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Alone Together: Why We Expect More from Technology and Less from Each Other Audiobook
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(3.01) - 1,324 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
Consider Facebook—it's human contact, only easier to engage with and easier to avoid. Developing technology promises closeness. Sometimes it delivers, but much of our modern life leaves us less connected with people and more connected to simulations of them.
In Alone Together, MIT technology and society professor Sherry Turkle explores the power of our new tools and toys to dramatically alter our social lives. It's a nuanced exploration of what we are looking for—and sacrificing—in a world of electronic companions and social networking tools, and an argument that, despite the hand-waving of today's self-described prophets of the future, it will be the next generation who will chart the path between isolation and connectivity.
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"Really enjoyed the book. The author, a psychoanalytically trained professor at MIT, looks at how robots and other technology, such as smartphones, are affecting us. As one of her research subjects says at one point, "It seems like technology is using us more than we're using technology." Occasionally I got a bit bogged down in all the detail, as the reactions of the research subjects were similar and began to blur into one another. But overall the book is a fascinating look at what it means to be human and raises such questions as: Do we really want robots taking care of our children or parents? Why are people so ready to respond to robots as "real"? What about those smartphones and hundreds of texts? What do we lose by being in constant touch with dozens of friends? What is the essence of being human? A grewat book."
— Andy (4 out of 5 stars)
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Turkle's prescient book makes a strong case that what was meant to be a way to facilitate communications has pushed people closer to their machines and further away from each other.
— Publishers Weekly Starred Review -
“Perceptive…[Turkle] has spent decades examining how people interact with computers and other devices…and by situating her findings in historical perspective, she is able to lend contextual ballast to her case studies.”
— New York Times -
“Turkle’s prescient book makes a strong case that what was meant to be a way to facilitate communications has pushed people closer to their machines and further away from each other.”
— Publishers Weekly (starred review) -
“Merlington serves as an excellent narrator with a matter-of-fact tone and a keen sense for when to use a deliberate pace…[and] keeps a fine balance that will engage listeners.”
— AudioFile -
“Turkle’s findings are engaging and her conclusions thoughtful (she’s been called ‘Margaret Mead in cyberspace’).”
— Library Journal -
“Turkle emphasizes personal stories from computer gadgetry’s front lines, which keeps her prose engaging and her message to the human species to restrain ourselves from becoming technology’s willing slaves instead of its guiding masters loud and clear.”
— Booklist
Alone Together Listener Reviews
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Christian Sager, 5/19/2015
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" This is a good book on modern computer technology and how it impacts our relationships with each other. It covers both social networking (which I had read about before) and robotics (which I was less familiar with) and presents a lot of startling information based on her own social science research. This is definitely worth reading, although at the end she kind of stops short of advocating the elimination of these technologies and argues for a sort of "managed use" idea. Not sure that is possible based on what she writes earlier in the book, but it's still essential reading. "
— Ronald, 1/23/2014 -
" Stimulating argument--and dead on about the replacement of actual face-to-face relationships with screen time. "
— Thomas, 1/13/2014 -
" If anyone out there needs a wake-up call when it comes to the impact of our technology on our society, this book is it. I have always been a wierdo, lagging behind the times when it comes to the cell-phone-always-on-social-networking-text-messaging world we live in now, and this book put in words exactly why I sometimes lose my phone on purpose and deleted my facebook account. An eery, but from my point of view, necessary, read. "
— Holly, 1/10/2014 -
" A truly insightful reflection the role of technology in our relationships; Turkle has always impressed me with her genuine humanity, and in this incisive tome has effectively woven together her thoughtful approach and another body of anecdotal research. "
— Chad, 1/6/2014 -
" I think the authors concerns about the effect of social media on young people is spot on. "
— Leah, 8/25/2013 -
" Use consistent verb tense. Points subtracted. "
— William, 6/21/2013 -
" A challenging book to get through, but a really interesting subject that was thoroughly examined. "
— Deirdre, 6/4/2013 -
" A provocative exploration of how technology like Facebook is shaping the way we interact with one another. Turkle spent a bit too much time detailing her research on robots and artificial intelligence for my liking, but she makes many relevant points that make for good discussion. "
— Erica, 1/26/2013 -
" Interesting. But where are we going with technology? "
— Maria, 10/27/2012 -
" Recommended for literature review purposes only "
— Crystal, 9/27/2012 -
" This book was fascinating and frightening all at once. It gave me a new perspective on my undergrad students and their world! "
— Pam, 7/20/2012 -
" Interesting. Many of the insights she talks about were fascinating. For example, it was hard to ignore the fact that my cell phone was on and by my side all the time while I was reading this book. "
— Cooper, 12/21/2011 -
" The questions Turkle asks in this book are thoughtful and important, which makes it worth a read. However, it can get a bit repetitive and morally high-handed at times. I recommend skimming it, then talking about it with a friend. A real friend, over a real meal. Without cell phones. "
— Alexis, 12/2/2011 -
" A book to think with and through. There is a hell of a lot on robots! But it is a chewy book and it offers a great deal of material about mediated communication. "
— Tara, 11/24/2011 -
" This was a very thought-provoking read. It gave me pause about the psychological and developmental impacts technology is having on kids (and adults too). At times, it got repetitive, and I had to skip parts, but it was very interested read if you're interested in technology. "
— Cheryl, 10/28/2011 -
" Skimmed the first half about robots, loved the second half about social technologies. "
— Jon, 5/15/2011 -
" Intersting book, with good research behind it. However, it was more about online personalities like avatars than FB stuff, and more about college/younger kids than what I was interested in reading about. But it definitely made you think! "
— Amy, 5/13/2011 -
" Don't tell me something I don't already know. I knew this. This author's saying it's bad; this author's saying that even the ones participating in it think it's bad. What about any books that consider online relationships to be good? "
— Warwriter, 5/8/2011 -
" This book wasn't all that great. The first half talked mostly about robots, which bored me so much that I wasn't all that interested in the 2nd half. "
— Jennifer, 4/14/2011 -
" This book was fascinating and frightening all at once. It gave me a new perspective on my undergrad students and their world! "
— Pam, 4/12/2011 -
" The topic is fascinating and the introduction is very good. She tends to drag on in the chapters though. Honestly, after hearing her speak (great speaker), I stopped reading this since I got the gist of what she was saying in person.<br/><br/> "
— Shelley, 3/15/2011 -
" I read a review about it and thought it was going to be something I could really get into but it was (for me) rather dry and slow. "
— Phil, 3/14/2011
About Sherry Turkle
Sherry Turkle is the Abby Rockefeller Mauzé Professor of the Social Studies of Science and Technology at MIT. She is frequently interviewed in Time, Newsweek, the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and on such media outlets as CBS, NBC, ABC, CNN, and NPR. A licensed clinical psychologist, Turkle received a joint doctorate in sociology and personality psychology from Harvard and is the author of several books, including Psychoanalytic Politics, The Second Self, Life on the Screen, and Simulation and Its Discontents. She lives in Boston.
About Laural Merlington
Laural Merlington is an audiobook narrator with over two hundred titles to her credit and a winner of multiple Earphones Awards. An Audie Award nominee, she has also directed over one hundred audiobooks. She has performed and directed for thirty years in theaters throughout the country. In addition to her extensive theater and voice-over work, she teaches college in her home state of Michigan.