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Thursday, January 31, 2008
Oprah’s new pick: Eckhart Tolle
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
In case you missed the news, Oprah Winfrey has chosen Eckhart Tolle’s self-help book “A New Earth,” as her latest book club selection.
Tolle is a German native who now lives in Vancouver, Canada, and writes books that some might consider quite helpful. I skimmed his last book, “The Power of Now,” and wasn’t impressed, but it sold a million copies, so maybe Tolle knows something I don’t. “A New Earth” is just out, so I haven’t had a chance to read it yet.
Tolle’s website says that he advocates “transcending our ego-based state of consciousness” as a “prerequisite not only for personal happiness but also for the ending of violent conflict endemic on our planet.” Hard to take issue with that.
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“Love + Sex With Robots”
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Here at The Book Page, we never run out of intellectual fodder. Particularly when it’s about sex. Today it’s David Levy’s new book, “Love + Sex With Robots,” in which he asserts that in 30 to 40 years, robots will be so believably human that people will have sex with them and fall in love with them.
This has been a favorite topic of science fiction for years - Philip K. Dick’s classic novel “Blade Runner” comes to mind — but Levy insists we’re getting closer to making it real. If you’ve seen some of the cutting-edge robots being developed in Japan, you know that this is not as ridiculous as skeptics might think.
Levy is an expert on artificial intelligence and computers, but he comes across a little strange. He went on “The Colbert Report,” which was quite brave of him, and Colbert had some fun at his expense. You can see a clip here.
I’m no Luddite, but I have to say I shudder to contemplate a society where men can have as much sex as they want with an artificial partner who looks like Angelina Jolie and never says no. Such a product would make crack look like Doritos. I think the love thing is going to be a lot more of a problem, but if science can create a boinkable android, a lot of guys are gonna order one from Amazon and never do anything else in their life.
Am I right about men? And is there a female equivalent, that if women can buy a guy who will do the dishes, pick up his underwear and put down the toilet seat, they won’t want a husband?
Is the motto of the future going to be Once You Go Bot, You Never Go Back?
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