Computer Science Books

This is a charmingly written book, filled with interesting tales and providing a real "feel" for those wonderfully chaotic times.

You can see why the author was able to solve so many of the earliest computing problems: he can distill huge amounts of mind-numbing technical detail into a crisp, memorable point. Sure, he has the right credentials to write this professional autobiography: he helped build and design the first "personal" computer (in the early sixties!), the first ARPANET nodes, the first true multiprocessor, worked at Xerox PARC, and so on. And he covers history, technology, and personalities with a clear, self-effacing style.

But what will stick with me longest are his explanations of issues I had thought I understood: why "time-sharing" is dead and personal computers are alive, why synchronization and "real-time" computing are so hard, why programs are (still) so buggy. His explanations, forged from decades of deep and considered thought while creating those famous room-sized computers, manage to isolate and address the most important "why" questions without getting mired in the technical "what"... this is really a great way to know about how computers work and how they got to be the way they are.

I've been messing with computers for over thirty years, and I've never read anything better.

Geoff has created a work of art through years of dedicated research. He has found many of the links that were lost in secrecy all those years ago, and he is very knowledgable on all facets of Special Operations and the Army as a whole. This is a must have for any person who has any interest in the history of SF units from creation to present.

Intro by LTG Wm. Yarborough. Concise history of all U.S. Special Ops Forces with full-color illustrations of all official (SSI, DUI, flashes, ovals)and unofficial (locally-made) insignia.

Chapters/Contents: 1-Overview; 2-Commands; 3-Training; 4-Aviation; 5-Chemical; 6-Civil Affairs; 7-Communications; 8-Intelligence; 9-Medical; 10-PsyOps; 11-US Army Rangers; 12-US Army Special Forces; 13-Support; Appendices: Abbreviations; Color Plates(insignia); Index.

This is deja vu again. We talked about AI and robotics in the same vein. Definitely ground breaking and recommend it. Not sure novices can handle it...

The book is one of the best I have seen in Neural and computer intelligence. Highly recommend if you are a student, academia, computer R&D or hobbyist.

Wish somebody published this before I started following Neural networks or computer intelligence

Especially given that this book is in fact a doctoral dissertation, it's extremely easy to read. This is not to say that it is written for children, but rather, the author has used language well to convey concepts rather than to confuse and sound stuffy.

The book states the limitations of the traditional Von Neumann computer architecture (which by and large we are still stuck with today) and then goes on to explain how an entirely different approach with many processors could work.

This reference describes a computer architecture containing thousands of processor/memory cells that can be connected together by software, and the rational behind this architecture. It is easy to read, and is useful in providing the general reader with a feel for large multiple processor computation, in particular an architecture well suited for semantic network marker propagation.

...from the Vermont Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit Spreadsheet Project. Amazon doesn't allow URLs in book reviews, but Google's first link searching on the above name (no quotes) was the correct one on 9.12.07.

Originally conceived as a single book, these two volumes have been tailored to suit ecology/evolution or conservation biology/landscape ecology curricula. They help students develop expertise in building models using spreadsheet programs such as Microsoft® Excel. Why should students build their own spreadsheet models from scratch, when so many specific, prewritten models are widely available? Because when you program a model from scratch, you learn all aspects of modeling: what parameters are important, how the parameters relate to each other, and how changes in the model affect outcomes. In other words, you not only learn about models, you also learn about modeling. The mystery of modeling dissolves when students actively create and develop their own programs in a spreadsheet environment.

Each spreadsheet exercise provides a list of objectives, background material, and annotated step-by-step instructions (Windows and Macintosh) for creating a model on a given topic. Students then examine how various parameters affect model outcomes and, through a set of guided questions, are challenged to develop their model further. In the process, they become proficient with many of the functions available on most spreadsheet programs and learn to write and develop their own macros.

Spreadsheet Exercises in Ecology and Evolution and Spreadsheet Exercises in Conservation Biology and Landscape Ecology can be used independently as the basis of a laboratory course, or can supplement a variety of texts. The target audience is undergraduate and beginning graduate students.

This book attempts to conceptualize the idea of a full scale nuclear exchange between the cold war superpowers, since the idea itself is now "unthinkable". To explore this lack of understanding the author first explains in detail the immediate and long lasting effects of full scale nuclear war. Then, he comments on the situation, making a bid for sanity in an insane situation. The author believes that self-destruction and even planetary destruction "is not something that we will pose one day in the future... it is here now" (182). Schell believes that only a fundamental change in the belief system of the people of the entire planet can erase the danger currently hanging over the world; no amount of arms limitation or reduction will end the threat of total annihilation.

