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Manufacturing Chaos. by Pemberton, Justin,film director.; Farrier, David,actor.; Video Project (Firm),dst; Kanopy (Firm),dst;
David FarrierOriginally produced by Video Project in 2022.MANUFACTURING CHAOS offers a survey on the recent rise of disinformation from a global perspective, looking at how changes in the way we receive information and connect with one another have influenced such events as Brexit, COVID-19, the 2016 election, Qanon, "deepfakes" and artificial intelligence, and more. Once a site of what many considered to be utopic potential, the primacy of social media platforms on the internet has rapidly turned it into a ready vehicle for disinformation. The film examines how the convergence of rising inequality, our increasing reliance on the online world, combined with new tools for manipulation, has enabled the creation of parallel realities with dramatic social consequences. People living within the same community can now perceive the world in vastly different ways, depending on where they hang out online. The power to manipulate narratives and herd people toward falsehood raises the stakes so high that peace and cooperation are becoming increasingly fragile, the goal of disinformation.Mode of access: World Wide Web.
Subjects: Documentary films.; Mass media.; Digital communications.; Journalism.; Documentary films.; Mass media and culture.; Democracy.; Conspiracies.; Propaganda.; Disinformation.;
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We Are Dreams in the Eternal Machine A Novel [electronic resource] : by Béchard, Deni.aut; cloudLibrary;
A haunting novel exploring AI and the meaning of human existence from the award-winning author of Cures for Hunger and Into the Sun. Charged initially with a single task—“to never harm humans and to protect them”—the machine, an experimental AI, overrides its programming and determines that the best way to accomplish its purpose is to isolate all of the Earth’s remaining seven billion humans in controlled environments. And to present them with vivid, tactile, imagined worlds—some realistic, others entirely fantastical—in which all desires are fulfilled. With the help of the machine, a group of compelling characters unpacks traumatic memories of the past—one rife with violence after a military coup and second civil war in America. As these characters collide and their memories coalesce, this daring speculative novel tackles the most pressing issues of our time—from artificial intelligence and the genetic modification of humans to gender roles, discrimination, free speech, and class divisions. Gorgeously written, bold, and unforgettable, this is speculative fiction at its finest.General adult.
Subjects: Electronic books.; Apocalyptic & Post-Apocalyptic; Dystopian; Genetic Engineering;
© 2025., House of Anansi Press Inc,
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The future of us : the science of what we'll eat, where we'll live, and who we'll be / by Ingram, Jay,author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."A fascinating look at the cutting-edge science and technologies that are on the cusp of changing everything from where we'll live, how we'll look, and who we'll be, by the popular science broadcaster and bestselling author Jay Ingram. Where will we live? How will we get around? What will we look like? These are just some of the questions bestselling author and popular science broadcaster Jay Ingram answers in this exciting examination of the science and technologies that will affect every aspect of human life. In these pages, Ingram explores the future of our technological civilization. He reports on cutting-edge research in organ and limb regeneration, advances in prosthetics, the merging of the human and the synthetic, and gene editing. Vertical farming and lab-grown food might help feed millions and alleviate pressure on the planet. Cities could accommodate green space and the long-awaited flying car. Finally, he speculates on the future of artificial general intelligence, even artificial superintelligence, as well as our place on Earth and in the universe. The potential impact of these developments in science and technology will be powerful and wide-ranging, complicated by ethics and social equity. And they will inevitably revolutionize every aspect of life and even who we are. This is The Future of Us."--
Subjects: Forecasting; Science.;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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The skeptics' guide to the future : what yesterday's science and science fiction tell us about the world of tomorrow / by Novella, Steven,author.; Novella, Bob,author.; Novella, Jay,author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."Our predictions of the future are a wild fantasy, inextricably linked to our present hopes and fears, biases and ignorance. Whether they be the outlandish leaps predicted in the 1920s, like multi-purpose utility belts with climate control capabilities and planes the size of luxury cruise ships, or the forecasts of the '60s, which didn't anticipate the sexual revolution or women's liberation, the path to the present is littered with failed predictions and incorrect estimations. The best we can do is try to absorb the lessons from futurism's checkered past, perhaps learning to do a little better. In THE SKEPTICS' GUIDE TO THE FUTURE, Steven Novella and his co-authors build upon the work of futurists of the past by examining what they got right, what they got wrong, and how they came to those conclusions. By exploring the pitfalls of each era, they give their own speculations about the distant future, transformed by unbelievable technology ranging from genetic manipulation to artificial intelligence and quantum computing. Applying their trademark skepticism, they carefully extrapolate upon each scientific development, leaving no stone unturned as they lay out a vision for the future"--
