Melinda's Reviews > Life in Code: A Personal History of Technology

This isn't really a memoir, but a collection of essays, some more interesting and relevant than others. But Ullman writes from a unique perspective, someone passionate about programming who sees the cracks and the flaws in our Brave New World given over to the machine. I particularly enjoyed her essay about AI and robots that learn by mimicking human reactions. Also, I appreciate her comments about the way technology is a perpetuator of the economic divide and has not been used to address and mend inequities. In the final pages, she writes about Trump as the product of technology -- a leader who doesn't lead, but Tweets, communicating without filter to people who have learned to scorn experts, mock science, and denigrate the professional press. Ullman makes a strong case that technology has brought us to this impasse of horror. Where will it take us next? According to Ullman, after Uber has used up its gig workers data mining for auto-driving cars they, too, will be abandoned. This is all sobering stuff. This would be a good book for discussion -- for those willing to go there.