What Is Random?: Chance and Order in Mathematics and Life - Hardcover

Beltrami, Edward

  • 3.47 out of 5 stars
    17 ratings by Goodreads
 
9780387987378: What Is Random?: Chance and Order in Mathematics and Life
Hardcover
ISBN 10: 0387987371 ISBN 13: 9780387987378
Publisher: Copernicus, 1999

Synopsis

In this fascinating book, mathematician Ed Beltrami takes a close enough look at randomness to make it mysteriously disappear. The results of coin tosses, it turns out, are determined from the start, and only our incomplete knowledge makes them look random. "Random" sequences of numbers are more elusive, but Godels undecidability theorem informs us that we will never know. Those familiar with quantum indeterminacy assert that order is an illusion, and that the world is fundamentally random. Yet randomness is also an illusion. Perhaps order and randomness, like waves and particles, are only two sides of the same (tossed) coin.

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About the Author

Edward Beltrami is Professor of Applied Mathematics and Statistics at the State University of New York at Stoney Brook. His professional interests are in the application of dynamical systems, including algae dynamics and blood clotting. He is also an ardent wine aficionado and writes for several wine publications.

From the Inside Flap

We all know what randomness is. Or do we? Randomness turns out to be one of those concepts that works just fine on an everyday level but mysteriously disappears once we closely examine its fine structure. Using a mathematical approach, the author removes much of the vagueness that encumbers the concept of randomness and permits us to quantify what would otherwise remain elusive. Mathematics also provides a framework for unifying how chance is interpreted from the diverse perspectives of psychologists, physicists, computer scientists, and communication theorists. This book will provoke, entertain, and inform by challenging your ideas about randomness, providing different interpretations of what this elusive concept means. As the book progresses, you will see how mathematics, communication engineering, computer science, philosophy, physics, and psychology all contribute to the discourse by illuminating different facets of the same idea.

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Publisher
Copernicus
Publication date
1999
Language
English
ISBN 10 
0387987371
ISBN 13 
9780387987378
Binding
Hardcover
Number of pages
221
Rating
  • 3.47 out of 5 stars
    17 ratings by Goodreads

Other Popular Editions of the Same Title

9781461271567: What Is Random?: Chance and Order in Mathematics and Life

Featured Edition

ISBN 10:  1461271568 ISBN 13:  9781461271567
Publisher: Copernicus, 2012
Softcover