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Books Galore
Peter 2.0
Peter 2.0 by Peter Scott-Morgan
This is my favourite book of all time. Few books have the charm of bringing tears to your eyes, make your heart full with the tales of love they paint, and challenge your mind to think outside the box with science and technology - robotics and AI in particular - all within 300 pages. In 2017, Peter found himself struggling to shake water off his leg by the sea. What seemed like a one-off incident set him down a path of a year of diagnostics while he gradually inched closer to being severely disabled. Peter was diagnosed with motor neuron disease. His neurons were gradually degrading and within two years, he was told, he would be dead. Now bear in mind, Peter is not your traditional rebel. He is the rebel you would encounter in sci-fi movies where the protagonist seems to never run out of infectious optimism despite a depressing challenge. The protagonist always has a love interest, and so does he. Together, Peter and his husband Francis, beat the odds with the determination to extend their lives together. Peter envisioned this: he would be the first fully independent cyborg. His expertise in robotics and global connections led him to extend his life by five years, and change the way the medical community views people with motor neuron disease. MND is a crippling diagnosis. Slowly, all the muscles in the body degrade as neurons fail and the person loses the ability to speak, move their hands, walk and even breathe. The leading cause of death in such patients is not the neurons directly, but rather respiratory infections, asphyxiation, or pneumonia. When Peter proposed surgery to have key bodily functions such as excretion, inhalation and feeding to be made automatic with catheters, tubes, ventilators and feeding tubes, he was met with the following response: "If we did it for you, we would have to do it for everyone else". Yes, one of the challenges the medical community faces is the increasing population. But with that, we have to increase our scope for our humanity. MND is not a biological challenge. It is a technological challenge. We live in a age where AI and robotics are at the forefront of most research. Peter saw this and capitalised on this to produce his own Avatar, and obtained his own exoskeleton. Peter 2.0 was then online. Peter 2.0 is the story of a young boy raised in a world where homosexuality was unwelcome. It is the story of a brilliant young man who discovers himself as an innovator. It is the story of two young men who confide in each other and share their love and their lives, making the world a better place, till death did them part. It is a story of love, life and the first cyborg. Read more about his life and work and how you can be a part of the rebellion here.
Bad Blood by John Carreyrou
Just over a year and a half ago in 2021, the trial for Elizabeth Holmes' startup turned wire fraud corporation, Theranos, gripped all the news channels by storm. Never having heard of Theranos before this, I started reading into the workings of the startup's Edison device and Minilab which claimed to run a plethora of blood tests with only a drop or two of blood. Holmes' selling point was her fear of needles, shared by millions across the globe. However, there was just one problem. The technology did not work. Holmes was a mastermind manipulator luring in investors and commercial partners for her device eventually raising her company's worth to nine billion dollars. From poor laboratory maintenance practices to fooling investors by running tests on standard Siemens machines and deflecting tough journalistic questions using trade secrets as a shield, Holmes painted an image of herself as Silicon Valley's next Steve Jobs. Bad Blood is the story of the whistleblowers and the inside workings of Theranos which led to Holmes successfully deceiving her investors, and ultimately, risking the lives of countless people. If you thought the scandal as covered by the news was bad, this book will prove to you the reality was far worse. It will expose Silicon Valley's trade culture and will leave you better aware on the tell-tale signs of a corporation fueled by greed and deceit. Carreyrou, the Wall Street Journalist who first exposed Theranos for what it was, combines science, business, and suspense effortlessly in Bad Blood, making it a must-read for the technology enthusiast.
Ultra-Processed People by Chris van Tulleken
Every Saturday during my undergraduate degree, I would happily trot over to one of my happy-places in Birmingham - the Sainsbury's superstore in Selly Oak. Every week, I would pick some staples - the most definite one being Lee Kum Kee's Chiu Chow Chilli Oil. I was addicted to its spicy, salty kick and almost religiously poured it on everything savoury I ate. Unsurprisingly, these foods were also often carb-loaded. And that's when I started noticing changes in my body. I wasn't as energetic as I used to be and I knew why. But I couldn't stop. This chilli oil had flavour enhancers, oil, preservatives and several other ingredients I had never heard of. This addictive trap, like majority of the foods on supermarket shelves, lures us in with the promise of a lip-smacking taste and healthy lifestyle. The little known fact is that the process of manufacturing the vast majority of foods today strips them of micronutrients and consists of hidden artificial ingredients. In a nutshell, the cheaper the food, the more likely it is to be loaded with ultra-processed food ingredients. Ultra-processed foods, or UPFs have cracked the business code making large scale manufacturers like Nestle produce larger quantities of foods with enhancers and emulsifiers instead of traditional ingredients. The downside? We can't stop. Chris dives into the inner works of such MNCs and the science behind why despite eating these healthy foods, we often find ourselves not being able to maintain a healthy weight, or have higher energy levels. We live in an age where 60% of the country would classify as overweight - a silent pandemic. van Tulleken exposes the truths of the food industry with brutal honesty. In doing so, he makes practical suggestions as to what people like you and I can do to gradually climb out of the UPF trap. If you live in the 21st century and not in the countryside, I urge you to read this book.
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