Timothy Leary - Chaos And Cyber Culture (Ronin)

Timothy Leary, the 72-year old ex-Harvard professor who taught a generation to "turn on, tune in and drop out" now recognises the PC as the LSD of the 1990's and explains all in his new book. The book collects articles and lectures that Leary has given over the past few years in publications as diverse as underground zines and Sunday supplements and at events from rave parties to the Whole Life Expo.

Across almost 300 pages he travels through such subjects as Chaos Engineering, Counter Cultures, Info-Chemicals and De-Animation/Re-Animation. Just delving into the latter I learnt that Andy Warhol was cryogenically frozen on dying and will be re-animated when M.I.T.'s nanotechnology department has mastered the process so he can meet his idol Walt Disney, who also took the cryonic hibernation/re-animation option.

As if it needed it, the book is coloured in along the way with some hi-tech/hand made computer art and interviews with William Gibson, David Byrne, William S. Burroughs and Winona Ryder. Yes, *that* Winona Ryder. She's Leary's goddaughter, you see. Winona and Timothy chat about everything from The Mission soundtrack to the information age and it all makes for pretty interesting reading. This is an essential handbook for the unfolding decade. Just Say Know.


This review also published in: On magazine