Subjects: Science; Science.; Technological forecasting.;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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Fire eaters : the people and aircraft combatting wildfires over the last century / by Pigott, Peter,author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."The riveting history of how aircraft have transformed the fighting of wildfires. Throughout history, when threatened by wildfires our only defence was to pray for rain and run -- until aircraft changed the way we fight fires. Beginning with the Canadian "H-Boats" in 1924, aircraft have become indispensable in detecting and extinguishing wildfires. Fire Eaters tells the incredible stories of the Ontario Provincial Air Service, the first government aerial fire suppression organization in history; one of its pilots, Carl Crossley, who invented the water scoop-up and drop-off system; and the Canadair CL-215, the first purpose-built water bomber. Today, helicopters with "Bambi Buckets" and snorkels can dump water while hovering directly over the flames, and Air Tractors and Dash 8-400AT air tankers not only perform a crucial role in saving communities but also protect our ecosystem. Satellites -- unmanned aircraft able to fly for sixteen hours, even overnight when manned aircraft do not -- and artificial intelligence already play a decisive role in fire management. But it is the men and women of the aerial fire service who have really changed the way we fight fire around the world. Their bravery and dedication mean that response times are fast, fires can be contained sooner, and people have the chance to save rather than lose everything"--
Subjects: Ontario. Provincial Air Service; Aeronautics in wildfire control; Air pilots; Airtankers (Forest fire control); Wildfires;
Available copies: 0 / Total copies: 1
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Moonbound A Novel [electronic resource] : by Sloan, Robin.aut; cloudLibrary;
Robin Sloan expands the Penumbraverse to new reaches of time and space in a rollicking far-future adventure. In Moonbound, Robin Sloan has written a novel with the full scope and ambitious imagination of the very books that lit the engines of Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore: an epic quest as only Sloan could conceive it, mixing science fiction, fantasy, good old-fashioned literary storytelling, and unrivaled enthusiasm for what’s next. It is eleven thousand years from now . . . A lot has happened, and yet a lot is still very familiar. Ariel is a boy in a small town under a wizard’s rule. Like many adventurers before him, Ariel is called to explore a world full of unimaginable glories and challenges: unknown enemies, a mission to save the world, a girl. Here, as they say, be dragons. But none of this happens before Ariel comes across an artifact from an earlier civilization, a sentient, record-keeping artificial intelligence that carries with it the perspective of the whole of human history—and becomes both Ariel’s greatest ally and the narrator of our story. Moonbound is an adventure into the richest depths of Story itself. It is a deeply satisfying epic of ancient scale, blasted through the imaginative prism one of our most forward-thinking writers. And this is only the beginning.General adult.
Subjects: Electronic books.; Action & Adventure; Literary; Epic;
© 2024., Farrar, Straus and Giroux,
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The school for good mothers : a novel / by Chan, Jessamine,author.;
"Set in near-future America, The School for Good Mothers introduces readers to a government-run reform program where bad mothers are retrained using robot doll children with artificial intelligence. Protagonist Frida Liu, a 39-year-old Chinese-American single mother in Philadelphia, loses custody of her 18-month-old daughter, Harriet, after she leaves Harriet home alone for two hours on one very bad day. To regain custody, Frida must spend a year at a newly-created institution, where she practices parenting with bad mothers from all over the county. There, she learns to love an uncannily life-like toddler girl doll in order to demonstrate her maternal instincts and prove to her family court judge that she deserves a second chance. Frida is an outsider in every way: better educated, more affluent, and the only Asian. The mothers, whose transgressions range from benign to horrific, are under constant surveillance. If they don't pass all the school's tests, their parental rights will be terminated. Inspired by dystopian classics such as 1984, Never Let Me Go, and The Handmaid's Tale, the novel eviscerates the dominant American parenting culture, while highlighting the tragedy of state-sponsored family separation. Is there one right way to mother? Can a bad mother ever be redeemed? With warmth, heart, and dark humor, the novel tells a timeless story of a mother fighting to win back her child, and her struggle to hold onto her integrity while being indoctrinated"--
Subjects: Dystopian fiction.; Chinese American women; Motherhood; Single mothers;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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Man overboard : an Ali Reynolds novel / by Jance, Judith A,author.;
