I used to love him, but once epigenetics came on the scene and he threw fit after fit, not to mention the fit he threw ab. To the point where the meaning of information becomes irrelevant. The middle drags somewhat, particularly the parts about mathematicians arguing over the meaning of Godel's incompleteness theorems, but I forgive him for that. It's James Gleick's extremely ambitious attempt to wrap his arms around the entirety of the expansive concept of "information." He quotes from the 17th-century scholar Robert Burton who felt overwhelmed by the amount of news he received every day. However, Gleick's take on the selfish gene and its place in history reminded me about everything I once loved about Dawkins. This loss creates room for the unintended lessons. March 1st 2011 Alongside these technological developments, the concept of information as a measurable quantity also developed, beginning with the early attempts of Charles Babbage to construct a mechanical machine that would solve mathematical equations. This book could have alternately been titled "A History of the Bit: How the bit made modern communication, computing, logic, an understanding of biology and a whole bunch of other stuff possible." Without indexing that allows for searching, the Internet is just a jumble like unshelved library books. It seems to be a history of information theory, and the author weaves together strands from a number of different disciplines, bringing to life what could be very dry. It is not a new concept. I listened to the audio version while I jogged. Gleick also looks at the relationship between language and mathematics, exploring the ideas by thinkers such as Leibniz that complex thoughts could be represented by symbols and calculated. I love the history of science and no one gives a better history than Gleick. From Shannon to Gamow, this book did justice to so many of the researchers whose passions gave rise to information theory. This book was very interesting. It is probably best I didn't figure this out earlier in life, because I might have pursued it and gone crazy. I would recommend this book to anybody who uses his brain to store information. The book does an excellent job unifying a vast subject area. Thinking back to the wonderful innovators of our time made me feel connected to the Earth and all that we have discovered about our universe. As a kid I loved to read the books on science by Issac Asimov. I. The best parts of this book, therefore, are the beginning and the end. The History chapters are the best -- the African drum system, Babbage, and the development of the telegraph were all fascinating. I know many of my librarian colleagues and my classmates from the School of Information probably have this on their to-read lists. The Information: a History, a Theory, a Flood by James Gleick – review. Of course, I'm a techie, so I'm somewhat biased, but I felt a little cheated. The sheer amount of information and the speed at which it travels now is remarkable and presents the problem of finding what is useful among the flood. Gleick traces advances in information technology from the two-tone drums used by sub-Saharan Africans to communicate over long distances through the development of the telegraph, telephone and internet. I have read several books on information theory and have really enjoyed them. To begin with, the actual title and the informational content of the book don’t really seem to jibe. A new book by James Gleick is a much-anticipated thing. help you understand the book. And it was fun to learn about earlier methods of long-distance communications, like jungle drums and the semaphore system used in France. Welcome back. To begin with, the actual title and the informational content of the book don’t really seem to jibe. This book meets all my expectations, so ... five stars! Quite honestly, I'm tending toward the Goodreads consensus of four stars, leaning to a high three. Information society. After all, what is there to say about a concept that we all commonly refer to, understand, and take for granted? To the uninitiated, "information" might seem like a rather straightforward concept, unworthy of a 400+ page book. "The Information" is an examination of the history of information theory as well as an essay on how computers and the internet have changed the way in which people interact with and approach information. Any one interested in the individual subjects mentioned in this book (e.g. Only half way through this book but it's one of the best I've read in a very long time. The Information: A History, a Theory, a Flood from, Order our The Information: A History, a Theory, a Flood Study Guide, teaching or studying The Information: A History, a Theory, a Flood. And probably before that, but we can never know. by Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, The Information: A History, a Theory, a Flood. Everything is being saved somewhere. Information can be viewed similarly. Z665.G547 2011 020.9—dc22 2010023221 www.around.com www.pantheonbooks.com Jacket design by Peter Mendelsund v3.1 Get The Information: A History, a Theory, a Flood from Amazon.com. How can you write a book on Information and not spend a good part of it discussing the internet. The connection that one chapter has to the next is tenuous at best. Also, it is eye-opening to be reminded, that an animal's body is simply the vehicle that a gene--i.e., information--uses to self-replicate. Chapter 15 is called "New News Every Day (And Such Like)." I know many of my librarian colleagues and my classmates from the School of Information probably have this on their to-read lists. There was just barely enough interesting material in the book to merit 2 stars. It is not as heavy on the science as some people might like, but the history is incredibly rich and interesting. It's James Gleick's extremely ambitious attempt to wrap his arms around the entirety of the expansive concept of "information." The chapter on Babbage and Lovelace filled me with rapture and awe, and a little bit of jealousy, peeking in on these great discoveries and the heady conversations and frequent advances and discoveries. Glancing over many of the other lower ratings of this book, I’ve found that most people have already hit upon the major points of why I found it such an unsatisfying reading experience, and there were quite a few of them. The history of information theory is a history of increasing abstraction. It seems to be a history of information theory, and the author weaves together strands from a number of different disciplines, bringing to life what could be very dry. Gleick weaves theory and storytelling together well. This has fundamentally disrupted the way in which information was organized, he argues. It was on The New York Times best-seller list for three weeks following its debut. The Information: A History, a Theory, a Flood by James Gleick. George Boole expanded on this idea and introduced a system of logic that is now used in computer programming. A good book with alot of trendy topics that would be of interest to the Wired and Neil Stephenson crowd.

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