How to Build an Android

In 2006, a young robotocist on the way to Google headquarters lost an overnight bag on a flight somewhere between Dallas and Las Vegas. In it was a fully functional head of the android replica of cult science fiction writer Philip K. Dick. It has never been recovered. In a story that echoes some of the most paranoid fantasies of a Dick novel, listeners get a fascinating inside look at the scientists and technology that made this android possible. The author, a fellow researcher at the University of Memphis Institute of Intelligent Systems when the android was being built, exposes the cutting-edge technology in robotics, artificial intelligence, and sculpture that came together to capture the imagination of scientists, artists, and science fiction fans alike. There are also stories about Dick himself. Entertaining and informative, this is popular science at its best.