I have just finished reading a new book: Blockchain Chicken Farm and Other Stories of Tech in China’s Countryside by Xiaowei Wang (FSG Originals). https://us.macmillan.com/books/9780374538668 This extraordinary book by a young Chinese-American, an artist and a Silicon Valley coder, recounts travels around rural China to learn how technology, especially web-based digital technology, is reshaping society in many villages. At once highly personal and deeply philosophical, this book told me more about how technology affects (not determines) the live of countless individuals whose life-choice options have been radically changed by the digital economy. There is a lot to learn from this book. I won’t attempt a summary which would inevitably distort or oversimplify the richly nuanced and subtle observations and analysis the book presents with sensitivity and warmth. One has to note, despite its topic and erudition, Blockchain Chicken Farm does not cite any philosophers and left me wondering which philosopher of technology, school of thought or approach, best complements or supports the honest observations recorded in the book. I will try to answer that question in another post. In the meantime, read the book and please offer some comments here. There is an interview with the author about the book at an event organized by City Lights Books in San Francisco that you can see on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=glbzinB1cTg