Includes bibliographical references and index.

Introduction : alert for operators -- Chapter one : passengers -- Chapter two : the robot at the gate -- Chapter three : on autopilot -- Chapter 4 : the degradation effect -- Interlude : with dancing mice -- Chapter five : white-collar computer -- Chapter six : world and screen -- Chapter seven : automation for the people -- Interlude : with grave robber -- Chapter eight : your inner drone -- Chapter nine : the love that lays the swale in rows -- Notes -- Acknowledgements -- Index.

Originally published in hardback by The Bodley Head, 2015, London.

Automation is everywhere - from the thermostat in our homes and the GPS in our phones to the algorithms of High Frequency Trading and self-driving cars. We now use it to diagnose patients, educate children, evaluate criminal evidence and fight wars. But psychological studies show that we perform best when fully involved in a task, while the principle of automation - that humans are inefficient - is self-fulfilling. Nicholas Carr uses remarkable case studies - from the navigation techniques of Inuit hunters to the loss of $7 billion on Wall Street in a matter of seconds - to reveal how automation is changing us: our ability not just to read maps and drive cars but to solve problems, forge memories and acquire skills.