The Humem State: The Emergence and Establishment of Our Extended Presence
- Author: Alan Brook
- Page count: 312
- Started on: 2026/05/04
- Finished on: 2026/05/13
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
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A friend casually mentioned that a good friend of hers had written a book that I might like, and that’s how I ended up reading The Humem State. It explores how our online presences (what Brook calls Extended Presence, or EP) are evolving into independent representations of our physical selves. Drawing on examples from history, current practices, and emerging technology, Brook argues that these EPs will turn into autonomous entities (that he calls Humems) who deserve recognition.
The concepts Brook covers are fascinating, and the extrapolations he makes show insight into a possible future. The book was published in 2014, but it’s more relevant today than I can imagine it being 10+ years ago. As we pour more of ourselves into online presences and agents, we will at some point have to consider where I end and the humem or agent begins.
It all comes across a bit overly optimistic though, highlighting the great things that might happen while mostly ignoring potential downsides and risks. The book also describes just one possible outcome, while there are many more possibilities that it doesn’t explore. In a novel that would be expected, but in this nonfiction work I found it lacking.
I found the writing style of the book overly academic, which made it borderline unreadable to me at times. Here are some examples (I just scrolled to a few random places and copied a sentence from each):
I would argue, however, that humems’ sensory systems should be viewed even more broadly as all the apparatuses through which they absorb information from the outside world.
In certain settings, it may be desirable for such an affiliation to be founded, or to continue, independently of the life-status of the people.
A person who is already in a satisfying alpha-pair relationship may desire a supplementary humem that is insulated from their alpha-humem for a variety of amusement or emotional uses.
It may be more your cup of tea of course. Overall, I am glad that I read The Humem State for its interesting ideas, but am really curious how the same ideas would read as a series of science fiction stories.
