Когда люди завязали первые узлы? Почему убили первую женщину-математика? Можно ли вывернуть сферу наизнанку? Это лишь некоторые из вопросов, ответы на которые даются в прекрасно иллюстрированной книге Клиффорда Пиковера. Автор раскрывает о самых значительных вехах и самых увлекательных и удивительных идеях в развитии математики, раскрывает магию и тайны королевы наук. Ведь математика пронизывает все области науки. С её помощью можно исследовать и объяснять цвет закатного неба и архитектуру нашего мозга, она помогает в изучении субатомных квантовых структур и получении изображений далеких галактик. Книга «ВЕЛИКАЯ МАТЕМАТИКА» — это увлекательное путешествие по 250 математическим открытиям: от...

Эта книга рассказывает о том, как человечество постепенно, шаг за шагом шло к созданию искусственного интеллекта и как он стал неотъемлемой частью нашей жизни. Как представляли себе искусственный разум ученые, философы и писатели разных эпох? Какие механизмы создавали наши предки, чтобы облегчить решение умственных задач, и в чем сегодня алгоритмы превосходят нас самих? Как сложатся наши отношения с этими новыми сущностями? Что – или кого – мы создаем: верных помощников или потенциальных врагов? С какими этическими проблемами связано использование искусственного интеллекта? Автор не дает окончательных ответов на эти вопросы, но объясняет, в чем их важность, и призывает читателя поразмышлять...

Combining fractal theory with computer art, this book introduces a creative use of computers. It describes graphic methods for detecting patterns in complicated data and illustrates simple techniques for visualizing chaotic behavior. "Beautiful." — Martin Gardner, Scientific American. Over 275 illustrations, 29 in color.

From the mysterious cult of Pythagoras, to the awesome mechanics of Stonehenge, to the fearsome "gargoyles" and glorious fractals created on the computer screens of today, Pickover evokes the power of numbers and their connection with the search for the ultimate meaning of the universe. We learn that individuals through the ages have conjured numbers to predict the end of the world, to raise the dead, to find love, and to sway the outcome of wars. Even today, Pickover shows, serious mathematicians sometimes resort to mystical or religious reasoning when trying to convey the power of mathematics. Together we uncover mathematics in the most exquisite forms of nature - from the delicate shape...

Math’s infinite mysteries and beauty unfold in this follow-up to the best-selling The Science Book. Beginning millions of years ago with ancient “ant odometers” and moving through time to our modern-day quest for new dimensions, it covers 250 milestones in mathematical history. Among the numerous delights readers will learn about as they dip into this inviting anthology: cicada-generated prime numbers, magic squares from centuries ago, the discovery of pi and calculus, and the butterfly effect. Each topic gets a lavishly illustrated spread with stunning color art, along with formulas and concepts, fascinating facts about scientists’ lives, and real-world applications of the theorems.

Do a little armchair time-travel, rub elbows with a four-dimensional intelligent life form, or stretch your mind to the furthest corner of an uncharted universe. With this astonishing guidebook, Surfing Through Hyperspace, you need not be a mathematician or an astrophysicist to explore the all-but-unfathomable concepts of hyperspace and higher-dimensional geometry. No subject in mathematics has intrigued both children and adults as much as the idea of a fourth dimension. Philosophers and parapsychologists have meditated on this mysterious space that no one can point to but may be all around us. Yet this extra dimension has a very real, practical value to mathematicians and physicists who...

A disturbing tale of our own world, and the strange creatures with whom we share it.It is well and truly said that there are more things under heaven and earth than there are almost anywhere else; true also that many of them lurk, unsuspected, far below the surface of the ocean. For thousands of years, mankind has trusted in the sea's generosity while using it as a dumping ground, believing that in its vastness his garbage will be swallowed up and forgotten. But that was never really true. And now, when the earth's hungry inhabitants demand more than even the ocean's endless bounty can provide, strange things are being born in the oceanice depths - strange things that the sea throws...

Following the hugely successful The Science Book and The Math Book comes a richly illustrated chronology of physics, containing 250 short, entertaining, and thought-provoking entries. In addition to exploring such engaging topics as dark energy, parallel universes, the Doppler effect, the God particle, and Maxwell's demon, the book's timeline extends back billions of years to the hypothetical Big Bang and forward trillions of years to a time of “quantum resurrection.” Like the previous titles in this series, The Physics Book helps readers gain an understanding of major concepts without getting bogged down in complex details.