I have always been fascinated by science and everything mysterious. I love to read science fiction and mystery stories. I use art and literature to explore reality. Writing or painting allows me to link seemingly unrelated topics together to create my own explanations for why things are the way they appear to be. The biggest things in the universe are replicated on Earth right down to sub-atomic size. I call that life imitating stars. Life is an endless resource found everywhere in the universe, and it's not restricted to just light or heat to grow; it only needs energy.
This book was written in the late 60s, when everything was breaking loose from traditional values, including writing styles. Brunner did a very good job of anticipating how technology and changing social norms would change the world in the not-so-distant future.
It's all there: sexual freedom, legal drugs, religion, computers, crazy mass killers called muckers, corporate empires, a 7 billion population, global events, and the personalized internet.
I like the way the story was written, a new wave pop art style intermixed with traditional passages blaring out a series of seemingly unrelated events that are strung together by a group of unrelated characters who carry the complex story through to a surprising ending.
Now in a Tor Essentials edition, the Hugo Award-winning, uncannily prophetic Stand on Zanizbar is a science fiction novel unlike any before in that remains an insightful look at America’s downfall that allows us to see what has been, what is, and what is to come.
“There are certain things John Brunner achieved, which no one has done before or since.” ― Bruce Sterling
Genetic engineering is routine, corporations have usurped democracy, technology governs human relationship, and mass-marketed psychosomatic drugs keep billions docile. The systems of the United States are universal in reach and out of control. Every citizen is…
Saying just the right words in just the right way can cause a box of electronics to behave however you want it to behave… that’s an idea that has captivated me ever since I first played around with a computer at Radio Shack back in 1979. I’m always on the lookout for compelling ways to convey the topic to people who are open-minded, but maybe turned off by things that are overly technical. I teach computer science and study artificial intelligence as a way of expanding what we can get computers to do on our behalf.
The fields of Psychology, Economics, and Biology are well-known for offering interesting and informative introductory courses that provide a doorway into the area for budding scientists but also essential background knowledge appropriate for any educated person.
In Computer Science, we don't really do things that way. I wanted to offer a new kind of Computer Science introductory course that laid out the coolest ideas we have to offer along with compelling descriptions of why they matter.
I ended up using this book as the required reading in the class I built because it tells a personal, moving story while taking the reader from the nuts and bolts of bits and bytes all the way up to cutting-edge ideas surrounding artificial intelligence. It's a great read! Plus, it's short so I thought I could get my students to actually finish it.
Most people are baffled by how computers work and assume that they will never understand them. What they don't realize,and what Daniel Hillis's short book brilliantly demonstrates,is that computers'seemingly complex operations can be broken down into a few simple parts that perform the same simple procedures over and over again. Computer wizard Hillis offers an easy-to-follow explanation of how data is processed that makes the operations of a computer seem as straightforward as those of a bicycle.Avoiding technobabble or discussions of advanced hardware, the lucid explanations and colourful anecdotes in The Pattern on the Stone go straight to the heart…
My name is Nyah Nichol, and I love action, adventure, mystery, and sci-fi books. In fact, I like sci-fi thrillers so much, I wrote a couple myself! I started writing my first novel at 13 after being inspired by young authors and intriguing sci-fi books and movies. My debut novel started as a short story I wrote in grade seven for English class. I’m always up for reading any novel that keeps me on the edge of my seat. I love books that keep me up at night, because I can’t bear to put them down, and stories that really make me think. I hope you enjoy my recommendation list!
This short novel is one of my all-time favorites. The author visited my school when I was in middle school, and he was very amusing to listen to. This book taught me how to pace my writing for a thriller and how to leave readers with cliffhangers that make them hold their breath.
Sigmund Brouwer, with nearly three million books in print, will have thrill seekers of all ages on the edge of their seats with this captivating young adult novel.
When a teen boy receives a written warning from his friend to avoid his church and leave his remote island town immediately, he's terrified-his friend died weeks ago!
He knows danger is up ahead when he realizes that his friend's dead man's switch computer program has been activated. Unsure who to trust, he sets out alone to unravel a dark conspiracy. Soon, the seeker soon becomes the hunted in an unknown wilderness.…
As a graduate in computer science and electronics, I have had a successful career in the tech sector. I am interested in writing about the pattern of evolution that manifests in both humanity and machines. My books are based on science and contemplate the long history of human spirituality and how the two must someday converge.
