Gods and Robots

Myths, Machines, and Ancient Dreams of Technology

Adrienne Mayor

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Paperback

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English

Princeton University Pres
30 June 2020

History; Classical history & classical civilisation; Ancient religions & mythologies; History of science

The fascinating untold story of how the ancients imagined robots and other forms of artificial life — and even invented real automated machines

The first robot to walk the earth was a bronze giant called Talos. This wondrous machine was created not by MIT Robotics Lab, but by Hephaestus, the Greek god of invention. More than 2,500 years ago, Greek mythology was exploring ideas about creating artificial life — and grappling with still-unresolved ethical concerns about biotechne, 'life through craft.'

In this compelling, richly illustrated book, Adrienne Mayor tells the fascinating story of how ancient Greek, Roman, Indian, and Chinese myths envisioned artificial life, automata, self-moving devices, and human enhancements — and how these visions relate to and reflect the ancient invention of real animated machines. Revealing how science has always been driven by imagination, and how some of today's most advanced tech innovations were foreshadowed in ancient myth, Gods and Robots is a gripping new story of mythology for the age of AI.

'Mayor entertainingly re-examines the various versions of these myths that survive in written and visual form and speculates about their origins.' — The Economist

'Absorbing...

Mayor is an accessible and engaging writer.' — Peter Thonemann, Wall Street Journal

By: Adrienne Mayor
Imprint: Princeton University Pres
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 203mm, Width: 133mm,
ISBN: 9780691202266
ISBN 10: 0691202265
Pages: 296
Publication Date: 30 June 2020
Audience: General/trade , Professional and scholarly , General/trade , ELT Advanced , Undergraduate
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Adrienne Mayor is the author of several books, including The Amazons: Lives and Legends of Warrior Women across the Ancient World and The Poison King: The Life and Legend of Mithradates, Rome's Deadliest Enemy, which was a finalist for the National Book Award (both Princeton). She is a research scholar in classics and the history of science at Stanford University.