Curran and Pask, self-appointed missionaries of the micro processor, take the social implications of computers to the common people. If you ever thought there must be some grand reason for the hours spent at your micro, these are the people to explain your place in the scheme of things.

The 'micro man' of the title is mankind living in a computer environment. Fortunately, most of the book doesn't match up to the esoteric levels of the meaty introduction where the authors suggest it is part of our evolution to have created computers - or, in their terms, another species.

The book starts in areas that are easier to get to grips with: Boole and Babbage, how computers affect education, work and play, and telecommunications. There are revealing results of a survey of what people think computers are and should be used for.

Whether discussing natural philosophy or more mundane matters, the book is built around varied and colourful pictures. But what do an African village massacre, water-lillies and Sherlock Holmes have in common besides their appearance here? Nothing much, I suspect.

It seems that given the starting point 'micro man', any picture can be tied to a text about computers and civilisation - but using a photo of slaughtered civilians to point out that they weren't killed by computers seems to me to be back to front. However, the text's wide scope is stimulating; it's also backed up with a splendid index.

This erudite treatise demands thought and concentration. At times absurdly pretentious, at others just absurd, it is nevertheless a rattling good read, even if it doesn't tell you how to get more out of your micro - in the short term.

Harriet Arnold