4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellant for new comers, July 20, 2000
I was recently assigned this book by a Java computer course as a general read. As I am not new to the ideas of computers and/or programming them, and even though this book is geared towards newcomers to the computer world, I still learnt interesting facts.
"Slaves of the Machine" was written with a very clear and informal style, and even discusses some new facts that most computer knowledgeable people will find interesting, such as the history of the computers. At times I feel Rawlins exaggerates the movement of computers and is looking too far in future for us to comprehend (ie. humans catching viruses from computers).
This is not to say it is not possible; it does send chills down my spine when I think about some of the topics that Rawlins discusses.
This book will be a superb read for people who are new to the concept and theories of computers. Analogies are packed in this book and this makes grasping some of the issues much easier. Other topics discussed is how man programs the computer, and the current limits of the machines.
If you ever wondered how computers came about and want some insight on where computers may take us in the future (or where we may take them), and whether you are a novice or experienced computer user, I would recommend this book. It's not filled with techie-stuff but written in plain, casual English.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Ccomputer history, philosophy and speculative science at their best, January 3, 2004
_____________________________________________
Prof. Rawlins has written an elegant small book on the history and
future of computers, ranging from Charles Babbage's Analytical Engine
(1842) to future machine intelligence. His book joins such
distinguished predecessors as Hans Moravec's "Mind Children" and Eric
Drexler's "Engines of Creation": speculative-science books more
interesting (and certainly more rigorous) than most science-fiction.
From Babbage, Dr. Rawlins turns to Alan Turing, "another farsighted
English mathematician who dreamt of machines that manipulated
information... Like Babbage before him, Turing saw so far ahead that he
never understood why he had to explain everything he foresaw to the
government." Like Babbage, he lost his funding and his heart.
Convicted of homosexual acts in 1952, he was forced to undergo chemical
castration. He killed himself in 1954.
Rawlins treats the maddening inflexibility of present-day programs: we
can blame David Hilbert (c. 1900). "Hilbert wanted a completely
mechanical way to solve any mathematical problem; something like
directions in a cookbook, only more precise... Although he never knew
it, he was asking for computer programs... We'll eventually have to
give up our Hilbertian total-control philosophy and let our machines be
more adaptive. Because we're already losing control."
"The answer to "Could computers think? is that it doesn't matter...
What matters is whether we *think* they think." His discussion of AI is
succint and illuminating: "A future of smart machines is strange
indeed... it may be much harder to kill yourself by turning on a gas
oven or running a car in a locked garage - both your oven and your car
may figure out what you're trying to do and prevent you... Possessions
might get more dangerous, too... Are we ready for a world of feral
cars?"
"As Thoreau said long ago, we've become the tools of our tools... One
day, something vast and cool and strange may read these very words -- and
chuckle with amusement.
Welcome to tomorrow."
Highly recommended.
review copyright 1997 by Peter D. Tillman
First published at SF Site
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