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Cybernetics: or the Control and Communication in the Animal and the Machine
It appers impossible for anyone seriously interested in our civilization to ignore this book. It is a ‘ must’ book for those in every branch of science . . . in addition, economists, politicians, statesmen, and businessmen cannot afford to overlook cybernetics and its tremendous, even terrifying implications. "It is a beautifully written book, lucid, direct, and despite it
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Paperback, Second Edition, 232 pages
Published
March 15th 1965
by Mit Press
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Boston Public Library: The 100 Most Influential Books of the 20th Century
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(showing 1-30 of 1,345)
Most of my reaction to this book is incidental to its content: First, it's funny what once passed for pop science. The reviews on the back from the Saturday Evening Post and others hail its readability for the layman, yet at least 10% of the pages are devoted to difficult equations and proofs, and I had to skip a couple of chapters because the math was way, way over my head.
Second, much of the science Wiener pioneered has been obviated by the development of more powerful tools in neurology and c ...more
I was surprised to learn that Wiener actually cautioned against applying game theory and its models too generally. Also, I didn't realize that the math of a book this influential, with applications to a diverse range of subjects, would require such an advanced understanding of calculus. Suffice it to say, I was unable to appreciate the finer points of Wiener's mathematical scope. Nevertheless, this book will only get more influential with time, and the easy parts are still worth reading.
This is a disorganized book that mixes super-brief mathematical treatment of statistical mechanics, ergodic theory, control theory and stochastic processes with an explanation of the difference between digital and analog computers, and speculations about learning machines and the human nervous system. It finds the same patterns of control and feedback occurring throughout the world, from the nervous system through society, and notes that while automatic control is not new (centrifugal governors
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This was a very interesting book. It had some idiosyncrasies that prevented me from giving it a higher rating, but other than that, the subject matter and breath were fascinating enough for me to certainly recommend it to anyone with any interest in cybernetics as a broad concept.
Let me first say that there were a few chapters in the beginning and end that were needlessly technical and mathematical. It isn’t so much that I object to the existence of mathematical proofs in their proper context, b ...more
Let me first say that there were a few chapters in the beginning and end that were needlessly technical and mathematical. It isn’t so much that I object to the existence of mathematical proofs in their proper context, b ...more
The book was interesting to read. Cybernetics had everything combined into one book. It covers the biological factors as well as the technological and the historical. It gave me a new perspective on how technology is similar to the human body. An example from the text: “The synapse is a coincidence-recorder, and the outgoing fibre is only stimulated if the number of incoming impulses… ” (29).
Overall the book was fascinating to learn about technology in a new perspective, but because this was fo ...more
Overall the book was fascinating to learn about technology in a new perspective, but because this was fo ...more
Not as good as I was expecting. Has some good explanations of mathematical ideas with motivating examples that are absent in a textbook on signals and systems. Even if you can't follow the math (there are some long integral derivations), you can get the gist of what he's saying with some thought.
Most of the book gives a mad-scientist kind of feel (talks of experiments on cats, lobotomies, psychotherapy...).
He doesn't actually explain communication/information theory that well in an introductory ...more
Most of the book gives a mad-scientist kind of feel (talks of experiments on cats, lobotomies, psychotherapy...).
He doesn't actually explain communication/information theory that well in an introductory ...more
This is a paradigm shift described with dozen applications and rigorous details. Despite the several equations, Wiener did a great job sharing the historical context and igniting discussions; you may have lots of fun reading his predictions about machines playing chess. As a result, you may never run out of entertainment because there are always new stuff to explore here. Just look around and you will find applications of these tools everywhere.
Wow. If you are perhaps a science/engineering sort who takes to feedback & control theory, you find that you can apply it to anything! Some thinkers have already been there & done that, though, as evidenced by this book. This text has the trappings of an intellectual fashion gone out of style. ...but that's okay by me.
I could see ways to modernize the content and some of the sentiment of the book, but in general the thrust remains inspiring.
If cybernetics was really ever in vogue, I be ...more
I could see ways to modernize the content and some of the sentiment of the book, but in general the thrust remains inspiring.
If cybernetics was really ever in vogue, I be ...more
Oct 19, 2008
Maureen
rated it
really liked it
Recommends it for:
everyone
Recommended to Maureen by:
Brian Eno
Shelves:
psychology,
science
I stumbled through this book the best I could as a non-mathematician, because a friend suggested I read it. There was also a movement afoot in the psychology world at the time called "Psycho-cybernetics," which borrowed heavily from Weiner's ideas. Perhaps the most significant aspect of Cybernetics to me was Weiner's exploration of human bodies as machines, coupled with the ethical considerations of tinkering with the mechanics.
Excellent read, though tough at times with some dense math. Worth the struggle to get past it. I have learned that advanced math should not be an impediment to reading dense material. Just skip over it, and if it becomes critical to understand subsequent exposition, go back and review or learn something from Wikipedia, YouTube lectures or the like.
I picked this up after reading "The Information". I'm familiar with Shannon's work on information theory but had never read, and wasn't even aware of Norbert Wiener's contributions. Some nice ideas on feedback control but the vision hasn't gained traction somehow. In the end I think Claude Shannon wins in the Wiener/Shannon visionary cage match.
I wish I could read differential equations the way that I can read words.
I appreciated the thoughtful and prescient discussions of technology and society, and thoroughly enjoyed following his reasoning through both predictions that turned out to be true and theories that turned out to totally wrong.
I appreciated the thoughtful and prescient discussions of technology and society, and thoroughly enjoyed following his reasoning through both predictions that turned out to be true and theories that turned out to totally wrong.
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“Let us remember that the automatic machine is the precise economic equivalent of slave labor. Any labor which competes with slave labor must accept the economic consequences of slave labor.”
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“Information is information, not matter or energy.”
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