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Product Description
From Publishers Weekly
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Review
"Combining storytelling and brilliant exposition in the Enlightenment tradition, Christos Papadimitriou's Turing is at once a moving postmodern love story and one of the best introductions to theoretical computer science available, an enchanting offer to the intelligent reader." Apostolos Doxiadis, author of Uncle Petros and Goldbach's Conjecture
" Turing sets new standards for the popular exposition of computer science. It is also a very funny book." Donald E. Knuth , Professor Emeritus of the Art of Computer Programming, Stanford University
"... inventively interwoven with a romance and intellectual mystery." Sally Abbott San Francisco Chronicle
"What's most delightful about Turing is the charmed glow that Papadimitriou's prose sheds all around." George Scialabba Boston Sunday Globe
"Combining storytelling and brilliant exposition in the Enlightenment tradition, Christos Papadimitriou's *Turing* is at once a moving postmodern love story and one of the best introductions to theoretical computer science available, an enchanting offer to the intelligent reader."--Apostolos Doxiadis, author of *Uncle Petros and Goldbach's Conjecture*
"*Turing* sets new standards for the popular exposition of computer science. It is also a very funny book."--Donald E. Knuth, Professor Emeritus of the Art of Computer Programming, Stanford University
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"I'll remember his name all right," Ethel thinks as her airplane leaves behind the northern coast of Scotland. Read the first page
Concordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt
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Most helpful customer reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
A charming short novel,
By A Customer
This review is from: Turing (A Novel about Computation) (Hardcover)
An interesting novel in the vein of Sophi's World. As that story introduced the reader in a gentle fashion to the history of western philosophy, this book introduces the reader to the history of computation. It is wrapped in a love story (or perhaps a love triangle story would be better). As other reviewers have mentioned, the range of topics cover is expansive and somewhat eclectic. But it works nonetheless. The newsgroup postings at the end are apparently fictional as well, or at least fictionalized.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Unique Tale of Romance and Discovery -- A Must Read!,
By
This review is from: Turing (A Novel about Computation) (Hardcover)
Turing is a wonderful tale of romance and discovery in a networked society. A clever and captivating story line guides the reader through centuries of human ingenuity and intellectual achievement. The carefully crafted characters become alive instantly as we assimilate their charisma, vulnerabilities and idiosyncrasies. The author's expressiveness and attention to detail are uncanny, particularly when describing the interactions of the diverse personalities. The dialog is equally engaging and coherent, although somewhat less crisp in the middle section of the book. In one of its central themes, Turing explores the preservation of knowledge and ideas across life spans and generations. Specifically, the book excels at demonstrating the importance of preserving not only the core innovations but also the processes, thinking patterns, and personality traits that led to their discovery. Storytelling is used throughout the book as a key tool of disseminating intellectual capital. The successful fusion of history, economics, mathematics, computer science, and let's not forget rock lyrics, is brilliant and original. Indeed, the book illustrates the intrinsic value of merging heterogeneous subjects, cultures, and viewpoints when solving Byzantine problems. The humorous undertone, together with a crystal clear presentation of modern scientific thoughts, make this book both educational and enjoyable.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Post-modern love story with a twist,
By "mvx" (California,USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Turing (A Novel about Computation) (Hardcover)
A dot-com princess vacationing in a greek island meets a left-wing intellectual: Sex, web jargon, rock lyrics, post-politics, nude beaches, more sex. A bisexual, drug-addicted, HIV-positive hacker is biding his time in the Far East. Archimedes is about to discover how to use math and gears to run the economy of ancient Italy. And in the middle of all this a program named "Turing" (the name being the only stupid thing about it) inflicts upon anybody who would listen a heretical, irreverend, computer-obsessed account of Man's quest for the truth through the centuries --- in a cocky, funny, cursory monologue, often quite insighhtful and original, that fills about half of the pages and leaves too little for the thin, yet engaging, plot. Finally, a bunch of raving lunatics (you wonder how many of them are real) respond to the book in a newsgroup excerpted in an appendix.Overall, a delightful little book, which works against all odds and despite its many oddities.
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