A comprehensive cultural portrait that Kirkus recommends for fans of John Markoff and Ari Levy, Clive Thompson offers smart, funny, necessary reporting with Coders: The Making of a New Tribe and the Remaking of the World. This tech journalist uncovers lesser-known origin stories within the field and outlines its future directions, all while casting incisive light on ethical questions of coding (what we code for, more humans do). Thompson further explores the shifting role of the profession into a blue-collar arena where labor and class distinctions impact tech-innovations and outcomes. Design-thinking, new economic engines, Kentucky coal miners being trained to code and teen feminist hacktivist sleepovers—Thompson covers it all.

Joining Thompson in conversation to explore the shifting future of coding is Wired veteran and Atlantic staff writer Alexis Madrigal.

Do you fully know the profession that fuels Silicon Valley? Maybe we know it less than we think—Thompson and Madrigal weigh whether it could be the overlooked driving force of seismic social change.

This special event will be hosted at HanaHaus, the dynamic community coworking space in downtown Palo Alto. Seating opens at 7:00 pm.

Tickets to Kepler’s Literary Foundation events are not tax-deductible. Tax deductible donations can be made online at keplers.org/donate

Photo credit: Tom Igoe.