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A review by lizshayne
The Alchemy of Us: How Humans and Matter Transformed One Another by Ainissa Ramirez
informative
reflective
fast-paced
4.0
Ramirez’s book is a fascinating survey of the effect that technology has on the way we think and move through the world.
Because I’m me, I can’t help but read it through a halachic lens - how does standardized time affect our perception of halachic spaces, how does each generation’s relationship with recorded noise affect our perception of its realness, how does our ethical obligation when it comes to lights impact Shabbat?
(The thing about cancer and lights is WILD, by the way)
Ramirez does fall into the difficult to avoid trap of framing things as a “what have we gained/what have we lost” with every piece of contemporary technology rather than thinking of it as, well, the definition of technology is gain and loss. The goal can’t be to progress without loss, but to…lose intentionally, I suppose.
As a species, we don’t get to Peter Pan our way through the world. Growing up is always about growth and loss and technology is no different. And while she handles that gracefully with lights, she trips—like everyone—over making changes in memory moral.
Because I’m me, I can’t help but read it through a halachic lens - how does standardized time affect our perception of halachic spaces, how does each generation’s relationship with recorded noise affect our perception of its realness, how does our ethical obligation when it comes to lights impact Shabbat?
(The thing about cancer and lights is WILD, by the way)
Ramirez does fall into the difficult to avoid trap of framing things as a “what have we gained/what have we lost” with every piece of contemporary technology rather than thinking of it as, well, the definition of technology is gain and loss. The goal can’t be to progress without loss, but to…lose intentionally, I suppose.
As a species, we don’t get to Peter Pan our way through the world. Growing up is always about growth and loss and technology is no different. And while she handles that gracefully with lights, she trips—like everyone—over making changes in memory moral.