The Amazing Journey of Reason: from DNA to Artificial Intelligence

by Mario Alemi

Organisms, or organized, living, systems. What's their origin? Why and how did they evolve? The Amazing Journey of Reason analyses the evolution of  complex structures in the universe -from the subatomic particles after the Big Bang onwards- in order to understand the emergence of today's interconnected society.  Artificial Intelligence, it concludes, is just the final step of a journey which started with DNA, itself the first Information and Communication Technology devised by nature on planet earth. What we are living today is the formation of the distributed nervous system of a metaorganism, in which human beings are the cells. A reassuring environment for us, but one where each individual will count increasingly less. A hugely complex, world-wide organism which makes Homo, while more communicans, also increasingly less sapiens.

Genres: Science

194 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 3, 2019

About the author

Mario Alemi (1970- ) is an Italian physicist and author. He is the author of "The Amazing Journey of Reason from DNA to Artificial Intelligence". Alemi writes about how Homo sapiens, after having reached a limit in the development of the brain, developed communication skills -shifting in this way information storage and processing from the individual to the network of people. According to this view, the emergence of digital communication (the "social nervous system") is an inevitable process, not different to the emergence of the nervous system in complex organisms or DNA in biological cells.
Alemi studied high energy physics in Milan, Italy and Marburg, Germany. Worked on his PhD at CERN, Geneva, Switzerland. He holds a postgraduate degree in International Journalism from City University, London, UK, where he lived for many years.
Alemi is a certified Specialty Coffee Association barista.

Reviews

[Alexandre Ramalho · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would rate this book between a 4 and a 4,5/5.
It tackles an exceptionally interesting topic, that is the one about structures complexity and intelligent systems, which is a topic that I found myself thinking about very often.
The only reason I don't give full 5 stars is because I felt there were some forced mathematical formulas/technical terms into the mix, just to give it a more scientific look.
I consider myself with an above average level of knowledge in Artificial Intelligence and got some trouble following some line of thoughts in the latter chapters (Back matter).

But the vast majority of the book was definitely a pleasant read, full of sources.
You can tell the author is well informed and is a bright individual.
Easy read, definitely recommend; but could have been even easier.

[Vittoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

For a hungry mind I strongly recommend it!