Schell takes the most compelling subject imaginable -- the very real possiblity of nuclear annihilation -- and puts it into gripping, passionate prose. Anyone with a concern for the human race should read Schell's account of the effect of nuclear weapons on nature and civilization. And anyone afraid of being humbled or disturbed needs Schell's reality check all the more.

Cryptography has become an enabling technology to secure the information infrastructures that are being built, using, and counting on in daily life. Author Rolf Oppliger has done an outstanding job of writing this book in a comprehensive and tutorial nature.

Oppliger begins this book by introducing contemporary cryptography at a high level of abstraction. Next, the author briefly introduces and provides some preliminary definitions for the most important representatives of these classes. In addition, the author discusses the aspects of discrete mathematics that are relevant for contemporary cryptography. He also introduces and presents an overview of the basic principles of probability theory as far as they are relevant for information theory and contemporary cryptography. Then, he continues with a brief discussion of the basic principles and results of information theory. The author then discusses the fundamentals and results for complexity theory. Next, he elaborates on one-way functions; cryptographic hash functions; random bit generators; symmetric encryption systems; MACs and systems to compute and verify MACs; and, pseudorandom bit generators (PRBGs). Next, he thoroughly introduces pseudorandom functions, and discusses the constructions on the random oracle model. The author then elaborates on symmetric encryption systems; digital signatures and DSSs; cryptographic protocols that two entities can use to establish a shared secret key; and, entity authentication in general, and authentication protocols that implement a proof by knowledge in particular. Next, he addresses secure multiparty computation (MPC). Then, he elaborates on the key management process. The author then discusses and puts into perspective many cryptographic systems in use today. Finally, he looks at the future of contemporary cryptography.

With the preceding in mind, the author has done an excellent job of showing you how to implement and market some of the cryptographic techniques or systems addressed in this book. Nevertheless, the author cautions the reader that "you must be very cautious and note that the entire field of cryptography is tied up in patents and corresponding patent claims. Consequently, you must make sure that you have an appropriate license or a good lawyer or both."

Cryptography has become one of the basic enabling technologies of the internet as we know it today. Without the ability to transport such private information as credit card information, none of the commerce oriented sites from Amazon or EBay, none of the porn sites could exist. The net simply wouldn't be as we know it today.

Much of the stories that we know of cryptology have to do with the breaking of the German Enigma or the Japanese codes from World War II. These codes would be trivial to break today. Faster more powerful computers, significant advances in the mathematical theory and techniques have made today's cryptography an entirely different animal.

Dr. Oppliger's book draws a balance between the computer scientist approach who is looking to implement a secure communications protocol, and the mathematician who is interested in the theoretical concepts. This book does not presume to cover any of the many (sometimes conflicting) patent claims, nor the terribly confusing export regulations that are changing even faster than the cryptologic techniques.

This is the state of the art in cryptography today at the conceptual level.

It covers linear control processes well.
Best it gives MatLab code for plotting responses and solved
problems.
It has a 6th order filter called Chebyshev digital filter
that has a very near flat top as a band pass in the Bode plot!
These methods aren't well covered in my other books
and will be of use in studying nonlinear systems as well.

I was hunting for a single book which covers the area of signals and systems, communication theory, design (transforms related to these topics) using MATLAB (I have a student version 5.0). Every topic is well illustrated with MATLAB programs along with the associated terms, definitions and the mathematical details along with figures for proper visualization. This book an excellent supplement to standard textbooks in these areas.The presentation is crisp and clear. I experienced the "joy of understanding" while using this text with the software. GRAB A COPY AND UNDERSTAND THE WORLD OF TRANSFORMS!

My twin daughters are in fourth grade, and they just loved this book. I like to read many of the books my daughters read so we can talk about them, and I also enjoyed "The Contest". The kids in the story are so real, with incredibly distinct and believable personalities. The suspense of the contest itself keeps you turning the pages, and it is also pretty humorous. Plus there is the added bonus of learning the nuts and bolts about how the inside of a computer actually works. I highly recommend this educational book that is also very enjoyable to read.

I got this clever book for my 12-year old nephew and 9-year old niece. They love using computers, but really had no idea how a computer worked. The book was such a page-turner that they didn't even realize that they were learning about how the important parts of a computer work. I had to read it myself since I really didn't know how a computer worked either...I couldn't put the book down until I was done. Great ending!