Short biographies of: Charles Babbage, Alan Turing, John von Neumann, Claude Shannon, Konrad Zuse, John V. Atanasoff, John V. Mauchly, J. Presper Eckert, Howard Aiken, Jay W. Forrester, Thomas J. Watson, Sr., William Norris, H. Ross Perot, William Shockley, Robert Noyce, Jack Kilby, Marcian E. (Ted) Hoff, Gene Amdahl, Seymour Cray, Gordon Bell, Grace Murray Hopper, John Backus, John Kemeny, Tho…
A new framework for understanding computing: a coherent set of principles spanning technologies, domains, algorithms, architectures, and designs."Computing is usually viewed as a technology field that advances at the breakneck speed of Moore's Law. If we turn away even for a moment, we might miss a game-changing technological breakthrough or an earthshaking theoretical development. This book ta…
"The Microelectronics Revolution is a comprehensive guide to the silicon chip revolution and its impact on society. The distinguished contributors to this volume explain in turn the origins and nature of microelectronics, the characteristics of the burgeoning microchip industry and the increasing use of microprocessors in everyday products.The book details the impact of this new technology on s…
"In Mind and Mechanism, Drew McDermott takes a computational approach to the mind-body problem (how it is that a purely physical entity, the brain, can have experiences). He begins by demonstrating the falseness of dualist approaches, which separate the physical and mental realms. He then surveys what has been accomplished in artificial intelligence, clearly differentiating what we know how to …
The case for a smarter “prosumer law” approach to Internet regulation that would better protect online innovation, public safety, and fundamental democratic rights. Internet use has become ubiquitous in the past two decades, but governments, legislators, and their regulatory agencies have struggled to keep up with the rapidly changing Internet technologies and uses. In this groundbreakin…
"Wearable technology--whether a Walkman in the 1970s, an LED-illuminated gown in the 2000s, or Google Glass today--makes the wearer visible in a technologically literate environment. Twenty years ago, wearable technology reflected cultural preoccupations with cyborgs and augmented reality; today, it reflects our newer needs for mobility and connectedness. In this book, Susan Elizabeth Ryan exam…
Includes index.An accessible guide to our digital infrastructure, explaining the basics of operating systems, networks, security, and other topics for the general reader.OCLC-licensed vendor bibliographic record.
"Between 1959 and 1989, Soviet scientists and officials made numerous attempts to network their nation -- to construct a nationwide computer network. None of these attempts succeeded, and the enterprise had been abandoned by the time the Soviet Union fell apart. Meanwhile, ARPANET, the American precursor to the Internet, went online in 1969. Why did the Soviet network, with top-level scientists…
"Based on oral histories gathered from players, game creators and hobbyists active in the 1980s, as well as archival material like computer club newsletters, official documents, hobby magazines, TV broadcasts and the games produced in the period, Gaming the Iron Curtain offers a social history of games in Communist-era Czechoslovakia - a country with a rigid centrally planned economy, separated…
"In Phantasmal Media, D. Fox Harrell considers the expressive power of computational media. He argues, forcefully and persuasively, that the great expressive potential of computational media comes from the ability to construct and reveal phantasms -- blends of cultural ideas and sensory imagination. These ubiquitous and often-unseen phantasms -- cognitive phenomena that include sense of self, m…