Norbert Wiener was a child prodigy and Professor of Mathematics at MIT from 1919 until his death in 1964. He invented the science of cybernetics (look it up in the dictionary) and the guided missile but refused to help the military during the cold war. This volume includes an open letter published in the January, 1947 Atlantic Monthly magazine entitled "A Scientist Rebels" by Norbert Wiener. An introduction by Wiener biographer Steve J. Heims provides a context for Wiener's works.

If you are at all interested in cybernetics, and particularly interested in the effects it is having and will have on society, this book is must reading. Of course, this book does not approach Wiener's "God & Golem, Inc."(reviewed elsewhere in Amazon.com) for sheer brilliance, but then, what does, except perhaps the "Bahir."

For those of us who cannot grasp the mathematical, technical version of Wiener's theory of messages in _Cybernetics_, this book is a wonderful stand-in. Wiener wrote this entirely equationless text as a populariztion of his ideas about humans and machines. this book is a fascinating piece of philosophy and sociology also, as Wiener expands his theories and brings them to bear on history, journalism etc. He never loses his scientific perspective though; this gives his writing and ideas a clarity freshness that is uncommon in theoretical writings about society. This is a great and important book

where could i find a reedited french traduction of this book published in 62 in france,second hand also ?

Two books, both written in the late 1940s stand out as contributing much to our understanding of the world around us. One of these is "Cybernetics" by Weiner and the other is "The mathematical theory of communication" by Shannon. Both require some study by contain many sections that are easily readable by anyone which get the main points across in an understandable manner.

Weiner's book discuses the use of feedback on virtually every type of control mechanism known... i.e., those of nature as well as those of man. It is the "basic" stuff that everyone of us uses everyday and every moment of our lives whether we are aware of it or not. Whereas Shannon's book tells us how to communicate information in an error-free (or nearly so) way, Weiner's book explains how that information is used to provide effective control of everything around us. For many decades since I first was introduced to these two works, I have used their principles in most things I do.

I very highly recommend these two books to anyone who considers themselves a "thinking person" and is seeking to understand the world around them. Both easily get 5 stars. They are major works!

The purpose of communication is to control our enviornment. In order to communicate effectively, however, it is essential that we consider the feedback we are getting. Alteration of sending messages is the most important aspect of effective communication. That requires that we consider the audience we are talking to and change our message relative to the feedback and the audience. Weiner presents the philosophic arguments for communication. These concepts remain unchanged since the publication of this book in 1954. This is the finest book on theory of communication I have read. Everyone concerned with improving communication should read this thought provoking book.

Well written biography - what can I say else? It was very interesting to read the book.

It has been said that all of science is concerned with ideas of patterns and all of mathametics is concerned with patterns of ideas. This book is a wonderful combination of both concepts. Norbert Wiener's towering intellect,knowledge of the history of science and ability to develop interesting associations between diverse areas of scientific activity, which on initial consideration appear unrelated, have produced a document which is grand in scope and remarkable in accomplishment. Moreover, his style of writing is, in my opinion, quite attractive. He has many axes to grind and once they are sharpened he applies them with enormous vigor. For example, he refers to the patent as "nothing more than a ticket to litigation". There is much to be learned from this book which can readily be applied to current areas of major importance such as molecular biology and solid state physics where new discoveries and their commercial applications clearly emulate societies previous experiences with our fundamental understanding of electricity and its application to both the transfer of power and of information.

I actually haven't read the book - I WOULD IF I COULD! - but I'm an descendant of Norbert Wiener and if anyone knows ANYTHING about his parents, could you E-mail me?

Written in 1964 when the concept of a human interacting dynamically with a machine was first becoming a reality, there are facets of this book that are dated. Nevertheless, the concepts that are described are still as pertinent today as they were when Wiener first set down his thoughts. The book is a collection of essays where Wiener explains his ideas for what he thinks the future holds for humans interacting with machines.
The approach is very non-technical so it is possible for the lay person to understand his thoughts. The prose is also well structured, making it very easy to read through. Reading this book is a good way to go back in time and get some idea of what the early experts thought would be the direction and consequences of the development of the new "thinking machines". It is also an excellent choice for gaining a retrospective in any history of computing course.

A brief series of personal essays by famous mathematician Norbert Wiener on the ethics of modern technology and questions whether humans should follow all leads of technology regardless of the consequences. An easy-to-read, informative book. No technical background is needed to understand the arguments.

The stories about Norbert Wiener's absent-mindedness are legendary, yet so prevalent and supported by so many sources that they almost certainly are true. Yet, his writings are clear and follow specific trains of thought. This book is an autobiography of his later years, which were simultaneously some of the critical years for the survival of western civilization. They cover the years of the great depression, sandwiched between the first and second world wars.
His account deals very little with his mathematical work, which is mentioned, but only the sparsest of details are offered. The story line is largely what he was doing in the last two-thirds of his life, the places he traveled to and the people he met. And travel he did. From the perspective of the twenty-first century, we tend to consider mathematics in the first half of the twentieth to have been essentially a European activity. However, Wiener spent a great deal of time in China, Japan and India. This was refreshing to read, as trips to such countries rarely appear in other accounts of those years.
Wiener basically is described as a man who worked hard in spurts and takes a great deal of time traveling the world. Without stating it in those terms, he is described as a cultured European style gentleman, interested in the areas of the world beyond mathematics. I found this refreshing, as so many stories about him describe a man so self-absorbed that he can barely walk across the street without help.
While I did enjoy the book, the lack of greater detail about his mathematical work was disappointing. Additional descriptions of his work at the level of a popular audience would have made it more interesting for all people interested in Wiener and his work.