Turing's Cathedral: The Origins Of The Digital Universe

Author: George Dyson

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General Fields

  • : $22.99 AUD
  • : 9780141015903
  • : Penguin Books Ltd
  • : Penguin Books Ltd
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  • : 0.362
  • : January 2013
  • : 198mm X 129mm
  • : United Kingdom
  • : 22.99
  • : May 2013
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  • :
  • : books

Special Fields

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  • : George Dyson
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  • : Paperback
  • : 1
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  • : 510.922
  • : 432
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Barcode 9780141015903
9780141015903

Description

George Dyson's fascinating account of the early years of computers: "Turing's Cathedral" is the story behind how the PC, ipod, smartphone and almost every aspect of modern life came into being. In 1945 a small group of brilliant engineers and mathematicians gathered at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, determined to build a computer that would make Alan Turing's theory of a 'universal machine' reality. Led by the polymath emigre John von Neumann, they created the numerical framework that underpins almost all modern computing - and ensured that the world would never be the same again. George Dyson is a historian of technology whose interests include the development (and redevelopment) of the Aleut kayak. He is the author of "Baidarka"; "Project Orion"; and "Darwin Among the Machines". "Unusual, wonderful, visionary". (Francis Spufford, "Guardian"). "Fascinating...the story Dyson tells is intensely human...a gripping account of ideas and invention. Fascinating...the story Dyson tells is intensely human...a gripping account of ideas and invention." ("Jenny Uglow"). "Glorious...as much a story of the personalities involved as of the discoveries they made, and you do not need any knowledge of computers or mathematics to enjoy the ride. ..a ripping yarn". (John Gribbin, "Literary Review").

Reviews

Riveting ... conveys the electrifying sense of possibility that the first computers unleashed ... a page-turner New Scientist Brings to life a myriad cast of extraordinary characters, each of whom contributed to ushering in today's digital age Daily Telegraph An engrossing and well-researched book that recounts an important chapter in the history of 20th-century computing -- Evgeny Morozov Observer

Author description

George Dyson is a historian of technology whose interests include the development (and redevelopment) of the Aleut kayak. He is the author of Baidarka; Project Orion; and Darwin Among the Machines.