Pebbles to Computers: The Thread

by Stafford Beer, Hans Blohm, David Suzuki

Using an exciting synthesis of text and pictures, photographer Hans Blohm and scientist Stafford Beers present a graphic exploration of the connections between prehistoric and antique technologies and those of our modern world. In this inventive book, a Byzantine sun-dial and a modern satellite signal receiver are among the many images that have been chosen to show the 'thread' connecting our efforts down the ages to use and record information.
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• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0195405366
• ISBN13: 9780195405361
• Release Date: March 1987
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
• Length: 112 Pages
• Weight: 1.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 10.6" x 8.9"

Customer Reviews

Delightful and Thought Provoking, with a Kernel of Hokey

A jolly red thread runs across most pages of this STUNNING book, tying together themes that are found both in nature and computing. These connections are the spurious part; many of the interrelations are highlighted by similar looking pictures of phenomena in computing and nature. Yet, it is visually captivating and contains thoughtful facts about the wonders of nature and the history of computing.The ideal reader for this book will have a sense of humor; the comparisons are delightful. This book is a romp. I wish I'd had it in high school; it is a wonderful thought-provoker for inquisitive people who don't take everything at face value.Some things have a kernel of truth; this book has a kernel of hokiness, used as a device to keep the narrative flowing and lively.