The Mathematical Theory of Communication (Paperback)

by Claude E Shannon (Author), Warren Weaver (Author) "Teletype and telegraphy are two simple examples of a discrete channel for transmitting information..." (more)
Key Phrases: high probability group, white thermal noise, entropy power (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
"Since many volumes of literature have been written both about the contents of this book and as a result of its impact on the field, suffice it to say here that anyone interested in the efficient transfer of information from one point to another should be familiar with this work."- Mathematics of Computation "Has proved invaluable to biologists and psychologists as well as to physicists and engineers."- The Times "This book cannot be ignored by anyone with direct professional concern with these applications and many applied physicists without this concern should, like the reviewer, find the book absorbing."- British Journal of Applied Physics "A beautiful example of a theory that unifies hitherto separate branches of physical science... Dr. Weaver makes important suggestions as to how this unity may be extended to semantics and pragmatics."- Philosophical Review "Before this there was no universal way of measuring the complexities of messages or the capabilities of circuits to transmit them. Shannon gave us a mathematical way... invaluable ... to scientists and engineers the world over."-Scientific American --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Review

"A beautiful example of a theory that unifies hitherto separate branches of physical science, and Dr. Weaver makes important suggestions as to how this unity may be extended to include semantics and pragmatics."--Philosophical Review

"This book cannot be ignored by anyone with direct professional concern with these applications and many applied physicists without this concern should, like the reviewer, find the book absorbing."--S. Whitehead, British Journal of Applied Physics

"Readers who are interested in language, communication, meaning, and related problems will find this monograph rewarding."--Quarterly Review of Biology

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Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: University of Illinois Press (October 1, 1963)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0252725484
• ISBN-13: 978-0252725487
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.4 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #198,055 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

42 of 48 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Seminal, far reaching, forgotten book, December 26, 1998

By	Harvey B. Vedder "Loperman" (NYC, where else?) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Glibly referred to by anyone with a smattering of data and telecommunications savvy, few have ever read it. As usual with breakthru authors, their efforts get commercially applied and the insightfulness of the original work is closeted, where it can conveniently be academically referred to "what he said was..." (ellipsis filled in by whatever your professor used to characterize the book.) Shannon took an early art form to a rigorous science. This is the book reporting the method of the since-evolved science of data communications, and a good bit more. The fact that I am the first reviewer in this forum speaks eloquently of the paucity of readers and the concomitant large number of data communication experts who have ignored the now larger issues it discloses than the single commercial application of one of its conclusions. Read it. You will agree with me that focusing on the source rather than the sink (terms he coined) is the weakness of communication theory as currently modeled on Shannon's first, obvious conclusion. The development of the digital computer over the past five decades has opened up the way to harness the ideas that lie latent in this excellent, groundbreaking book.

Harvey B. Vedder ret Sr Data Comm Eng, Bell Atlantic [e-mail]

27 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Every computer scientist should read this monument!, February 14, 2001

By	Steve Uhlig (Delft, The Netherlands) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

While being referenced in many courses and textbooks, few have read it unfortunately. This is not the kind of book that will change your life but it is amongst the ones that are part of the CULTURE of anyone far or less involved in communication theory.

The content is certainly very conceptual but it provides a different view of what information is. In this world where content is king, it will refresh your notion of syntax and semantics, and the difference between just words and the information that lies within them.

Even if it is quite small, it's not the book you'll read from the beginning to the end without a stop. It is very deep and has profound implications on everyday's computer scientist's life. I've read once that often the size of a book is inversely proportional to its informational content...it is true for this one at least...

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A first!, February 28, 2003

By	Palle E T Jorgensen "Palle Jorgensen" (Iowa City, Iowa United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Where it all began.---The book grew out from an epic scientific paper in 1948, but luckly its author Shannon chose a light touch and a gentle delivery in his presentation. The paper became a book, with a 1949 first edition, which is now a classic, and which has been reprinted a number of times since, ending with the present lovely 1998 edition. It is still the place where readers can learn the essentials, including the two equations of information theory, that are now named after Claude Shannon.