Virtual Light
Virtual Light

Author: William Gibson

Publisher: Spectra

Published: 2012-11-21

Total Pages: 351

ISBN-13: 0307831183

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

NEW YORK TIMES bestseller • 2005: Welcome to NoCal and SoCal, the uneasy sister-states of what used to be California. The millennium has come and gone, leaving in its wake only stunned survivors. In Los Angeles, Berry Rydell is a former armed-response rentacop now working for a bounty hunter. Chevette Washington is a bicycle messenger turned pickpocket who impulsively snatches a pair of innocent-looking sunglasses. But these are no ordinary shades. What you can see through these high-tech specs can make you rich—or get you killed. Now Berry and Chevette are on the run, zeroing in on the digitalized heart of DatAmerica, where pure information is the greatest high. And a mind can be a terrible thing to crash. . . . Praise for Virtual Light “Both exhilarating and terrifying . . . Although considered the master of 'cyberpunk' science fiction, William Gibson is also one fine suspense writer.”—People “A stunner . . . A terrifically stylish burst of kick-butt imagination.”—Entertainment Weekly “Convincing . . . frightening . . . Virtual Light is written with a sense of craft, a sense of humor and a sense of the ultimate seriousness of the problems it explores.”—Chicago Tribune “In the emerging pop culture of the information age, Gibson is the brightest star.”—The San Diego Union-Tribune

Light in Dark Times
Light in Dark Times

Author: Alisse Waterston

Publisher: University of Toronto Press

Published: 2020-10-01

Total Pages: 160

ISBN-13: 1487539134

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

What will become of us in these trying times? How will we pass the time that we have on earth? In gorgeously rendered graphic form, Light in Dark Times invites readers to consider these questions by exploring the political catastrophes and moral disasters of the past and present, revealing issues that beg to be studied, understood, confronted, and resisted. A profound work of anthropology and art, this book is for anyone yearning to understand the darkness and hoping to hold onto the light. It is a powerful story of encounters with writers, philosophers, activists, and anthropologists whose words are as meaningful today as they were during the times in which they were written. This book is at once a lament over the darkness of our times, an affirmation of the value of knowledge and introspection, and a consideration of truth, lies, and the dangers of the trivial. In a time when many of us struggle with the feeling that we cannot do enough to change the course of the future, this book is a call to action, asking us to envision and create an alternative world from the one in which we now live. Light in Dark Times is beautiful to look at and to hold – an exquisite work of art that is lively, informative, enlightening, deeply moving, and inspiring.

Reality+: Virtual Worlds and the Problems of Philosophy
Reality+: Virtual Worlds and the Problems of Philosophy

Author: David J. Chalmers

Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company

Published: 2022-01-25

Total Pages: 544

ISBN-13: 0393635813

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

A leading philosopher takes a mind-bending journey through virtual worlds, illuminating the nature of reality and our place within it. Virtual reality is genuine reality; that’s the central thesis of Reality+. In a highly original work of “technophilosophy,” David J. Chalmers gives a compelling analysis of our technological future. He argues that virtual worlds are not second-class worlds, and that we can live a meaningful life in virtual reality. We may even be in a virtual world already. Along the way, Chalmers conducts a grand tour of big ideas in philosophy and science. He uses virtual reality technology to offer a new perspective on long-established philosophical questions. How do we know that there’s an external world? Is there a god? What is the nature of reality? What’s the relation between mind and body? How can we lead a good life? All of these questions are illuminated or transformed by Chalmers’ mind-bending analysis. Studded with illustrations that bring philosophical issues to life, Reality+ is a major statement that will shape discussion of philosophy, science, and technology for years to come.

