Virtually Human - Softcover

"A fascinating read that clearly brings Alan Turing into the twenty-first century." --J. Craig Venter, Ph.D., author of Life at the Speed of Light and creator of the first synthetic cell

"Martine Rothblatt has a knack for expanding our minds as well as our comfort zones beyond customary boundaries, be they of gender or substrate." --Ray Kurzweil

"Maybe the most fascinating woman on the planet" --Jezebel

"Ingenious... a thoughtful philosophical exploration of the role of virtual humans in our future" --Kirkus Reviews

"Exponential technologies are driving a new dimension of human evolution. In her compelling book, Virtually Human, Martine Rothblatt outlines how artificial consciousness is just around the corner, and explores the scientific and ethical ramifications. Science fiction is rapidly becoming science fact and the implications are breathtaking. Virtually Human is critical reading to anyone who plans to be around for the next couple of decades." --Peter H. Diamandis, MD, CEO, XPRIZE; Exec Chairman, Singularity University; New York Times bestselling author of Abundance: The Future is Better Than You Think

"We are in the midst of a war between biological and electronic brains for dominance in our hybrid population. Bio-brains are, so far, ahead based on their inventiveness, energy-efficiency and exponential improvement rate. Will ethics asymmetrically restrict engineering humans or will it equally apply soon to 'virtually human' electronic brains? Martine's insights on these and many other topics are timely and welcome." --George Church, Harvard Professor, and author of Regenesis: How Synthetic Biology Will Reinvent Nature and Ourselves

"In Virtually Human, Martine Rothblatt builds on the observation that "I think, therefore I am" in ways that Descartes could not have imagined. With the rapid evolution of artificial intelligence, Rothblatt predicts that we soon will confront cyberconsciousness comparable to--indeed, indistinguishable from--the human mind. When we cross this technological Rubicon, we will be forced to reconsider the meaning of concepts as foundational as life and death, law and liberty, love and kinship. Bringing to bear the lessons of history, philosophy, psychology, law and science, Rothblatt makes abundantly clear that these unprecedented challenges will define the humanity not just of our technological doppelgangers but of ourselves." --Rachel F. Moran, Dean and Michael J. Connell Distinguished Professor of Law, UCLA School of Law, and author of Interracial Intimacy: The Regulation of Race and Romance

"Martine Rothblatt delivers an engaging exploration of the pathway to the near-term realization of our digital clones, and through the many ethical, legal, and spiritual challenges their advent will pose. Even skeptics, like myself, will find Virtually Human an intriguing vision filled with profoundly challenging ideas." --Wendell Wallach, Yale Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics, co-author of Moral Machines: Teaching Robots Right From Wrong

"The social struggle over the moral status of uploaded personalities and machine minds will be as fraught and momentous as the struggles to end slavery and extend women's suffrage. In Virtually Human, Martine Rothblatt brings her remarkable intellect and profound ethical insight to this issue in a way that will make it essential reading." --James J. Hughes, Ph.D., Executive Director, Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies

"Advances in cognitive and computer sciences render artificial humans possible, some duplicating natural individuals with increasing fidelity. When must we confront the ethical, legal, and social implications? Now, in Virtually Human!" --William Sims Bainbridge, author of Personality Capture and Emulation and eGods: Faith Versus Fantasy in Computer Gaming

"A wide-ranging, very readable, and possibly prescient look at one of the future's most exciting -- and at the same time most disturbing -- possibilities. Martine Rothblatt has been investigating this field, which some call uploading, for as long as anyone and has many rewarding insights." --J. Storrs Hall, author of Beyond AI and Nanofuture