Science

Chaos

Chaos

  • Downloads：2729
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-04-30 10:56:23
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：James Gleick
  • ISBN：0749386061
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary

A work of popular science in the tradition of Stephen Hawking and Carl Sagan， James Gleick’s groundbreaking bestseller Chaos introduces his readership to chaos theory， one of the most significant waves of scientific knowledge in our time。
From Edward Lorenz’s discovery of the Butterfly Effect， to Mitchell Feigenbaum’s calculation of a universal constant， to Benoit Mandelbrot’s concept of fractals， which created a new geometry of nature， Gleick’s engaging narrative focuses on the key figures whose genius converged to chart an innovative direction for science。
In Chaos， Gleick makes the story of chaos theory not only fascinating but also accessible to beginners， and opens our eyes to a surprising new view of the universe。

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Reviews

Gianluca Truda ，

I was underwhelmed by this book。 Perhaps that's partly my fault， as I listened to the audio version and so （presumably） missed out on the equations and figures contained in print/ebook。 Gleick writes well， but the ratio of story to substance was too high for my liking。 I recall enjoying the first few chapters and making a few notes on them， but the latter half of the book was a bit of a slog。 The personalities of Chaos Theory are somewhat interesting — it was， for a long time， an underdog of sci I was underwhelmed by this book。 Perhaps that's partly my fault， as I listened to the audio version and so （presumably） missed out on the equations and figures contained in print/ebook。 Gleick writes well， but the ratio of story to substance was too high for my liking。 I recall enjoying the first few chapters and making a few notes on them， but the latter half of the book was a bit of a slog。 The personalities of Chaos Theory are somewhat interesting — it was， for a long time， an underdog of science — but not enough for me to love this book。 I think Chaos Theory is really cool， but I'm not sure that books are the ideal medium。 Given dynamical systems， it seems that modern video-based simulations would be far better for conveying concepts in this field。 In fact， I discovered this book via this excellent Veritasium video on YouTube。 To be honest， I think I gleaned more total value from that than I did from this book。 。。。more

Teodora Tulović ，

As someone who is studding at university of arts， I would say that this book， in her fragments has something important to say to those who are leaning to their own perception on daily basis。 Beautifully written， these books is a mix of all those things that we can see in the different aspects， from different stand-up point and with different feeling。 It is book that you cannot read in-one-go， but it is worth it to have it beside you for months。 Take it easy。

David ，

Fantastic thought provoking book

Meg Briers ，

I started reading this to get some background information on the essay I have to write by Friday on the applications of period doubling and chaos in non linear difference equations to Biology， but this book turned into so much more than I expected it to be。 It was an incredibly fun read， and had some great unexpected cameos， including everyone's favourite St Andrews' mathematician D'Arcy Thompson and Hofstadter！ Wish my kindle had supported the videos， but the book was good enough in itself。 I'm I started reading this to get some background information on the essay I have to write by Friday on the applications of period doubling and chaos in non linear difference equations to Biology， but this book turned into so much more than I expected it to be。 It was an incredibly fun read， and had some great unexpected cameos， including everyone's favourite St Andrews' mathematician D'Arcy Thompson and Hofstadter！ Wish my kindle had supported the videos， but the book was good enough in itself。 I'm looking forward to researching the topics mentioned in the book such as strange attractors when I have a bit more spare time！ Very nice book if you're into maths/physics/philosophy of science。 。。。more

Stephen ，

Start was mildly interesting， it covered a lot of stuff that I learned at uni， and it was interesting to read some of the history of the actual scientists doing the research。 But then my interest really waned and the book leaned more heavily into history which I really didn't care too much about。 I did like reading the section called "Images of Chaos" which mentioned Michael Barnsley a lot。 I actually studied under him at ANU for a year directly and learned lots of stuff on this topic as well as Start was mildly interesting， it covered a lot of stuff that I learned at uni， and it was interesting to read some of the history of the actual scientists doing the research。 But then my interest really waned and the book leaned more heavily into history which I really didn't care too much about。 I did like reading the section called "Images of Chaos" which mentioned Michael Barnsley a lot。 I actually studied under him at ANU for a year directly and learned lots of stuff on this topic as well as super fractals which aren't really covered in this book。 。。。more

