Blown to Bits: Your Life, Liberty, and Happiness After the Digital Explosion

By Harry Lewis, Hal Abelson, Ken Ledeen

Book Overview

"If you want to understand the future before it happens, you'll love this book. If you want to change the future before it happens to you, this book is required reading." -Reed Hundt, former Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission "There is no simpler or clearer statement of the radical change that digital technologies will bring, nor any book that better prepares one for thinking about the next steps." -Lawrence Lessig, Stanford Law School and Author of Code and Other Laws of Cyberspace "Blown to Bits will blow you away. In highly accessible and always fun prose, it explores all the nooks and crannies of the digital universe, exploring not only how this exploding space works but also what it means." -Debora Spar, President of Barnard College, Author of Ruling the Waves and The Baby Business "This is a wonderful book-probably the best since Hal Varian and Carl Schultz wrote Digital Rules. The authors are engineers, not economists. The result is a long, friendly talk with the genie, out of the lamp, and willing to help you avoid making the traditional mistake with that all-important third wish." -David Warsh, Author of Knowledge and the Wealth of Nations "Blown to Bits is one of the clearest expositions I've seen of the social and political issues arising from the Internet. Its remarkably clear explanations of how the Net actually works lets the hot air out of some seemingly endless debates. You've made explaining this stuff look easy. Congratulations " -David Weinberger, Coauthor of The Cluetrain Manifesto and Author of Everything Is Miscellaneous: The Power of the New Digital Disorder. "Blown to Bits is a timely, important, and very readable take on how information is produced and consumed today, and more important, on the approaching sea change in the way that we as a society deal with the consequences." -Craig Silverstein, Director of Technology, Google, Inc. "This book gives an overview of the kinds of issues confronting society as we become increasingly dependent on the Internet and the World Wide Web. Every informed citizen should read this book and then form their own opinion on these and related issues. And after reading this book you will rethink how (and even whether) you use the Web to form your opinions..." -James S. Miller, Senior Director for Technology Policy and Strategy, Microsoft Corporation "Most writing about the digital world comes from techies writing about technical matter for other techies or from pundits whose turn of phrase greatly exceeds their technical knowledge. In Blown to Bits, experts in computer science address authoritatively the practical issues in which we all have keen interest." -Howard Gardner, Hobbs Professor of Cognition and Education, Harvard Graduate School of Education, Author of Multiple Intelligences and Changing Minds "Regardless of your experience with computers, Blown to Bits provides a uniquely entertaining and informative perspective from the computing industry's greatest minds. A fascinating, insightful and entertaining book that helps you understand computers and their impact on the world in a whole new way. This is a rare book that explains the impact of the digital explosion in a way that everyone can understand and, at the same time, challenges experts to think in new ways." -Anne Margulies, Assistant Secretary for Information Technology and Chief Information Officer of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts "Blown to Bits is fun and fundamental. What a pleasure to see real teachers offering such excellent framework for students in a digital age to explore and understand their digital environment, code and law, starting with the insight of Claude Shannon. I look forward to you teaching in an open online school." -Professor Charles Nesson, Harvard Law School, Founder, Berkman Center for Internet and Society "To many of us, computers and the Internet are magic. We make stuff, send stuff, receive stuff, and buy stuff. It's all pointing, clicking, copying, and pasting. But it's all mysterious. This book explains in clear and comprehensive terms how all this gear on my desk works and why we should pay close attention to these revolutionary changes in our lives. It's a brilliant and necessary work for consumers, citizens, and students of all ages." -Siva Vaidhyanathan, cultural historian and media scholar at the University of Virginia and author of Copyrights and Copywrongs: The Rise of Intellectual Property and How it Threatens Creativity "The world has turned into the proverbial elephant and we the blind men. The old and the young among us risk being controlled by, rather than in control of, events and technologies. Blown to Bits is a remarkable and essential Rosetta Stone for beginning to figure out how all of the pieces of the new world we have just begun to enter-law, technology, culture, information-are going to fit together. Will life explode with new possibilities, or contract under pressure of new horrors? The precipice is both exhilarating and frightening. Hal Abelson, Ken Ledeen, and Harry Lewis, together, have ably managed to describe the elephant. Readers of this compact book describing the beginning stages of a vast human adventure will be one jump ahead, for they will have a framework on which to hang new pieces that will continue to appear with remarkable speed. To say that this is a 'must read' sounds trite, but, this time, it's absolutely true." -Harvey Silverglate, criminal defense and civil liberties lawyer and writer Every day, billions of photographs, news stories, songs, X-rays, TV shows, phone calls, and emails are being sca

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0137135599
• ISBN13: 9780137135592
• Release Date: January 2008
• Publisher: Addison-Wesley Professional
• Length: 366 Pages
• Weight: 1.38 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.3" x 9.1"

Customer Reviews

Subtitle should be: "When stuck in Cyberflatland ..."

This is an important book to read because of the perspective it provides. "Blown to BITS" clearly describes a future of information systems and their users when they get trapped in Cyberflatland. Just like the now well known book Flatland, the people and systems of Cyberflatland are challenged to even imagine the extra dimensions. The authors are very accomplished and I happen to know and respect them and their work. I gave the book a 5 star rating because it provides a context for imagining the extra dimensions that it would take, and that actually exist, to escape Cyberflatland. The Computer Science community and the associated industrial base has the capacity to break out of Cyberflatland and enable an alternative future.

Blown to Bits

Big brother is watching. The world that George Orwell predicted in his book 1984 is here. What's more, we love it. The digital age has changed our lives. So much is now at our disposable, instantly. Need to contact someone who is out of their office, just phone their cell phone. Want the latest news or gossip about your favorite movie star, just surf the internet. Looking for a great deal on your next new car, do a little research on the net. Nothing could be more simply. On a day to day basis most of us only think about the convenience factor. Yes, we all are irritated by spam and once in a while we might do a virus or spyware scan in an attempt to make sure that our information stays safe. What we don't tend to realize is that our personal information is already out there: every angry blog entry you ever wrote, information about what sites you visit, medical history, credit rating information. The list is endless. Blown to Bits educates us about what bits of our life is available for public view. The reality is that we can't completely erase our personal digital footprint. However, there are a few things we can do to protect ourselves to some extent.

Fascinating

This book is perfect for people who want to understand more about information technology and don't want to read something long or technical to learn it. The authors do a superb job taking the reader through how major technologies function (computers, the internet, cell phones, etc.), how they are shaping our lives, and what impacts they have on our laws and society. Amazing stories are woven throughout it, making it readable and fun for techies and non-techies alike. At the end of the book, you'll have a new understanding of the things we take for granted - and what possibilities and threats they pose. You'll also be light years ahead of most other people - who themselves will need to come up to speed in the coming years. A great read!

a must read

This is one of those books that will change the way you look at the world, or at least, your computer (which, as you'll learn, might be a lot more of the world than you think!) In a very readable prose, the authors explain how the world is fundamentally different now that so much information -- so many bits -- is being generated, monitored, and stored about nearly everything we do. The book covers not just how the internet actually works but also weaves together many applicable examples from the worlds of commerce, entertainment, government, and law. It is one of those books that will cause you to share what you just read with whomever happens to be in the room, as it is filled with many gee-whiz moments. A great read.

Right on the mark

I could not put this book down. It presents in approachable and lucid terms the complexities and subtleties of the information age. It goes beyond the mere didactic, using well thought out and entertaining vignettes to make it a joy to read. Read this book.