Devil in the Stack

Andrew Smith

£12.99

Throughout history, technological revolutions have been driven by the invention of machines. But today, the power of the technology transforming our world lies in an intangible and impenetrable cosmos of software: algorithmic code. In a world increasingly governed by technologies that so few can comprehend, who – or what – controls the future? ‘Devil in the Stack’ follows Andrew Smith on his immersive trip into the world of coding, passing through the stories of logic, machine-learning and early computing, from Ada Lovelace to Alan Turing, and up to the present moment, behind the scenes into the lives – and minds – of the pioneers of the 21st century: those who write code. Smith embarks on a quest to understand this sect in what he believes to be the only way possible: by learning to code himself.

Out of stock

Publish Date: 11/09/2025

Description

Computer code was supposed to make the world a better place. When Andrew Smith began to suspect the opposite was happening, he asked himself why. Was it the coders? Or was there something about code itself, about the very way we compute, that could be intensifying rather than relieving our problems? To find out he realized he would need to dive headfirst into the machine by becoming a coder himself – in middle age, with no prior experience.Devil in the Stack describes what quickly became the strangest and most astonishing assignment of the Moondust author’s already colourful career, propelling him to the very heart of what it means to be human; to the cutting edge of philosophy, psychology, music, history and neuroscience, and ultimately the weird noir Neverland of Silicon Valley. By turns revelatory, funny, inspiring and unsettling, this is an essential book for our time, indispensable to anyone hoping to understand the moment we’re in.

Additional information

Dimensions 198 × 129 mm
Author

Publisher

Imprint

Cover

Paperback

Pages

464

Language

English

Edition
Dewey

303.4834 (edition:23)

Readership

General – Trade / Code: K