The Advent of the Algorithm: The Idea that Rules the World

New York, San Diego, London: Harcourt Brace, 2000. xviii, 345 pages; 24 cm. Tight, clean copy. Stated First edition. Dust jacket protected in a mylar cover. A fine copy of the first printing. "The algorithm is just code, but it makes things happen. It's the set of abstract, detailed instructions that makes computers run. Any programmer can invent a new algorithm-and many have become millionaires doing just that. Computers, the Internet, virtual reality-our world is being transformed before our eyes, all because some quirky logicians and mathematicians followed the dream of ultimate abstraction and invented the algorithm. Beginning with Leibniz and culminating in the middle of this century with the work of little-known geniuses and eccentrics like Godel and Turing, David Berlinski tells this epic tale with clarity and imaginative brilliance. You don't have to be a programmer or a math buff to enjoy his book. All you have to do is be fascinated by the greatest innovation of the twentieth century. / David Berlinski is the author of three novels and four works of nonfiction, including the bestselling A Tour of the Calculus. Berlinski received his Ph.D. from Princeton University and is a regular contributor to Commentary and Forbes ASAP. He lives in Paris." - Publisher.. 1st. Hardcover. Fine/Fine. 8vo. Collectible.