[Air-l] Fwd: [radical-science] Cyborg Citizen: Politics in the Posthuman Age

jeremy hunsinger jhuns at vt.edu
Tue Apr 8 16:41:09 PDT 2003


given the politics of the age, i think this is worth forwarding on, but  
this is not what I would say about Cyborg Citizen, which is an  
interesting book in many more ways than this review illustrates, but  
with any book from any given perspective.... mileage varies.

Begin forwarded message:

> From: Ian Pitchford <ian.pitchford at scientist.com>
> Date: Sun Apr 6, 2003  2:09:01 PM US/Eastern
> To: evolutionary-psychology at yahoogroups.com,  
> radical-science at yahoogroups.com
> Subject: [radical-science] Cyborg Citizen: Politics in the Posthuman  
> Age
> Reply-To: Ian Pitchford <ian.pitchford at scientist.com>
>
> Metapsychology
>
> Cyborg Citizen: Politics in the Posthuman Age
> by Chris Hables Gray
> Routledge, 2001
>
> Review by Ian Stoner on Mar 19th 2003
>
> There is little doubt that the presence of technology is increasingly  
> felt in
> the world of politics; representatives reach constituents through web  
> pages,
> citizens vote at computer terminals, antiwar protesters organize with  
> the help
> of wireless networks.  In Cyborg Citizen:  Politics in the Posthuman  
> Age, Chris
> Hables Gray suggests that there is a more fundamental way in which  
> technology
> is changing the face of politics.  The citizenry, he argues, has been  
> so
> thoroughly permeated by technology that the people comprising our  
> democracy are
> no longer humans, but cyborgs.  This shift in the fundamental unit of
> democracy, he says, will revolutionize the politics of the future.
>
> In order to develop this provocative thesis, Gray's goals are  
> necessarily
> twofold.  First, he must convince his readers that they are cyborgs.   
> Then, he
> must show that the cyborgization of the citizenry has implications for  
> the
> political process of democracy.
>
> On the first point, Gray has a lot to say.  He notes that the term  
> "cyborg"
> commonly refers to people who have been modified or enhanced by  
> technology.
> This should bring to mind not only the bionic man, but also women with  
> hearing
> aides, children with eyeglasses, men with pacemakers, and so on.  He is
> convincing when he suggests that the technologies that support and  
> extend our
> physical capabilities have become so widespread that it is easy to  
> forget about
> them.  It has probably never occurred to most contact lens wearers, for
> instance, that they fit even conservative definitions of "cyborg."
>
> Full text
> http://mentalhelp.net/books/books.php?type=de&id=1604
>
> Cyborg Citizen: Politics in the Posthuman Age
> by Chris Hables Gray
> Paperback: 256 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 0.68 x 8.62 x 6.42
> Publisher: Routledge; (February 1, 2002) ISBN: 0415919797
> AMAZON - US
> http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0415919797/darwinanddarwini
> AMAZON - UK
> http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0415919797/humannaturecom
>
> Amazon.com
> Some great science fiction has asked about robots and the right to  
> vote--but
> what happens when we're 51 percent artificial ourselves? Cyberculture  
> scholar
> Chris Hables Gray looks at the ever-changing human body in Cyborg  
> Citizen:
> Politics in the Posthuman Age and makes some well-educated guesses on  
> the
> makeup of the future cybernetic body politic. Though he does go out of  
> his way
> to remind the reader that nearly all of us are bioenhanced (that is a
> vaccination scar, isn't it?), he's neither a chrome-eyed Extropian nor  
> a
> Rifkinesque fear-mongerer. His thesis is refreshingly simple in a world
> overfilled with postmodern complexity: we're changing our bodies more  
> and more
> radically, and we ought to think about how this will change our way of  
> life.
> Examining health care, social interactions, and politics, Gray's focus  
> is
> largely on particular modifications and enhancements such as  
> prosthetic limbs,
> artificial organs, performance-enhancing drugs, and their descendants.  
> The book
> never dips into freak show territory, though; even if Gray uses  
> colorful
> examples to illustrate his points, he still maintains a humanistic  
> attitude
> throughout. His simple thesis, coupled with this attitude, create a  
> web of
> thought that is simultaneously entertaining and enlightening. Though  
> our track
> record on preemptively dealing with change is spotty at best, reading  
> Cyborg
> Citizen is still a good prescription for keeping the posthuman jitters  
> at
> bay. --Rob Lightner --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
>
> From Book News, Inc.
> The growing synergy between humans and technology is changing how  
> people view
> their minds and bodies, says cyberculture specialist and social  
> activist Gray
> (cultural studies of science and technology, U. of Great Falls,  
> Montana), but
> he investigates how it has changed the body politic. He explores how  
> to forge a
> society that protects the rights of human and cyborg alike.Book News,  
> Inc.®,
> Portland, OR --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
>
> Book Description
> The creator of the cult classic Cyborg Handbook, Chris Hables Gray,  
> now offers
> the first guide to "posthuman" politics, framing the key issues that  
> could
> threaten or brighten out technological future. --This text refers to  
> the
> Hardcover edition.
>
> Book Info
> Examining health care, social interactions, and politics, Gray's focus  
> is
> largely on particular modifications and enhancements such as  
> prosthetic limbs,
> artificial organs, performance-enhancing drugs, and their descendants.  
> He also
> explores how to forge a society that protects the rights of human and  
> cyborg
> alike. Softcover.
>
> About the Author
> Chris Gray is a cyberculture expert and social activist who is editor  
> of The
> Cyborg Handbook and author of Postmodern War. He has worked for NASA,  
> the
> Smithsonian Institutions, and the computer industry, and is currently  
> Associate
> Professor of Cultural Studies of Science and Technology at the  
> University of
> Great Falls in Montana. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
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Jeremy Hunsinger
Center for Digital Discourse and Culture





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