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9780228011224

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“In The Immaculate Conception of Data, Kelly Bronson plunges into an increasingly intricate web of precision farming, agribusiness, computerized models, data accumulation, and the current (d)evolution of modern food production. The ongoing attempt to marry traditional crop cultivation with computer science and artificial intelligence (AI) is a perplexing fusion of two very different worlds, which Bronson does an excellent job of critically analyzing. For anyone interested in gaining a critical perspective on the accelerated digitalization of the planet, as well as a better understanding of why farming is increasingly spoken of with a language and jargon that previously belonged to computer scientists and programmers, [this book] is an exceptional starting point.” Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development “The Immaculate Conception of Data shines in its ability to speak meaningfully to a variety of audiences from those interested in data privacy, the future of agriculture and science studies. The book also importantly reminds us that, despite their prominence, agricultural technologies and the data they collect are not immaculate. They are produced, trained and contained by agronomists and even activists. While I have been left contemplating these critical, nuanced arguments, I walked away with a practical point: Despite all the hype, data did not grow the wheat in my breakfast cereal.” Journal of Agrarian Change “Kelly Bronson’s concise and reader-friendly book constitutes a necessary warning about the risks of putting a blind faith in the promise of digitisation. Behind the book’s message lies a powerful futuristic imaginary that reproduces capitalism and its consequences—but also diminishes the critical reflectiveness of practitioners and scholars and compromises their emphasis on food justice. The prophetic, positivist aim to empower ‘raw data’ to shape reality serves economic interests eager to modify and capitalise on conventional farmers’ practices. Her call for politicising our perceptions of data is therefore salutary.” Sociologia Ruralis

“In The Immaculate Conception of Data, Kelly Bronson plunges into an increasingly intricate web of precision farming, agribusiness, computerized models, data accumulation, and the current (d)evolution of modern food production. The ongoing attempt to marry traditional crop cultivation with computer science and artificial intelligence (AI) is a perplexing fusion of two very different worlds, which Bronson does an excellent job of critically analyzing. For anyone interested in gaining a critical perspective on the accelerated digitalization of the planet, as well as a better understanding of why farming is increasingly spoken of with a language and jargon that previously belonged to computer scientists and programmers, [this book] is an exceptional starting point.” Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development “The Immaculate Conception of Data shines in its ability to speak meaningfully to a variety of audiences from those interested in data privacy, the future of agriculture and science studies. The book also importantly reminds us that, despite their prominence, agricultural technologies and the data they collect are not immaculate. They are produced, trained and contained by agronomists and even activists. While I have been left contemplating these critical, nuanced arguments, I walked away with a practical point: Despite all the hype, data did not grow the wheat in my breakfast cereal.” Journal of Agrarian Change

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Kelly Bronson is Canada Research Chair in Science and Society at the University of Ottawa.

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