ABSTRACT
In this book, the words ‘atom’, ‘byte’ and ‘gene’ stand as metonyms for three global techno-scientific developments of the second part of the 20th century, namely nuclear power, computing and genetic engineering. Atoms, bytes and genes ground these developments. Atoms are the units of matter the understanding of which defines modern physics; bytes are a series of 8 bits and as such the operational unit of modern computing, and genes are fragments of a chromosome that regulate the development of life forms. Resistance stands for the challenges these developments came to face in public opinion over the years. And ‘techno-science’ stands for the efforts at the frontiers of uncertainty and knowledge where science and engineering are not easily distinguished. No nuclear physics without large machines, no brain nor climate science without large and small computers, no modern genetics without sequencing robots. What is technology, where is the science? Modern science is a cyborg, a man-machine-practice that incorporated machines to develop them further.
