Computers, Pattern, Chaos and Beauty: Graphics from an Unseen World/304011 [Hardcover]

Clifford A. Pickover (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Texas Bookman (June 1990)
• ISBN-10: 999325875X
• ISBN-13: 978-9993258759
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #9,017,701 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

From my publisher:

Clifford A. Pickover received his Ph.D. from Yale University and is the author of over 30 books on such topics as computers and creativity, art, mathematics, black holes, religion, human behavior and intelligence, time travel, alien life, and science fiction.

Pickover is a prolific inventor with dozens of patents, is the associate editor for several journals, the author of colorful puzzle calendars, and puzzle contributor to magazines geared to children and adults.

WIRED magazine writes, "Bucky Fuller thought big, Arthur C. Clarke thinks big, but Cliff Pickover outdoes them both." According to The Los Angeles Times, "Pickover has published nearly a book a year in which he stretches the limits of computers, art and thought."
The Christian Science Monitor writes, "Pickover inspires a new generation of da Vincis to build unknown flying machines and create new Mona Lisas." Pickover's computer graphics have been featured on the cover of many popular magazines and on TV shows.

His web site, Pickover.Com, has received millions of visits. His Blog RealityCarnival.Com is one of his most popular sites.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The algorithms let you work wonders, December 28, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Computers, Pattern, Chaos and Beauty: Graphics from an Unseen World (Paperback)

The algorithms presented in the book are simply too fascinating to be true. Each illustration of fractals or the strange attractors are accompanied by an algorithm which I tried with "C" language. They work excellently and it is a visual treat to watch the fractals unfold, strange attractors trace out intricate patterns and the Pascal Triangle rise like a phoenix before your own eyes. Each algorithm you translate into a program gives you immense joy at having discovered a new hidden hand that leads nature and beauty through the illuminating principles of mathematics and reaveals the deepest mysteries of nature in close collusion with the arcane folds of mathematics.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Something for Everyone, a smorgasbord of wonders, February 1, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Computers, Pattern, Chaos and Beauty: Graphics from an Unseen World (Paperback)

This book inspires and entrances with something for everyone, from the adventurer with an artistic eye, to the most esoteric mathematics devotee. At practically any level of understanding, it provokes the desire for learning, and an aesthetic appreciation for math that is usually reserved for those who make higher math their lives' work. Best of all, this book can be "grazed", i.e., read out of order and sporadically, gaining benefit where one may. A must-browse for anyone who has ever wondered how mathematics could ever be interesting or powerful.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Renaissance work, May 19, 2007

By 

J. MOLDOVAN - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Computers, Pattern, Chaos and Beauty (Paperback)

Clifford A. Pickover is a Renaissance man. He may not like the label but for me it is one of the highest accolades of intellectual accomplishment. A quick scan through this book is enough to confirm his standing: mathematics, computer programming, art, medicine, music, speech, biochemistry, electronics, education, biology, aesthetics etc. etc. It's all there.

This is one of my favourite books and is getting quite dog-eared by the constant use it gets. It is a book to enjoy as well as to refer-to, a book to cheer you up and to fill you with wonder. Not that it is perfect mind you. Far from it. It is now quite dated and the illustrations could do with a decent makeover. The treatment is often abrupt and episodic and the writing is sometimes hurried and muggy. But who cares! The overall effect is of frenzied genius and lively enquiry.

My main interest was in Chapter 14. Dynamic Systems. It is not an in-depth treatment by any means but it yields some beautiful ideas. I implemented and experimented with most of the algorithms in the chapter. They work and provide some essential insight into the evolutionary nature of most complex systems.

Get the book. The reference list by itself is worth the price.