Von Neumann was one of the most celebrated and prolific mathematicians of the 20'th century; his contributions were legion, and always bore unmistakable creativity and elegance. "The Computer and the Brain" is a record of a lecture series that von Neumann delivered at Yale University in 1957. In these lectures, von Neumann set out to explore connections between computing hardware and their biological counterparts; brains. Von Neumann compared neurons with physical computing elements in terms of size, speed, heat dissipation, capacity, etc., in an attempt to discover what, if anything, could be said to unite them or to set them apart. He drew from what had been learned in designing computer instructions and memories in an attempt to glean some insight into what the brain might be doing. Ever the consummate mathematician, von Neumann was guarded in his statements, never over-reaching or confusing speculation with fact.

The ideas contained in these lectures will come as no great surprise to most scientists today; indeed, I would expect most to simply nod in agreement at most of von Neumann's observations. For example, von Neumann notes that neurons are essentially digital in that they have an all-or-nothing activation energy. However, it is interesting to see how seriously he pursues the idea that the brain may rely upon a mixture of analog and digital encodings; he took absolutely nothing for granted, and may well have been vastly ahead of his time.

Although von Neumann's many references to vacuum tubes and differential analyzers may seem archaic today, his central points remain essentially intact. I'm certain that von Neumann would have felt somewhat vindicated by the explosive advances in semiconductor devices (in both digital and analog incarnations), as well as in machine learning and neurobiology. One can perhaps view von Neumann's lectures as the first glimmerings of what would eventually become fruitful exchanges between computer science and various biological disciplines.

If you are looking for a discussion that will give you some insight into artificial intelligence, neural networks, or brain physiology, then I'm afraid you will likely be disappointed with this book. While many of von Neumann's observations may have been controversial at the time, they have for the most part moved quietly into the collective consciousness of scientists. However, if you have interest in either the historical development of these ideas, or in seeing how one of the preeminent minds of the 20'th century approached this vexing new problem, then it will be worth your time.

What I most enjoyed about this book is von Neumann's methodical and exceedingly cautious approach, coupled with his occasional willingness to speculate. As the vast majority of von Neumann's writings are accessible only to a very small audience, such as his enormously influential treatises on quantum mechanics, geometry, and game theory, and his pioneering work in areas such as functional analysis and operator theory, this little book is perhaps unique in that it lets you in on the ground floor.

Perhaps the most famous and often quoted line in this remarkable book appears on page 39, where von Neumann declares that "The most immediate observation regarding the nervous system is that its functioning is prima facie digital."

The "prima facie" modifier is commonly taken to mean von Neumann saw the brain as "obviously digital," or "patently digital," and that it therefore must resemble a digital computer. But as you read the rest of the book, you quickly discover that this is not what John von Neumann intended. Von Neumann uses words cautiously and precisely, and to him, "Prima facie" means exactly what it says: "on its face."

In 1956, the brain appeared digital. But von Neumann thought this impression might be superficial. He thought that deeper biological investigation might well demonstrate that the nervous system is not, in fact, digital, or not completely digital. He believed it might work in some more sophisticated way, and suggests that perhaps some intermediate signaling mechanism, a hybrid between analog and digital, might be at work in the brain. For this and other reasons he actively resisted labeling the brain as a digital computer.

In the mid 90s, evidence began to appear that von Neumann was probably right to reserve his judgment. These curious new results show that a single nerve impulse is somehow able to convey information to the brain. This signal seems distinctly un-digital. A number of theories have popped up, some attempting to explain this whopping new mystery, others attempting to explain it away. But its impact on neurophysiology, and on conventional computer models of the brain, is pretty shocking. Not to say, devastating. (See Spikes, by Rieke et al, for a readable account of this story.) When the smoke clears, it would not be surprising if people go all the way back to John von Neumann, looking for traction, fresh starting points, and for von Neumann's wonderfully broad sense of what is possible in neurobiology - a sense we have evidently lost to progress in the years since he wrote this splendid essay.

