The Human Machine was a series from How We Get To Next, exploring the increasingly blurred lines between humans and machines. New episodes were published every two weeks.

There was a newsletter book club running alongside the series — you can find the archive of every edition here. We’re still discussing them, and other issues raised in the series, in our Facebook group. Come join! We’re a friendly bunch.

Everyone in the world is dependent on technology. From hearing aids to spectacles, drugs to prosthetics, smartphones to contraceptives — human existence is a cycle of inventing things to shape life, and in turn, be shaped. There is no “natural” state for humans, not since we mastered fire.

Humans and machines are not actually opposites of each other; the binary of “natural” and “unnatural” is a construct that can mask what’s really happening in the world. Our technology is an extension of our humanity, and we are all human machines. This series will explore what that means over the coming decades.

Episodes

1. Introduction

Welcome to the Human Machine.

2. Sense Hacking

Jane Hu meets real-life cyborgs who want to change how they experience the world.

3. Connected Brains

kieranyates on smartphones as a kind of brain augmentation, and moral panics about them “rewiring our brains”.

4. Birth Control

Hannah Harris Green on the consequences of the first contraceptive pill — and what to expect from the version for men.

5. Gene Editing

Corin Faife looks into the excitement around CRISPR gene editing, and why the people who need its potential most will likely be the last to receive it.

6. Prosthetics & Exoskeletons

Jane Hu looks at the economic and social issues around the next generation of prosthetics — including body augmentation and powered exoskeletons.

7. The Future Human Machine

A look at some of the more underrated innovations coming over the next decades that will alter the relationship between humans and technology.

8. The Human Machine Reading List

What comes next.

The Human Machine is a How We Get To Next and Storythings production. You can subscribe to the series newsletter here, and we’re discussing the issues raised throughout this series over at the Facebook discussion group here.

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