James Corson Jr。 ，

I read this book expecting to learn a little bit more about chaos theory， but instead I got a few half-baked stories about scientists and mathematicians punching numbers into calculators and computers and looking at the complex pictures they made。 There are certainly some interesting passages and insights in this book。 In particular， I liked the author's oft-stated point that relatively simple models can give rise to complex behavior。 I also appreciated his point that these simple models can oft I read this book expecting to learn a little bit more about chaos theory， but instead I got a few half-baked stories about scientists and mathematicians punching numbers into calculators and computers and looking at the complex pictures they made。 There are certainly some interesting passages and insights in this book。 In particular， I liked the author's oft-stated point that relatively simple models can give rise to complex behavior。 I also appreciated his point that these simple models can often be used to explain real systems， as illustrated by his examples of Lorenz's work on weather or biologists' work on population dynamics。With that said， this book is frustrating because it focuses more on the process of discovery of chaotic behavior and less on how that behavior relates to real systems。 The discussions regarding turbulence are especially infuriating because the Gleick seems uninterested in explaining how one could apply these simple models in a real fluid flow problem。 Some of my frustration stems from the fact that I have passing familiarity with fractal geometry and fluid dynamics， and Gleick's discussion of chaotic behavior seems outdated。 Perhaps this is because he was writing in the early days of chaos theory， and the implications of this work have become more ingrained in the engineering curriculum I went through in college。In summary， this book is like Jeff Goldblum's description of chaos theory to Laura Dern in Jurassic Park: intriguing， but ultimately shallow and disappointing。 It's also quite dated。 Would not recommend。 。。。more

Treyton ，

I really liked how this book presented the history of chaos theory。 It intrigues me to know that what has become such a serious branch of mathematical research was once so debated and mistrusted。 This statement can be applied to so many aspects of our world， so this book encourages and reminds me to keep my mind open always。 I will probably end up re-reading it。 I love how all of the people in this book had some tie to chaos but approached it from such different angles！

Palak ，

This covers the history of how Chaos Theory developed。 It goes through experiments and results of many scientists trying to explain what Chaos Theory is and its importance。 The is written in a way that even a layman can understand。 If you are interested in learning about a popular theory， then give this book a try。 I would suggest to go for the new e-book version that has links for videos and notes。

Kevl4r ，

7/10

Jeremy ，

What a lovely book。 James Gleick writes with pace， bringing the science to a general audience while still not shying away from the occasional equation or technical explanation。 His writing has this great velocity to it， and I really enjoyed the book。 The whole this is great。 The only thing I could have wished for more was better explanations for some of the diagrams。 Other than that， a great book。

Emmett Pinsky ，

An amazing， amazing history of the development of ideas of chaos/nonlinear systems/fractal behavior within all fields of math and science。 Does get technical but it seems to me all that could go over your head and the book would still do what it does。 recommend！！！ especially if you are like me and did not study science or math in school。 felt really good to learn about something i new nearly nothing about

Antti ，

Tämä kirja on varmaan jo osin historiaa （julkaistu suomeksi 1989）， mutta mielenkiintoisia tarinoita silti。Kaaosteoria on"uusi" mielenkiintoinen matemaattinen ilmiö， jota on havainnoitu jo 1920-luvulta， löytyi uudelleen ja laajentui tietokoneiden laskentatehojen kasvun ja nuoren polven älykköjen myötä varsin monitieteelliseen käyttöön。 Kannattaa seurata ympäristöään uusin silmin。 Tämä kirja on varmaan jo osin historiaa （julkaistu suomeksi 1989）， mutta mielenkiintoisia tarinoita silti。Kaaosteoria on"uusi" mielenkiintoinen matemaattinen ilmiö， jota on havainnoitu jo 1920-luvulta， löytyi uudelleen ja laajentui tietokoneiden laskentatehojen kasvun ja nuoren polven älykköjen myötä varsin monitieteelliseen käyttöön。 Kannattaa seurata ympäristöään uusin silmin。 。。。more

Sean ，

The book was too long。 The middle really dragged on。 I almost quit reading it a couple of times。 I am glad I finished。 Towards the very end it picked up again。 Some interesting history and problems covered。

Zach Maddigan ，

What an awesome book that taught me anything is possible in this world if you are willing to look at it from a different perspective。 It is very Science and math heavy - terminology， concepts， scientists and mathematicians， but does a good job of breaking down the technical concepts and explaining them in great detail for the average person to understand。 I will definitely keep this and whenever I feel stuck in life， give it another read for a refreshing view of “what could be”。

Rgusterman ，

Not for me。。。。May revisit one day

Wacek Wykrytowicz ，

Bardzo ciekawa książka， ale nie będę udawał， że wszystko zrozumiałem。 Posłucham jeszcze Sapolsky'ego na ten temat。 Bardzo ciekawa książka， ale nie będę udawał， że wszystko zrozumiałem。 Posłucham jeszcze Sapolsky'ego na ten temat。 。。。more