Von Neumann did not include in this book his interesting views on the nervous system of the eye. He was an early adopter of visual memory systems in digital computers, and he was evidently intrigued by the way the retinal cells of the eye are arranged to look backward, that is, toward the screen of the back wall of the eye. Possibly he thought the retinal cells saw back there a thin film diffraction pattern. You can find his interest in the nervous system of the eye remarked in his brother Nicholas Vonneumann's book, John von Neumann as seen by his Brother, and this reminiscence is also paraphrased in Poundstone's Prisoner's Dilemma. Finally, some of the worldly story of von Neumann, his digital computers, and their role in the creation of the hydrogen bomb can be found in MaCrae's biography.

Perhaps the most famous and often quoted line in this remarkable book appears at the beginning of Part II, where von Neumann declares that "The most immediate observation regarding the nervous system is that its functioning is prima facie digital."

The "prima facie" modifier is commonly taken to mean von Neumann saw the brain as "obviously digital," or "patently digital," and that it therefore must resemble a digital computer. But as you read the rest of the book, you quickly discover that this is not what John von Neumann intended. Von Neumann uses words cautiously and precisely, and to him, "Prima facie" means exactly what it says: "on its face."

In 1956, the brain appeared digital. But von Neumann thought this impression might be superficial. He thought that deeper biological investigation might well demonstrate that the nervous system is not, in fact, digital, or not completely digital. He believed it might work in some more sophisticated way, and suggests that perhaps some intermediate signaling mechanism, a hybrid between analog and digital, might be at work in the brain. For this and other reasons he actively resisted labeling the brain as a digital computer.

In the mid 90s, evidence began to appear that von Neumann was probably right to reserve his judgment. These curious new results show that a single nerve impulse is somehow able to convey information to the brain. This is distinctly un-digital. A number of theories have popped up, some attempting to explain this whopping new mystery, others attempting to explain it away. But its impact on neurophysiology, and on conventional computer models of the brain, is pretty shocking. Not to say, devastating. (See Spikes, by Rieke et al, for a readable account of this story.) When the smoke clears, it would not be surprising if people go all the way back to John von Neumann, looking for traction, fresh starting points, and for von Neumann's wonderfully broad sense of what is possible in neurobiology - a sense of possibilities we have evidently lost in the years since he wrote this splendid essay. He is eloquent on the problem of selecting a memory "organ," and evidently thought the worst choice would be a neuron.

Von Neumann did not include in this book his interesting views on the nervous system of the eye. He was an early adopter of visual memory systems in digital computers, and he was evidently intrigued by the way the retinal cells of the eye are arranged to look backward, that is, toward the screen of the back wall of the eye. Possibly he thought the retinal cells saw back there a thin film diffraction pattern. You can find his interest in the nervous system of the eye remarked in his brother Nicholas Vonneumann's book, John von Neumann as seen by his Brother, and this reminiscence is also paraphrased in Poundstone's Prisoner's Dilemma. Finally, some of the worldly story of von Neumann, his digital computers, and their role in the creation of the hydrogen bomb can be found in MaCrae's biography.

This is a well-organized, clear, short reference work. Well done

Here is the little red bok.
If the big one is too expensive for you, you can always buy this. You'll find inside all the important protocols and data for molecular biology.It's up to date, and clearly presented.
Try it, and then buy the big one!

This book is an essential tool for people in the scientific field such as Molecular Biology (obviously), Biochemistry, and Neuroscience. It is comprehensive and up-to-date as far as the techniques are concerned. It is good value in a sense that you don't have to buy the whole "Current Protocols Series" which costs an arm and a leg if you do. Although nowadays, a lot of "kits" are commercially available, the techniques found in this book explain principles and provide different alternatives suited for your needs. Molecular Cloning by Maniatis et al., although needs updating, is still a helpful reference in my opinion and it complements this book.