The classic of classics, 2001: A Space Odyssey, offers a setting that could well be a reality in just a few years. The story begins long ago when alien intelligence leaves a marker for the apes that inhabit the Earth. The only problem is this marker is on the moon. But when humans are finally smart enough to discover it, it sends a signal to Jupiter. One of the inferences in the sequels to 2001 is that the alien intelligence itself is artificial—the product of a race that has delegated control and development of the galaxy to machines.
To pursue man's destiny, the mission to Jupiter must be placed in the care of the HAL 9000 computer. HAL is presented as the perfect mimic of human emotions and the ideal caretaker of its human cargo. But to carry out its mission, HAL must do something it can't. It must…
Written when landing on the moon was still a dream, and made into one of the most influential films of all time, 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY remains a classic work of science fiction fifty years after its original publication.
The discovery of a black monolith on the moon leads to a manned expedition deep into the solar system, in the hope of establishing contact with an alien intelligence. Yet long before the crew can reach their destination, the voyage descends into disaster . . .
Brilliant, compulsive and prophetic, Arthur C. Clarke's timeless novel tackles the enduring theme of mankind's…
I have been working with computers for decades now – having started with programmable handheld calculators and working my way up and down through mainframes, mini- and micro-computers. I always thought there is an art to writing software, and that good software can be read and admired. Maintainability, readability, and testability are some core needs for software, and after going through many programming paradigms, I feel that functional programming (FP) is the way to go – and several modern web frameworks agree. JavaScript (and now, TypeScript) are essential to web development, and I wanted to show how FP could be successfully used with those languages, and thus my book.
This thin but quite fulfilling book is a compact yet profound exploration of proven program correctness, probably one of the first texts to focus on that topic.
Dijkstra's emphasis on mathematical rigor and disciplined thinking reshapes how programmers approach problem-solving. The author imparts essential principles of program construction, advocating for clarity and precision in code, and leading to cultivating a disciplined mindset, and fostering a deep appreciation for the art and science of programming.
Despite its age, all its knowledge is fully valid, and I’d give the book to every programmer so they can reach a higher level of quality.
Clean wraps, corners square, lay flat. No creases to the spine, or hinge. Small frayed spot at the top of the spine. No previous owner's name, no other marks in text. Well kept copy.
I am a writer and reporter who has spent two decades covering complicated topics for a wide audience. This started when I covered Wall Street for Bloomberg News, where I spent 17 years as a reporter, and continues to this day with my own crypto media company, DeCential Media. My love of distilling new technologies to their essence is what informs the best of my writing and comes with the added bonus of being able to interview and learn from some of the smartest people in tech and finance.
Lessig lays out his vision for how the Internet should and should not be regulated in easy-to-understand prose that belies a powerful ideology. This book really helped me frame in my own book how new technologies, like the Internet, are approached by regulators and governments. The idea that code cannot be owned, lest it be manipulated, as Lessig states, unlocked a way for me to think and write about how blockchain should be approached as well.
There's a common belief that cyberspace cannot be regulated-that it is, in its very essence, immune from the government's (or anyone else's) control. Code , first published in 2000, argues that this belief is wrong. It is not in the nature of cyberspace to be unregulable cyberspace has no nature." It only has code-the software and hardware that make cyberspace what it is. That code can create a place of freedom-as the original architecture of the Net did-or a place of oppressive control. Under the influence of commerce, cyberspace is becoming a highly regulable space, where behaviour is much more…
Once upon a time, I was a computer science researcher, working in the research labs of companies like Microsoft and Hewlett-Packard. Later I started teaching computer science to college students and writing books about algorithms. I love computers and I love algorithms. Most of all, I love explaining algorithms to other people. In fact, one of my most important missions in life is to advance the public understanding of computer science and algorithms. So if you read any of the books on my list, you’ll bring me one step closer to achieving my mission. Go ahead, read one now!
A graphic novel about Ada Lovelace, Charles Babbage, and their quixotic Victorian escapades designing computers and algorithms nearly a century before their time? As fascinating as that may already sound, it’s only the beginning. This is the only graphic novel I’ve read that has footnotes to the footnotes—immensely amusing footnotes. While reading this book, I feel constantly in the presence of insane genius. (But please read this book on physical paper. It is a work of art.)
