From the bestselling author of Here Comes Everybody, Clay Shirky's Cognitive Surplus: Creativity and Generosity in a Connected Age is a fascinating look at how the internet is transforming our culture, providing new outlets for human potential. In the past, we filled our free time with the tools at our disposal. Television became a kind of universal part-time job, and sitcoms and soap operas sponged up our cognitive surplus: the collective surfeit of time, intellect and energy at our disposal. Today, tech has finally caught up with human potential. New tools don't just let us consume, but create and share. Clay Shirky's groundbreaking book reveals what is now happening with this previously untapped talent and goodwill. From lolcats to tools for tracking voter fraud and ethnic violence, he shows how we're using our cognitive surplus for the better, and what it means for the future.