Israelis have always been world leaders at cutting edge research, and Israeli scholar Yuval Noah Harari is no exception to this rule. His previous book "Sapiens" gave a detailed, thoroughly researched history of the human species from Stone Age times right up to the twenty first century. Harari's most recent book "Homo Deus" carries on where "Sapiens" left off, this time trying to predict what our species will look like in the future. The principal motif of "Homo Deus" is that technology will make humans god-like in the coming century. That is not to say that we will become omnipotent, but rather that we will develop superhuman abilities never seen before in history. Although we will still be human, we will have the ability to do amazing things rather like the ancient Greek gods could, to use the author's analogy. Algorithms and bionic technology will enable us to accomplish things our forefathers could never have dreamed of. We may be able to completely eradicate war and famine, though it would be foolish to assume that this will definitely happen. Search engines like Google will develop a terrifying knowledge of each and every one of their users. But is this necessarily a good thing? What challenges will the age of heightened connectivity bring? Harari adroitly addresses all of these concerns. All in all, "Homo Deus" is a fascinating and stimulating read. Anyone seeking a better understanding of how future technology is likely to unfold should read this book. Below is a video of the author discussing his latest book.
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