Error loading page.
Try refreshing the page. If that doesn't work, there may be a network issue, and you can use our self test page to see what's preventing the page from loading.
Learn more about possible network issues or contact support for more help.

Dawn of the New Everything

Encounters with Reality and Virtual Reality

Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
1 of 1 copy available

"[Oliver Wyman] narrates in a reflective tone that fits well with Lanier's mix of recollections, philosophy, and explanations of technology...Lanier takes the listener through VR breakthroughs like Nintendo's Power Glove and delves into the psychology involved in the VR experience." — AudioFile Magazine
In this captivating audiobook, Jaron Lanier —The father of virtual reality — explains its dazzling possibilities by reflecting on his own lifelong relationship with technology

Bridging the gap between tech mania and the experience of being inside the human body, Dawn of the New Everything is a look at what it means to be human at a moment of unprecedented technological possibility.
Through a fascinating look back over his life in technology, Jaron Lanier, an interdisciplinary scientist and father of the term "virtual reality," exposes VR's ability to illuminate and amplify our understanding of our species, and gives listeners a new perspective on how the brain and body connect to the world.
An inventive blend of autobiography, science writing, philosophy and advice, this audiobook tells the wild story of his personal and professional life as a scientist, from his childhood in the UFO territory of New Mexico, to the loss of his mother, the founding of the first start-up, and finally becoming a world-renowned technological guru.
Understanding virtual reality as being both a scientific and cultural adventure, Lanier demonstrates it to be a humanistic setting for technology. While his previous publications offered a more critical view of social media and other manifestations of technology, in this audiobook he argues that virtual reality can actually make our lives richer and fuller.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

  • Formats

  • Languages

  • Reviews

    • AudioFile Magazine
      Jason Lanier's response is modest when people call him "The Father of VR." Narrator Oliver Wyman gives him a touch of humility as Lanier points out that a lot of others were also involved in creating virtual reality technology. Wyman narrates in a reflective tone that fits well with Lanier's mix of recollections, philosophy, and explanations of technology. Wyman shares Lanier's enthusiasm for explaining VR concepts, as when the author compares the listener's head to a spy submarine to convey an idea. Lanier takes the listener through VR breakthroughs like Nintendo's Power Glove and delves into the psychology involved in the VR experience. He also warns of dangers, including the rise of surveillance. J.A.S. © AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine
    • Publisher's Weekly

      October 16, 2017
      Alternating between personal memoir and the history of virtual reality technology leading up to take, computer scientist Lanier (Who Owns the Future?) transports readers to the experimental, obsessive, and even messianic intellectual tech guru circuit of the 1970s and 1980s, where he first spawned the idea for virtual reality. Writing with a performative style of prose that switches between self-help book and self-involved philosophical treatise, Lanier spews optimism about human potential and cognitive enhancement, alongside stories of long-held grudges and bitterness about situations around the early history of his startup, VPL Research, and his frustration around the field’s disinterest in what he feels ought to be the current focus of VR, somatic and haptic experience. Lanier’s insights on the human parameters of VR experiences, the relationship between minds and bodies, and even the art of perfecting the tech demo suggest that he understands people well, but his stories of relationships—both professional and personal—gone bad imply otherwise. With this cleverly crafted autobiography of sorts, Lanier convinces readers that he’s both brilliant and inspiring enough to keep the podium in a field that’s gone from fringe to corporate.

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

Languages

  • English

Loading