Overview

Pulse provides a startling glimpse into a new science that has emerged from technology and been perfected by nature, a science destined to reshape every aspect of our lives. Poised to have as great an impact on our world as the machine age once did on the feudal world, this change is all the more surprising in that it is not the future we've been led to expect. Pulse charts the growing power of this """"new biology"""" of human systems and machines based on the ingenious design of living things. Written in simple, lively prose, Pulse describes emotional computers; ships that swim like fish; hard, soft, and wet artificial life; farms that grow like prairies; technological ecosystems; money that mimics the energy flows in nature; evolution at warp speed; and a great deal more. Using vivid, concrete examples, Robert Frenay takes us on a world tour of cutting-edge developments and the often colorful personalities behind them. He also shows how, as the machine age morphs into a culture linking seamlessly with nature, the old clash between those who revere nature and those who laud technology is coming to an end. This shift will produce not only systems and machines inspired by living things but also a human """"feedback"""" culture. Pulse offers thoughtful and original conclusions about the promise - and danger - of our transformation as we move into the next phase of human cultural evolution.

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Reviews

Can genes trump machines? Frenay, a former contributing editor of Audubon magazine, sees a paradigm shift, with biology moving into the forefront of scientific progress... The apparent conflict between environmentalism and the profit motive will disappear. In the long run, Frenay argues, that recognition will transform society... This account suggests that the new biology may well have legs. -Kirkus (starred review) Kirkus In this wide-ranging look at how biology and technology are being integrated in almost every area of human invention, Frenay writes of virtual communities and societies that are springing up online, some with economic systems that mimic those of the real world... Readers well versed in science who want to avoid future shock will encounter unusual matters on the frontiers of science that may be coming soon to a computer, merchant or medical facility near you. -Publishers Weekly Publishers Weekly A smorgasbord de luxe, Frenay's reportage is sustaining fare for environmentalists. -Booklist Booklist Throughout Pulse, Frenay uses clear empirical data and information from reputable scientists and organizations to substantiate his discourse.-San Francisco Chronicle San Francisco Chronicle Frenay's real interest, and the point of the book, is not to enumerate advances in technology but to exhaustively build his case that the new biology will fundamentally change human culture... It sounds the alarm that the way humans conduct their affairs is unsustainable-and that's a message that bears repeating. -Harvard Business Review Harvard Business Review

0;In this wide-ranging look at how biology and technology are being integrated in almost every area of human invention, Frenay writes of virtual communities and societies that are springing up online, some with economic systems that mimic those of the real world. . . . Readers well versed in science who want to avoid future shock will encounter unusual matters on the frontiers of science that may be coming soon to a computer, merchant or medical facility near you.1;2; Publishers Weekly

"""Can genes trump machines? Frenay, a former contributing editor of Audubon magazine, sees a paradigm shift, with biology moving into the forefront of scientific progress... The apparent conflict between environmentalism and the profit motive will disappear. In the long run, Frenay argues, that recognition will transform society... This account suggests that the new biology may well have legs.""-Kirkus (starred review) Kirkus ""In this wide-ranging look at how biology and technology are being integrated in almost every area of human invention, Frenay writes of virtual communities and societies that are springing up online, some with economic systems that mimic those of the real world... Readers well versed in science who want to avoid future shock will encounter unusual matters on the frontiers of science that may be coming soon to a computer, merchant or medical facility near you.""-Publishers Weekly Publishers Weekly ""A smorgasbord de luxe, Frenay's reportage is sustaining fare for environmentalists.""-Booklist Booklist ""Throughout Pulse, Frenay uses clear empirical data and information from reputable scientists and organizations to substantiate his discourse.-San Francisco Chronicle San Francisco Chronicle ""Frenay's real interest, and the point of the book, is not to enumerate advances in technology but to exhaustively build his case that the new biology will fundamentally change human culture... It sounds the alarm that the way humans conduct their affairs is unsustainable-and that's a message that bears repeating.""-Harvard Business Review Harvard Business Review"

Author Information

Robert Frenay (1946 - 2007) was a freelance writer and a former contributing editor for Audubon magazine, where he covered positive developments along the interface of nature and technology.

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