Winner of the British Book Design and Production Award for Graphic Novels Winner of the Neumann Prize in the History of Mathematics
In The Thrilling Adventures of Lovelace and Babbage Sydney Padua transforms one of the most compelling scientific collaborations into a hilarious set of adventures
Meet two of Victorian London's greatest geniuses... Ada Lovelace, daughter of Lord Byron: mathematician, gambler, and proto-programmer, whose writings contained the first ever appearance of general computing theory, a hundred years before an actual computer was built. And Charles Babbage, eccentric inventor of the Difference Engine, an enormous clockwork calculating machine that would have…
I am a design-obsessed George Washington University (Washington, DC) professor, author, architect, interior designer, sketcher, modernist, city lover, traveler, and University of Michigan alumni who writes about topics on architecture and interior design for people of all ages and backgrounds. Everyone lives in the built environment, but not everyone understands it. For example, sketching is one of the best ways to understand a piece of furniture, interior, or building. You will never see the object the same way after you draw it! All of the books on this list are approachable, interesting, fun, and most importantly inspiring. Enjoy!
This small format hardback is a really enjoyable read, as it asks a lot of good questions about architecture that will really get you thinking and curious about the topics. Each question is answered quickly (in a sentence), and then in a longer format, but still very digestible. It’s a great gift for any architecture lover.
This entertaining and informative book explores the world of architecture through a series of 101 questions and answers that cover a wide range of issues on its practice and theory. There are historical questions, such as "Who was the first architect?" and "Are all churches architecture?" as well as ones that relate to contemporary activity, such as "Have computers changed architecture?" and "How small can a home get?." There are also many that are intriguing and irreverent, such as "Why do architects want to paint the world white?" and "Is Dubai a city?". For each of the questions there is…
It’s been fantastic to work in computer vision, especially when it is used to build biometric systems. I and my 80 odd PhD students have pioneered systems that recognise people by the way they walk, by their ears, and many other new things too. To build the systems, we needed computer vision techniques and architectures, both of which work with complex real-world imagery. That’s what computer vision gives you: a capability to ‘see’ using a computer. I think we can still go a lot further: to give blind people sight, to enable better invasive surgery, to autonomise more of our industrial society, and to give us capabilities we never knew we’d have.
Richard’s authoritative leading textbook excellently describes the whole field of computer vision. It starts with the sensor, moves to image formation followed by feature extraction and grouping, and then by vision analysis. It’s pragmatic too, with excellent descriptions of applications. And there is a ton of support material. This is a mega textbook describing the whole field of computer vision.
Computer Vision: Algorithms and Applications explores the variety of techniques commonly used to analyze and interpret images. It also describes challenging real-world applications where vision is being successfully used, both for specialized applications such as medical imaging, and for fun, consumer-level tasks such as image editing and stitching, which students can apply to their own personal photos and videos.
More than just a source of "recipes," this exceptionally authoritative and comprehensive textbook/reference also takes a scientific approach to basic vision problems, formulating physical models of the imaging process before inverting them to produce descriptions of a scene. These problems are…
Jeremy N. Smith is the author of three acclaimed narrative non-fiction books, including Breaking and Entering, about a female hacker called “Alien” and the birth of our information insecurity age. He has written for The Atlantic, Discover, Slate, and the New York Times, among other outlets, and he and his work have been featured by CNN, NPR, NBC Nightly News, The Today Show, and Wired. He hosts The Hacker Next Door podcast and lives in Missoula, Montana.
The New Hacker’s Dictionary is the foremost compilation of the first fifty years of hacker lore, combining hilarious anecdotes and definitions to illuminate a hugely-influential but wildly-misunderstood culture more similar to beer-brewing monks than black-clad criminals. Though last updated in 1996, the technology, terms, and theories explained within still underlie the modern Internet, making this dictionary a dual cultural and architectural blueprint for anyone interested in how computing got to the present moment—and how to build a better future.
This new edition of the hacker's own phenomenally successful lexicon includes more than 100 new entries and updates or revises 200 more.
This new edition of the hacker's own phenomenally successful lexicon includes more than 100 new entries and updates or revises 200 more. Historically and etymologically richer than its predecessor, it supplies additional background on existing entries and clarifies the murky origins of several important jargon terms (overturning a few long-standing folk etymologies) while still retaining its high giggle value.
Sample definition
hacker n. [originally, someone who makes furniture with an axe] 1. A person who enjoys exploring the…
