The Department of Mad Scientists

[Dave Monroe]

The Department of Mad Scientists
How DARPA Is Remaking Our World, from the Internet to Artificial Limbs
By Michael Belfiore

Price: 	$26.99
On Sale: 	10/20/2009
Formats:     Hardcover | E-Book

New from Smithsonian Books, The Department of Mad Scientists is the
first trade book ever on DARPA—the Defense Advanced Research Projects
Agency—the maverick and controversial agency whose futuristic work has
had amazing military and civilian application, from the Internet to
GPS to driverless cars. Michael Belfiore, author of Rocketeers,
visited science research sites across the country to provide this
unprecedented look at the people who shape our country’s future
technology.
Book Description

The first-ever inside look at DARPA—the Defense Advanced Research
Projects Agency—the maverick and controversial group whose futuristic
work has had amazing civilian and military applications, from the
Internet to GPS to driverless cars

America's greatest idea factory isn't Bell Labs, Silicon Valley, or
MIT's Media Lab. It's the secretive, Pentagon-led agency known as
DARPA. Founded by Eisenhower in response to Sputnik and the Soviet
space program, DARPA mixes military officers with sneaker-wearing
scientists, seeking paradigm-shifting ideas in varied fields—from
energy, robotics, and rockets to peopleless operating rooms,
driverless cars, and planes that can fly halfway around the world in
just hours. DARPA gave birth to the Internet, GPS, and mind-controlled
robotic arms. Its geniuses define future technology for the military
and the rest of us.

Michael Belfiore was given unprecedented access to write this
first-ever popular account of DARPA. Visiting research sites across
the country, he watched scientists in action and talked to the
creative, fearlessly ambitious visionaries working for and with DARPA.
Much of DARPA's work is classified, and this book is full of material
that has barely been reported in the general media. In fact, DARPA
estimates that only 2 percent of Americans know much of anything about
the agency. This fascinating read demonstrates that DARPA isn't so
much frightening as it is inspiring—it is our future.

http://www.harpercollins.com/books/9780061577932/The_Department_of_Mad_Scientists/index.aspx