The Post-Screen Through Virtual Reality, Holograms and Light Projections
The Post-Screen Through Virtual Reality, Holograms and Light Projections

Author: DR. ENG Jenna Ng

Publisher: MediaMatters

Published: 2021-10-14

Total Pages: 300

ISBN-13: 9789463723541

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Screens are ubiquitous today. They display information; present image worlds; are portable; connect to mobile networks; mesmerize. However, contemporary screen media also seek to eliminate the presence of the screen and the visibilities of its boundaries. As what is image becomes increasingly indistinguishable against the viewer's actual surroundings, this unsettling prompts re-examination about not only what is the screen, but also how the screen demarcates and what it stands for in relation to our understanding of our realities in, outside and against images. Through case studies drawn from three media technologies - Virtual Reality; holograms; and light projections - this book develops new theories of the surfaces on and spaces in which images are displayed today, interrogating critical lines between art and life; virtuality and actuality; truth and lies. What we have today is not just the contestation of the real against illusion or the unreal, but the disappearance itself of difference and a gluttony of the unreal which both connect up to current politics of distorted truth values and corrupted terms of information. The Post-Screen Through Virtual Reality, Holograms and Light Projections: Where Screen Boundaries Lie is thus about not only where the image's borders and demarcations are established, but also the screen boundary as the instrumentation of today's intense virtualizations that do not tell the truth. In all this, a new imagination for images emerges, with a new space for cultures of presence and absence, definitions of object and representation, and understandings of dis- and re-placement - the post-screen.

The View from Split Rock
The View from Split Rock

Author: Lee Radzak

Publisher:

Published: 2021-05

Total Pages: 160

ISBN-13: 9781681341804

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

A modern lighthouse keeper tells the fascinating stories of his tenure at a celebrated historic site.

Monk
Monk

Author: Yoshihiro Imai

Publisher: Phaidon Press

Published: 2021

Total Pages: 240

ISBN-13: 9781838662547

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

"Monk is the story of chef Yoshihiro Imai's fourteen-seat, seasonally inspired restaurant, set on the cherry blossom-lined Philosopher's Path in Kyoto. Through personal essays, recipes, and beautiful photography, Yoshihiro evokes the rituals that form his life in Kyoto and his deep connection to the fields of the nearby Ohara valley. He shares stories of the organic farmers, makers, and exceptional ingredients -- from foraged vegetables to wild herbs and flowers -- that inspire his omakase-style menu; describes why the wood-fired oven is central to the restaurant; and traces the evolution of the innovative and delicious pizza for which he is globally renowned"--Back cover.

New Media, Old Media
New Media, Old Media

Author: Wendy Hui Kyong Chun

Publisher: Psychology Press

Published: 2006

Total Pages: 436

ISBN-13: 9780415942249

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

In this history of new media technologies, leading media and cultural theorists examine new media against the background of traditional media such as film, photography, and print in order to evaluate the multiple claims made about the benefits and freedom of digital media.

Virtual, Augmented and Mixed Reality: Interaction, Navigation, Visualization, Embodiment, and Simulation
Virtual, Augmented and Mixed Reality: Interaction, Navigation, Visualization, Embodiment, and Simulation

Author: Jessie Y.C. Chen

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2018-07-10

Total Pages: 492

ISBN-13: 3319915819

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

This two-volume set LNCS 10909 and 10910 constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 10th International Conference on Virtual, Augmented and Mixed Reality, VAMR 2018, held as part of HCI International 2018 in Las Vegas, NV, USA. HCII 2018 received a total of 4346 submissions, of which 1171 papers and 160 posters were accepted for publication after a careful reviewing process. The 65 papers presented in this volume were organized in topical sections named: interaction, navigation, and visualization in VAMR; embodiment, communication, and collaboration in VAMR; education, training, and simulation; VAMR in psychotherapy, exercising, and health; virtual reality for cultural heritage, entertainment, and games; industrial and military applications.

Numericon
Numericon

Author: Marianne Freiberger

Publisher: Quercus

Published: 2014-09-04

Total Pages: 283

ISBN-13: 178206155X

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Numericon tells the stories of the numbers, mathematical discoveries, oddities and personalities that have shaped the way we understand the world around us. Funny, bizarre, tragic and dramatic, these stories reveal the power, passion and beauty of mathematics. Each chapter is an intriguing story about a number, including why 3 is strong, e is natural and Graham's number is too big to write. Packed with quirky, informative facts and bound in a beautiful foil-blocked cover, this book will do for maths what The Etymologicon did for the English language.