Abir Kar ，

Science - for better or for worse - has been obsessed with the idea of symmetry and smooth shapes。 Much of it can be attributed to our monkey brain and its need to look for patterns。 This talent for finding shapes and patterns served us well in the past。 The ancient Greeks held the belief that the 'real world' consisted of smooth symmetric Euclidean shapes。 These shapes were created by the maker of the world。 The world we inhabit is a poor copy of the real world created by Demiurge， a lesser bei Science - for better or for worse - has been obsessed with the idea of symmetry and smooth shapes。 Much of it can be attributed to our monkey brain and its need to look for patterns。 This talent for finding shapes and patterns served us well in the past。 The ancient Greeks held the belief that the 'real world' consisted of smooth symmetric Euclidean shapes。 These shapes were created by the maker of the world。 The world we inhabit is a poor copy of the real world created by Demiurge， a lesser being， hence the copy was rough and asymmetric。 But what if it is the rough edges and non-linearity that made the universe what it is。 James Gleick takes us on a journey through the fascinating world of chaos theory - from its modest beginnings to its eventual acceptance。 The book follows the development of this new science and the lives of men who fought against accepted wisdom of the time to change the world。 The author keeps the mathematics minimal and focusses more on concepts and beautifully illustrated examples to drive home his point。 I can't remember the last time I enjoyed a popular science book this much。 It's one of those third eye opening books which makes sure that you never look at the world the same way ever again。 。。。more

Knick Knack ，

An amazing primer to the wonderful and misunderstood world of the world that shapes our lives， from pins to planes。

Steve Schinke ，

Being my first exposure to Chaos Theory， I found it interesting and thought provoking， although I did not develop more than a cursory understanding of its application。 It did a solid job of explaining the timeline and steps in the development of the theory。

Iacob Cupcea ，

Hard to understand， a lot of matemáticas and fízics

Cormac D ，

After reading this book you will become fascinated with everyday occurrences， the way the clouds role， the steam dispersing from your coffee， and the breathing and connections people have。I spent a few minutes after each chapter staring in wonder at my cup of morning coffee。 You will understand if you read the book。

Jerry ，

Last read this book in 2004。 All that’s predictable is patterns of variation that at first appears chaotic。 This helps to explain just about everything in life， both physical and mental。 At times the physics and math behind all this was a bit dry but the correlations to weather， biology， physiology made it all very real。 Gleick does an impressive job of weaving the lives and work of disparate scientists and mathematicians into a common fabric。

Phillip ，

This book deserves 4 stars but， for me， most of the content went straight over my head。 Nevertheless， this book was eye opening and even inspiring。 It’s granted me another perspective on a range of topics including life。 Needless to say my head is spinning in chaos but I’ve never felt more reassured by that！

Michael ，

I enjoyed this， at least， what I understood of it。 I couldn't always track though。 The concepts and terminology were often times opaque。 I especially liked the parts on biology and defibrillators。 I wonder how many diseases and conditions could be cured by defibrillation and disruption。 I think this is a principle ubiquitous across multiple levels of emergent properties， so it's worth exploring。 I enjoyed this， at least， what I understood of it。 I couldn't always track though。 The concepts and terminology were often times opaque。 I especially liked the parts on biology and defibrillators。 I wonder how many diseases and conditions could be cured by defibrillation and disruption。 I think this is a principle ubiquitous across multiple levels of emergent properties， so it's worth exploring。 。。。more

Ramon Mirabal ，

I read It a long time ago， i learned a lot from It。

Abdurrezzak Efe ，

I think I will read more books of James Gleick。 I started this book a long while ago but recently had enough time to finish it。 It summarized the process of Complexity Theory and the important characters that helped it build。

Sahar Belal ，

يكاد يستحيل فهمه لغير المتخصصين

Stathis Kamperis ，

Boring boring boring。

Satish ，

A must readChaos gives us a fundamentally different view of science and problems in science。 The theories of dynamic systems， their predictability hidden inside their own unpredictability， are fascinating to read about。 Now let me see how to look at my own field in a new light

Derek （AGrumpyOldMan） ，

I have wanted to read Chaos for literally decades。 I remember a high school classmate doing a project on the material。 It seemed so esoteric to hear him talk about it at the time。 As I matured and took more math in college and became more familiar with the light application of math in my career as an engineer and financial analyst， I always found the concept of order in chaos to be fascinating。 And it is fascinating！ There is no doubt， the mathematical concepts in this book are beyond anything I I have wanted to read Chaos for literally decades。 I remember a high school classmate doing a project on the material。 It seemed so esoteric to hear him talk about it at the time。 As I matured and took more math in college and became more familiar with the light application of math in my career as an engineer and financial analyst， I always found the concept of order in chaos to be fascinating。 And it is fascinating！ There is no doubt， the mathematical concepts in this book are beyond anything I took as an undergraduate engineer （and that was more complex than the average non-math/non-engineer undergrad takes）。 While the prose can get down in the weeds at times， Gleick does a good job at explaining enough in simplified terms that someone with some degree of math knowledge should be able to follow along。 While the chapters string together and present pieces of the puzzle that create the comprehensive picture of the field of nonlinear systems mathematics， aka chaos， the connections are not always as clear as they could be。 Unlike another science book I read last year， Chaos is not written as an engrossing story。 Someone who does not have a natural interest in mathematics probably won't find this book appealing， unlike the life science book （an area of science that does not generally interest me at all） I read last year was。 That lack of both connective tissue between chapters as well as an engrossing story are why I give it a four rather than a five。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Chaos

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Chaos&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Chaos&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0