David Lorimer, books in brief, Network Review, no 121, Summer 2016, pp.62-63

The Age of EM
Robin Hanson
Oxford 2016, 426 pp., £20, h/b.

This book is an interdisciplinary thought experiment by an author trained in physics and philosophy, who is now a professor of economics. He envisages in detail a future when robots rule the world and brain emulation (EM) is widespread – this involves scanning a brain to record its cell features and connections then building a computer model that processes signals in the same way and is embodied on a small scale. Some readers may stop right there, since there is an underlying assumption that brain equals mind (especially in signalling terms) and that all this can be uploaded and expressed on a computer programme. There is no doubt that robots in various forms will gradually displace more and more human activities, but the interest of this book is, as I mentioned at the beginning, as a thought experiment. In a historical sense, the author believes that we are becoming maladaptive as people in more economically developed cultures fail to reproduce in sufficient numbers. In addition, the author speculates that our social systems will fail to prevent what we might currently consider lamentable outcomes. The six parts deal with basics, physics, economics, organisation, sociology and implications. EMs are psychologically similar to ourselves so they have some of the same challenges - and when they begin to wear out, they are allowed to process at a slower speed (sounds familiar?). The sheer amount of detail in the book really allows readers to engage with these scenarios and reflect back on our current situation.