Title |
Subject |
Author |
Synopsis |
Fuzzy Logic | Fuzzy Logic | Bart Kosko & Satoru Isaka |
The binary logic of modern computers often falls short when describing the vagueness of the real world. Fuzzy logic offers more graceful alternatives. |
Keeping up with Computerese | Terminology | Anne Eisenberg | The evolution of technical terms defeats definitions of nouns and verbs. |
What's Logic got to do with it? | Inspiration | Marcus Chown | Some of the greatest flashes of scientific inspiration were sparked by utterly illogical thinking. |
Logical Limits | Mathematical Philosophy | John L.Casti | The mathematical models now used in many scientific fields may be fundamentally unable to answer certain questions about the real world. Yet there may be ways around these problems. |
A Partly True Story | Fuzzy Logic | Ian Stewart | |
A Subway called Turing | AI Computers | Ian Stewart | |
The Ultimate in Anty-Particles | Cellular Automata | Ian Stewart | |
The Mutilated Chess Board | Logic | Simon Singh | |
A Random Walk in Arithmetic | Randomness | Gregory Chaitin | God not only plays dice in physics but also in pure mathematics. Mathematical truth is sometimes nothing more than a perfect coin toss. |
A new kind of Cipher | Cryptography | Martin Gardner | Few persons can be made to believe that it is not quite an easy thing to invent a method of secret writing which shall baffle investigation. Yet it may be roundly asserted that human ingenuity cannot concoct a cipher which human ingenuity cannot resolve. |
Genetic Algorithms | AI Computing | John H. Holland | Computer programs that "evolve" in ways that resemble natural selection can solve complex problems even their creators do not fully understand. |
Survival of the fittest bits | AI Computing | Rick L. Riolo | A practical guide to creating a genetic algorithm. |
El-Fish | AI Computing | Elizabeth Corcoran | How to raise a school of tempting software toys. |
Emotional Decisions | Rational Thought | Jeremy Hardie | The theorists say decision-making is a logical process,but new research shows emotion is just as important. |
Slaughter on 7th Avenue | AI Computing | Donald Michie | The world's number one is still licking his wounds after IBM's chess computer beat him last month.But is Kasparov right to feel so hurt by the defeat? |
A plague on all your mouses | Viruses | William Langley | A year ago today David Smith,a"a geek with a grudge",released a computer virus on to an internet porn site. |
Letter to City Life | Geeks and Nerds | People are quick to characterise the "sad" computer nerd,but who are they really? | |
Hackers Unmasked | Viruses | John Windell | As computers take on an increasingly critical role in society, the fear of computer crime has also become more palpable. But how justified is that fear? |
Wanna Play? | Psychology | Jay Teitel | Games can solve major crises,train war heroes,and civilize us all.What the world needs is not less time for playing games but more. |
Born Liars | Psychology | Jerome Burne | We disapprove of lying, but the uncomfortable truth is that human beings have evolved by deceiving each other. |
How rational are we? | Psychology | David Hardman and Clare Harries | Do we need lessons in rational decision making? |
The Eureka Phenomenon | Reason | Isaac Asimov | Asimov explains the role of the 'revelation' in how a new idea is born or a problem is solved without referring to mysticism. |
Beyond Words | Language | Bob Holmes | Bogged down by complex arguments?Mapping the ideas could let you take in everything at a glance; and even see the edge of knowledge. |
Chaos | Quantum | Logic | Cosmos | Conscious | Belief | Elect. | Art | Chem. | Maths |