The armchair universe : an exploration of computer worlds / A.K. Dewdney.
By: Dewdney, A. K
.
Material type: 
BookPublisher: New York : W.H. Freeman, 1988Description: xiii, 330 p., 8 p. of plates : ill. (some col.) ; 24 cm.ISBN: 0716719398 ; 071671938X .Subject(s): Microcomputers -- Programming | Computer softwareDDC classification: 005.26
| Item type | Current library | Call number | Copy number | Status | Date due | Barcode | Item holds |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| General Lending | MTU Bishopstown Library Store Item | 005.26 (Browse shelf(Opens below)) | 1 | Available | 00027706 |
Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:
A collection of A.K. Dewdney's columns from Scientific American lets the reader try dozens of recreations, from sci-fi games to intergalactic graphics to practical applications of scientific thought.
Includes bibliographical references (p.309-313) and index.
Reviews provided by Syndetics
Booklist Review
This collection of groupings (``universes'') drawn from Dewdney's ``Computer Recreations'' column in Scientific American runs the gamut from history and stories to technical advice and programming codes. Examples of these computer worlds include ``Mathemagadgets,'' a witty demonstration of digital and analogical approaches to mathematical questions; ``Core Wars,'' which tracks programs designed to destroy computer memory; and ``Artificial Intelligence,'' which introduces ELIZA the therapist to the erudite insanity of RACTER in a brief but hilarious conversation between computer programs. Also featured here are computer versions of checkers, magic tricks, and even a remarkable panagram machine. Colorplates demonstrate the lure of graphics and simulations, while line drawings support technical data throughout. Dewdney notes that good puzzle themes have a significance beyond their playful intention; the computer recreations of The Armchair Universe belong in the same category. Bibliography, creator/supplier lists; index. VND. 005.26 Microcomputers-Programming / Computer software [CIP] 87-25046Author notes provided by Syndetics
Recreations, his column which appeared in Scientific American for more than eight years. He has been an Associate Professor of Computer Science at the University of Western Ontario in Canada since 1968, and is president of Turing Omnibus, Inc. Among his many books on computer science, science and mathematics are Two Hundred Percent of Nothing (1993), an effort to expose abuses of math and statistics in everyday life and its companion work, Yes, We Have No Neutrons (1997).Dewdney is also interested in growing and distributing rare native trees, as manifested in his book, Hungry Hollow: The Story of a Natural Place (1998). Hungry Hollow examines the elements of a natural habitat in both time and space.
(Bowker Author Biography)