All of these plus the alphabet, logarithms, vacuum tubes, quantum particles, morse code, and more are carriers of information. A history, a theory, a flood by james gleick has a rather nebulous title and the subtitle doesnt really help one understand what this book hopes to be about. Information now floods our society, gleick explains, requiring us to filter and search. Mar 06, 2012 a fascinating intellectual journey through the history of communication and information, from the language of africas talking drums to the invention of written alphabets. Dec 10, 20 he explores where the age of information is taking us, swept along by a deluge of signs and signals, news and images, blogs and tweets. I had to read it, and when i saw it at the carrot common location of book city, just sitting there on a table, i picked it up and bought it. It was on the new york times bestseller list for three weeks following its debut. This page is not a forum for general discussion about the information. Information is something we are all curious about but how accurately can we predict the future if we fail to understand the past. It is a book that vibrates with excitement, and it transmits that excited vibration with very little signal loss. The book uses the contributions of claude shannon as a thread to tie everyones work together, but this is not a biography of claude shannon. In order to do that, gleick has had to look to the beginning of history and before and to the ends of the universe and beyond. A history, a theory, a flood by james gleick is 426 pages of carefully researched and closely written ideas about what information really is. Mar 01, 2011 a fascinating intellectual journey through the history of communication and information, from the language of africas talking drums to the invention of written alphabets.
Jan 23, 2015 cove lighting this consists of placing continuous series of fluorescent tubes in a groove along one or more walls of a room, about 12 inches from the ceiling. A history, a theory, a flood from the worlds largest community of readers. From the bestselling author of the acclaimed chaos and genius comes a thoughtful and provocative exploration of the big ideas of the modern era. A history, a theory, a flood in new york journal of books. But every era of history has had its own information revolution. This is part of what noted science writer james gleick explores in the information. The theory focuses on such 20thcentury notables as claude shannon. What do electrical circuits have in common with african talking drums and the human genome. Acclaimed science writer james gleick presents an eyeopening vision of how our relationship to information has transformed the very nature of human consciousness. A history, a theory, a flood, his sweeping survey of how humans use information and how this practice. I was particularly thrilled to learn about the influence information theory had on the development of modern physics, evolution and biology, as well as. Apr, 2011 the past folds accordionlike into the present, james gleick writes in the information.
The history of information theory is a history of increasing abstraction. It pervades the sciences from top to bottom, transforming every branch of knowledge. Information, communication, and information theory. Information theory began as a bridge from mathematics to. Information, it seems, is life itself, and gleick shows how shannons information theory not only led to computers and cyberspace, but also transformed biology into an information science. A fascinating intellectual journey through the history of communication and information, from the language of africas talking drums to the invention of written alphabets. This is a history, not a textbook on information theory. The partials sequence complete collection dan wells ebook. A history, a theory, a flood is a book by science history writer james gleick published in march 2011 which covers the genesis of our current. The information a history a theory a flood epub download. A history, a theory, a flood is a book by science history writer james gleick published in march 2011 which covers the genesis of our current information age. The approach leans toward the theoretical conceptions of information and barely acknowledges the kind of information we usually think of as new ideas entering our minds. The information isnt just a natural history of a powerful idea.
The story of information begins in a time profoundly unlike our own, when every thought and utterance vanished as soon as it was born. We sort the mail, build sandcastles, solve jigsaw puzzles, separate wheat from chaff, rearrange chess pieces, collect stamps, alphabetize books. The author managed to synthesize the history, the theory, and the flood of information to produce actual knowledge, an understanding of the role information plays in the world of human beings. James gleick, the author of the best sellers chaos and genius, n. Beginning with the development of various alphabets and. It also cherry picks odd and interesting facets of the history of information but presents. Please limit discussion to improvement of this article.
A history, a theory, a flood summary the information is an examination of the history of information theory as well as an essay on how computers and the internet have changed the way in which people interact with and approach information. Apr 29, 2011 information, it seems, is life itself, and gleick shows how shannons information theory not only led to computers and cyberspace, but also transformed biology into an information science. A history, a theory, a flood ebook rar acfb50e82b 6alok jha. Mar 01, 2011 the author managed to synthesize the history, the theory, and the flood of information to produce actual knowledge, an understanding of the role information plays in the world of human beings. In a sense, the information is a book about everything, from words themselves to talking drums, writing and lexicography, early attempts at an analytical engine, the telegraph and telephone, eniac, and the ubiquitous computers that followed. A history, a theory, a flood by james gleick pantheon books, 2011, 527 pages, various prices explores the ideas that lead to and encompass what is now called information theory. To the point where the meaning of information becomes irrelevant. I was particularly thrilled to learn about the influence information theory had on the development of modern physics, evolution and biology, as well as library studies and social media. The light reflects off the ceiling and bathes the room in indirect light.
Wilson literary science writing awardfrom the bestselling author of the acclaimed chaos and genius comes a thoughtful and provocative exploration of the big ideas of the modern era. The extensive citations are welcomed as the author barely scratches the surface of any theory of information. To the point where the universe itself can be seen as a giant computer, and each of our choices, thoughts, movements become like states in the machine. A history, a theory, a flood, james gleicks tourdeforce history of information theory. Gleick sets himself a monumental task to tell the story of information throughout human history and delivers. The subtitle, a history, a theory, a flood, gives the game away. Acclaimed science writer james gleick discusses his latest work. When information is cheap, attention becomes expensive.
The information a history a theory a flood epub download deutsch bit. The film is the first step on a journey toward understanding the history of the earth according to genesis. By james gleick from the prologue we can see now that information is what our world runs on. Follow del tackett as he travels across the continent with over a dozen scientists and scholars to see fascinating new evidence for creation and a global flood. Filmed at the royal society, london on tue 12 apr 2011 7. From the invention of scripts and alphabets to the long misunderstood talking drums of africa, james gleick tells the story of information technologies that changed the very nature of human consciousness.
He explores where the age of information is taking us, swept along by a deluge of signs and signals, news and images, blogs and tweets. A history, a theory, a flood by james gleick book for free hello fellow readers. A history, a theory, a flood and over 2 million other books are available for amazon kindle. Track lighting track lighting consists of lamps fixed to the ceiling or wall in an array to offer great variety.
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