Strange New Worlds VI outdoes some of its past editions in the overall quality of the stories. All were well done, with perhaps one or two exceptions (the Voyager and Enterprise stories were not that impressive). The good stories were really good. My favorites were THE SOFT ROOM, PROTECTING DATA'S FRIENDS, and BEST TOOLS AVAILABLE. The grand prize winner, OUR MILLION-YEAR MISSION, was well done but lacked the powerful punch I was expecting from the editor's introduction. If you pick this book up, you'll get a number of fun and entertaining stories that aren't "too far out" as some of the stories in the previous 2 volumes are.

Star Trek Strange New Worlds is excellent escapism, a majority the stories are well written and you can polish off 1 or 2 in any "before bedtime reading secession"

One of the things that I really enjoyed about this book is that you will find that fan written fiction will generally delve in to areas that "professional authors" won't go, or the fact that these are short stories, wouldn't be substantial enough to create a novel from and therefore not worth the effort. The most outstanding stories in this book fall in to that category.

You get quite a few stories of "Let's mix Kirk, Picard and any other character we can think of from different Trek shows", but they are done entertainingly and not nearly as geeky as it could be, if authors of lesser ability attempted it.

With any Star Trek book, you get the arguments of "that's not cannon" and of course Paramount has steadfastly stood by the claim that anything that happens in Star Trek books has nothing to do or add to official Trek lore. With that in mind some of the authors stories tackle subjects such as "solving the Kobiashi Maru scenario" or "Q with Kirk and Janeway"

All in all a good read, I would recommend it if you have read any other Star Trek books, but might not if you are new to reading Trek material.

BEWARE OF THE SPOLIERS!

Well, we get a lot of stories from the Trek universe. My favortie are "The Best Tools" (ST:DS9) in which alien
bets a no-win program and "Our Million Years" (Spec.) which
is so oddball that even I mention I name in it, I spoil you. Every body who's is a Trekkie would think they died and went to
heaven!

This book contains excellent choices from the writings of Jonathan Edwards, the first great philosopher in the American colonies, including some of his earliest writings, mostly just philosophical or biological musings. It reflects some interesting developments in the maturation of his thinking. It also has letters to friends, colleagues, and family members. Some of his most well-known sermons are alongside some representative samples of his sermons. Unfortunately, there is room for only excerpts from his longer works, such as The Religious Affections, but that can't be helped in an affordable popular anthology. If you want all of his works, but the complete works from the same publisher. If you just want a representative sample of some of the best works of this great theologian and philosopher, get this.

This is a good collection of literature from the Enlightenment to the early 20th century. Some of the choices were wuite interesting such as Wuthering Heights as the example of the Victorian novel, (I, myself, would have chosen Jane Eyre), but all in all this is a well put-together collection. The biographical information before each author is also interesting and puts the works into context. This is amust-have for English majors and literature fanatics alike.

My feelings on this title are mixed. It is well written and organized. The idea is interesting (basically an rpg version of the Men in Black movie). It has very limited usefulness in any other type of campaign. The characters are very powerful (700 points). They do not cross well and are sort of hard to handle for a GM. Buy this is you loved Men in Black, but otherwise I would reccomend gurps illuminati.

This world book is a combination of diverse elements; it's part Illuminati, part Men in Black, part X-Files, part Call of Cthulhu, and part Paranoia-- all at the 700 point level! The book details The Company that works behind the scenes, and The Conspiracy that keeps it hidden. Players have the opportunity to become operatives working behind the scenes and handling situations that civillians just couldn't deal with. I feel somewhat Illuminated just from reading this book. I'm just itching to start a Black Ops campaign in my group!

You know, typically people don't make you pay to read their advertisements. This is an exception. Each of the self-serving articles in this book is followed by a 1-2 page advertisement for the author that, not surprising, offers a service to solve the problem outlined in the article. How convenient! This book is a glorified collection of vendor-sponsored white papers.

This book was a valuable resource. Many tid bits of info that can really make a big difference for your success.