Imagined Worlds (The Jerusalem-Harvard Lectures)
With the millennium approaching, we can expect a glut of books about life in the 21st century and beyond. For Dyson, though, making predictions is nothing new. Over some 40 years, the honored physicist has written voluminously on future possibilities. The five longish essays in this collection explore future scenarios around the themes of "Stories," "Science," "Technology," "Evolution," and "Ethics." Probably the boldest predictions are in "Evolution," where Dyson looks ahead at several intervals, from ten years to infinity. Among other things, he envisions space colonization, galactic engineering projects, and the evolution of collective consciousness. As intriguing and readable as this book is, many of its ideas can be found in his other works (e.g., From Eros to Gaia, LJ 7/92). Libraries already owning a sampling of his writings can consider this an optional purchase. [Dyson is the father of computer guru Esther Dyson, and his son George is the author of Darwin Among the Machines, out this May from Helix.?Ed.]?Gregg Sapp, Univ. of Miami Lib., Coral Gables, Fl.-?Gregg Sapp, Univ. of Miami Lib., Coral Gables, Fl.Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.