daley, and the notorious Gray Wolves of the Chicago City Council. Charles T. Yerkes, an often-demonized figure, is shown as a visionary urban planner, and engineer John Alexander Low Waddell, a world-renowned bridge creator, is introduced to Chicagoans as the designer of their urban railway.This fascinating exploration of how one human-built structure reshaped the social and economic landscape of Chicago is the definitive book on Chicago’s elevated Loop.Bryan Toepfer, AIA, NCARB, CAPM is the Principal Architect for TOEPFER Architecture, PLLC, an Architecture firm specializing in Residential Architecture and Virtual Reality. He has authored two books, “Contractors CANNOT Build Your House,” and “Six Months Now, ARCHITECT for Life.” He is an Assistant Professor at Alfred State College and the Director of Education for the AIA Rochester Board of Directors. Always eager to help anyone understand the world of Architecture, he can be reached by sending an email tobtoepfer@toepferarchitecture. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/science-technology-and-society

The figure of Sigmund Freud has captivated the Western imagination like few others. One hundred and twenty-five years after the publication of Studies on Hysteria, the good doctor from Vienna continues to stir controversy in institutions, academic circles, and nuclear households across the world. Perhaps Freud’s sharpest and most adamant critic, Frederick Crews has been debating Freud’s legacy for over thirty years. His latest work, Freud: The Making of an Illusion (Picador, 2018) challenges us with an extensive psychological profile of the legend here revealed as scam artist. What some analysts might argue to be a 750 page character assassination, Crews maintains is simply a recitation of facts which leaves readers to draw their own conclusions. One might wonder if the story of facts that is conveyed is not itself a counter myth.Was Freud a megalomaniacal, greedy, cocaine-addled opportunist and psychoanalysis a pseudoscience that has reigned tyrannically over twentieth century thought? Making use of Freud’s extensive letters to Martha Bernays, Crews paints a “damning portrait” (Esquire) of a money hungry, adulterous, and uncaring man. How can this portrait be reconciled with the radically meaningful and deeply transformative process many of us know psychoanalysis to be? Is the tyranny of rationality preferable to the tyranny of myth? Does the unmaking of the myth of the man undo the gift of his work?In this interview Crews responds to questions of what it means to have an empirical attitude, how we should “test” the process of healing, what’s so tempting about Freud, and what should become of psychoanalysis today. Meticulously researched, the Crews of the Freud wars is back again, and he’s going in for the kill shot.Cassandra B. Seltman is a writer, psychoanalyst, and researcher in NYC. cassandraseltman@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/science-technology-and-society

How did humans come to be who we are? In his marvelous, eccentric, and widely lauded book Being a Beast, legal scholar, veterinary surgeon, and naturalist extraordinaire Charles Foster set out to understand the consciousness of animal species by living as a badger, otter, fox, deer, and swift. Now, he inhabits three crucial periods of human development to understand the consciousness of perhaps the strangest animal of all—the human being.To experience the Upper Paleolithic era—a turning point when humans became behaviorally modern, painting caves and telling stories, Foster learns what it feels like to be a Cro-Magnon hunter-gatherer by living in makeshift shelters without amenities in the rural woods of England. He tests his five impoverished senses to forage for berries and roadkill and he undertakes shamanic journeys to explore the connection of wakeful dreaming to religion. For the Neolithic period, when humans stayed in one place and domesticated plants and animals, forever altering our connection to the natural world, he moves to a reconstructed Neolithic settlement. Finally, to explore the Enlightenment—the age of reason and the end of the soul—Foster inspects Oxford colleges, dissecting rooms, cafes, and art galleries. He finds his world and himself bizarre and disembodied, and he rues the atrophy of our senses, the cause for much of what ails us.Drawing on psychology, neuroscience, natural history, agriculture, medical law and ethics, Being a Human: Adventures in Forty Thousand Years of Consciousness (Metropolitan Books, 2021) is one man’s audacious attempt to feel a connection with 45,000 years of human history. This glorious, fiercely imaginative journey from our origins to a possible future ultimately shows how we might best live on earth—and thrive.Galina Limorenko is a doctoral candidate in Neuroscience with a focus on biochemistry and molecular biology of neurodegenerative diseases at EPFL in Switzerland. To discuss and propose the book for an interview you can reach her at galina.limorenko@epfl.ch. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/science-technology-and-society

In this discussion, Dr. Michael Bresalier, a historian of modern medicine at Swansea University, delves into his book on the history of influenza research in Britain. He traces the evolution of understanding influenza from 1890 to 1950 and the impact of pandemics on public health perceptions. Bresalier highlights how two world wars and significant collaborations reshaped medical science. He discusses the challenges of developing influenza vaccines and draws parallels between past pandemics and current global health issues, emphasizing the importance of historical lessons.

Dive into the origins of artificial intelligence through captivating tales! Discover how Alan Turing's work redefined intelligence and deception, particularly with the Turing Test. Explore Karel Čapek's pioneering play that introduced robots and foretold an AI takeover. Delve into the ethical quandaries of treating machines as laborers and the ramifications of our creations. The discussion raises vital questions about rights, consciousness, and the profound impact of AI on human relationships in a technologically driven world.

In this engaging convo, Matt Beane, an Assistant Professor of Technology Management at UC Santa Barbara, dives into his book discussing the impact of automation on skill development. He highlights how AI can threaten traditional mentor-mentee relationships essential for junior workers. Beane shares innovative training systems aimed at improving skill acquisition while emphasizing the importance of tacit knowledge in complex tasks. He also sheds light on the challenges faced by low-wage workers in warehousing due to automation, and announces Skill Bench, a startup focused on enhancing skill development.

Nick Couldry, a Professor at LSE specializing in media and social theory, delves into the impact of social media on human connections in his latest discussion. He questions whether true solidarity can exist in a digitally dominated world. Exploring themes like mental health crisis, misinformation, and the influence of Big Tech, Couldry argues for a redesign of digital spaces to prioritize community over profit. He highlights the need for solutions that respect local contexts and critiques capitalism's role in undermining social bonds.

Josh Spodek, a PhD in Physics and leadership coach, shares his transformative journey towards sustainability after disconnecting from the electric grid in NYC. He argues that sustainability enhances quality of life rather than sacrifices it. Spodek critiques government and corporate efforts, emphasizing grassroots actions and cultural change as keys to tackling environmental issues. He advocates for a shift in leadership models and intrinsic motivation, proposing that personal responsibility and collective cultural shifts can drive meaningful progress in sustainability.

Ulises Mejias, a communication studies professor, and Nick Couldry, a media and communications theorist, tackle the pressing issue of data colonialism in their discussion. They reveal how Big Tech exploits personal data, drawing parallels to historical colonial practices. The conversation addresses the gig economy's challenges, the perils of AI, and the ethical dilemmas arising from generative technologies. Additionally, they emphasize the importance of amplifying marginalized voices and propose frameworks for resistance to create a fairer digital landscape.

Julien Mailland, author of "The Game That Never Ends: How Lawyers Shape the Videogame Industry," dives deep into the legal intricacies that influence gaming. He unpacks why FIFA 15 faced recalls in France and the quirky renaming of Vodka Drunkenski. Mailland illuminates how landmark legal battles have shaped player experiences and spurred the rise of third-party developers, all while navigating the complex intersection of law and gaming culture. His insights reveal the hidden yet powerful role lawyers play in defining the video game landscape.