Homo Numericus

Daniel Cohen was a Professor of Economics at the École normale supérieure and founding member of the Paris School of Economics.  His many books include The Wealth of the World and the Poverty of Nations, The Infinite Desire for Growth, The Prosperity of Vice and Homo Economicus, the (lost) prophet of modern times.

• Acknowledgements Introduction Part OneThe Digital IllusionI.   The Body and the MindTerminatorReason and Emotions  Descartes’ “Error”Artificial IntelligenceII.  Stultify and PunishA Wild ThoughtThe Capitalism of SurveillanceIII.  Waiting for the RobotsThe Death of KingsThe Industrialism of ServicesThe Thinking RobotThe Stake of the CenturyIV.  Political AnomieImpoverishing GrowthWorking Class SuicideA Political RevolutionVox popoliPart TwoThe Return of the RealV.  The Social ImaginationThe Law of 150 FriendsBonobos and ChimpanzeesFour Possible SocietiesThe Secular AgeThe Triumph of EndogamyThe Post-Modern Mentality VI.  Winter is ComingThe Crises of the Twentieth CenturyThe Climatic ClockThe Society of AddictionVII.  In a Hundred YearsThe Society of AbundanceBack to Science FictionVIII.  By Way of ConclusionNotesIndex

‘The digital revolution will change our world. It will change the way we act and the way we interact. It will change the scope of governments and firms to affect our choices. All this for the better and for the worse. Nobody is better placed than Daniel Cohen to take us on an exploration of how the digital world may look. A fascinating intellectual journey.’Olivier Blanchard, Peterson Institute for International Economics‘In what turned out to be his final work, Daniel Cohen brought his encyclopaedic knowledge to bear on the contradictions of post-industrial society, now reinforced by artificial intelligence: an apparent liberation of the individual alongside intensified surveillance; an ostensible enablement of a vox populi that has also generated soaring material inequality and the loneliness of global communication. He appeals to us to treasure those institutions that remind us of our continuing need for each other.’Colin Crouch, University of Warwick