Magic Machine: A Handbook of Computer Sorcery [Hardcover]

A. K. Dewdney (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1990

This is the second collection of A. K. Dewdney's popular "Computer Recreations" columns, drawn from "Scientific American". The author discusses some of today's hottest topics including chaos, computer viruses, and artificial landscapes. The computer recreations described here range from purely entertaining brain teasers to more practical computer applications of scientific thought. 26 programs are included that require only moderate programming skills. There are Mathemagical movies, a miniature universe, puzzles, wordplay, and simple programs that produce striking effects. Dewdney's clear directions allow homecomputer owners to sit at the computer and try each one of them.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 357 pages
• Publisher: W H Freeman & Co (Sd); 1ST edition (October 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0716721252
• ISBN-13: 978-0716721253
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.8 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.9 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #521,144 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #39 in Books > Arts & Photography > Performing Arts > Magic & Illusion

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Back when visual effects meant understanding algorithms, August 3, 2008

By 

calvinnme - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Magic Machine: A Handbook of Computer Sorcery (Paperback)

Published back in 1990, these were the days when programmers of visual effects had to understand the mathematics and algorithms behind what they were doing - or at least copy them and type them in - because you couldn't buy the latest software that would do it for you. These were the fun days of programming such effects. The chapters are taken from the author's column in Scientific American, and have a variety of algorithms and their explanations and implementations. The following is the table of contents:

1. Mandelbrot Magic
2. Visions of Julia - on generating the Julia set
3. The Strange Attractions of Chaos - Contains a program on the simplest known chaotic system and also a program on the Henon attractor.
4. Catching Biomorphs - One program that generates algebraic lifeforms and another that produces fractal forms laid out on a grid.
5. Fractal mountains and graftal plants - A program that draws a profile of a mountain and another program that produces an L-system for generating a plant.
6. Hodgepodge reactions - Contains a program that creates a cellular automaton that produces a self-sustaining reaction.
7. The Demons of Cyclic Space - Contains a program that create a cellular automaton that evolves.
8. Slow Growths - Simulates natural clustering processes.
9. Programmed parties - A program shows how to produce people who party on a computer screen.
10. Palmiter's Protozoa - Simulates protozoa hunting bacteria.
11. Panning for Primes - Shows how to write various types of prime number generators.
12. Special FX - Worms crawl on a computer screen, raindrops fall on a pond surface, and we get a view from a spaceship.
13. Balls in a box - Balls bounce, diffuse, and create nucear chain reactions.
14. The Invisible Professor - Learn to draw a circle, a Tschirnhausen's cubic curve, a Hippopede curve, and finally the Bowditch curves.
15. Computers in the Crypt - Learn about the Date Encryption Standard (DES) code.
16. Core Wars - all about the Core War operating system.

Maybe not useful in and of themselves, but they get you thinking about larger programs that use their principles. Highly recommended.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A greater book couldn't be written..., June 28, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Magic Machine: A Handbook of Computer Sorcery (Paperback)

This book talks about various aspects of fractals, biomorphs and many other very, very interesting aspects of maths. A book for beginners, intermediate and advanced readers. Algorithms and much more for computer programming. A MUST HAVE for everybody interested on fractals and computer science.

5.0 out of 5 stars Still Great, October 15, 2011

By 

E. Williams (Minneapolis) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Magic Machine: A Handbook of Computer Sorcery (Hardcover)

I got this book in the early 90's and the material was old then, still after all these years this is one of my favorite books. Every time i go back through this book is a breath of fresh air and it reminds me why I got into the technology industry. I highly recommend it to just about anyone.