Alive

A timely examination of a wide range of projects exploring the boundaries of our existence, speculating on what 'life' is, and how humankind will (or will not) fit into a new order of hybrid species: a sort of sci-fi guidebook to lab-built humans. How can a drone smell? Is a silicone jellyfish with a rat’s heart 'alive'? Things that once seemed impossible are now becoming not only possible but mainstream. In the coming years, nearly all realms of our existence, from medicine to art, will involve experiments with human and non-human living tissue.This speculative book examines the concepts and ideas behind the knotty intersection where robotics, AI, biology and art collide through 150 or so fascinating projects.