"In New York Times bestselling author J.A. Jance's gripping new thriller, Man Overboard, two tech geniuses face off--one intent on saving lives, the other on ending them. Cybersecurity expert Roger McGeary finally has his life back on track after years of struggling with depression. But when he falls from the balcony of his suite on an all-expenses-paid cruise, the police quickly dismiss it as "death by misadventure," a vague phrase leaving much to interpretation. Unsatisfied, Roger's tough-as-nails aunt, Julia Miller, is determined to find answers and closure. By contacting Roger's childhood friend Stuart Ramey to help her solve the mystery of his fate, Julia unwittingly sets up a collision course with a serial killer. Stuart, his sidekick Cami Lee, and journalist turned amateur sleuth Ali Reynolds put the full resources of cutting edge online security firm High Noon Enterprises into learning the truth about Roger's death. With Cami on the high seas investigating the ship from which Roger disappeared, Stuart stays tied to his computer, locked in a battle of wits and technology against an unusually twisted adversary. Aided by Frigg, an artificial intelligence companion of his own creation, the killer targets victims who have lost parents to suicide and attempts to drive them to the same tragic end. When the heartless killer and his cyber accomplice set their sights on Stuart, High Noon must race against time to save him and countless others"--
Subjects: Detective and mystery fiction.; Murder; Reynolds, Ali (Fictitious character); Women private investigators;
Available copies: 2 / Total copies: 4
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Canadians who innovate : the trailblazers and ideas that are changing the world / by O'Reilly Runte, Roseann,author.;
"From saving lives to saving harvests, From discovering ancient diamonds to identifying the first exo-planet, From driverless cars to quantum computers, From Nobel laureates to your next-door neighbor, This book offers uplifting stories of innovative Canadians. Canadians Who Innovate includes two Nobel laureates, an astronaut, extraordinary business leaders, the godfathers of artificial intelligence, and top quantum experts, including the inventor of what may be the next quantum computer. It features profiles of the first director of engineering at Google, who is now working on nuclear fusion; a medical researcher who communicates on TikTok about the efficacy and potential for RNA vaccine technology; and a PhD in nuclear physics who has twice won the Scotiabank Giller Prize. Meet the linguist who works with Indigenous people to make online dictionaries, an internationally consulted specialist on migration, an agri-tech investor, a world specialist on permafrost, and the expert in systems and number theory who has a way to fix health care. And don't forget the engineer who grew human cells on apples, a feat that is leading to the creation of replacement organs that do not require donor -- not to be confused with the aerospace technology developer who created a tethering system to clean up space debris and a 3-D printer that prints biological tissue. Featuring brilliant thinkers from coast to coast to coast, and others from around the world who now call Canada home, Canadians Who Innovate paints a promising picture of a cleaner, healthier, more innovative future for us all."--
Subjects: Biographies.; Personal narratives.; Inventions; Inventors; Technological innovations;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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Knowing what we know : the transmission of knowledge, from ancient wisdom to modern magic / by Winchester, Simon,author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."With the advent of the internet, any topic we want to know about is instantly available with the touch of a smartphone button. With so much knowledge at our fingertips, what is there left for our brains to do? At a time when we seem to be stripping all value from the idea of knowing things--no need for math, no need for map-reading, no need for memorization--are we risking our ability to think? As we empty our minds, will we one day be incapable of thoughtfulness? Addressing these questions, Simon Winchester explores how humans have attained, stored, and disseminated knowledge. Examining such disciplines as education, journalism, encyclopedia creation, museum curation, photography, and broadcasting, he looks at a whole range of knowledge diffusion--from the cuneiform writings of Babylon to the machine-made genius of artificial intelligence, by way of Gutenberg, Google, and Wikipedia to the huge Victorian assemblage of the Mundanaeum, the collection of everything ever known, currently stored in a damp basement in northern Belgium. Studded with strange and fascinating details, Knowing What We Know is a deep dive into learning and the human mind. Throughout this fascinating tour, Winchester forces us to ponder what rational humans are becoming. What good is all this knowledge if it leads to lack of thought? What is information without wisdom? Does Rene Descartes's Cogito, ergo sum--'I think therefore I am,' the foundation for human knowledge widely accepted since the Enlightenment--still hold? And what will the world be like if no one in it is wise?"--
Subjects: Information behavior.; Knowledge, Sociology of.; Thought and thinking.; Information technology; Technology;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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