James Gleick's groundbreaking bestseller introduces to a whole new audience the story of one of the most significant waves of scientific knowledge in our time. By focusing on the key figures whose genius converged to chart an innovative direction for science, Gleick makes the story of chaos theory not only fascinating but also accessible, and opens our eyes to a surprising new view of the universe.
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"I had read the print version of Gleick's book Genius (on Richard Feynman) which was superb. Gleick is a master of details and weaves very compelling histories of science and the people of science. My issue with the audio version is that I'm not sure the content lends itself to listening vs. close reading. The first part -- setting the stage and raising the key questions -- was great but then it's easy to get lost in the math and science without having text and charts to refer to. So, the book is excellent and the narration, but I would prefer reading it."
— Tom C (4 out of 5 stars)
“These are fascinating stories of insight and discovery, told with a keen sense of drama and excitement…Almost every paragraph contains a jolt.”
— New York Times“Taut and exciting…a fascinating illustration of how the pattern of science changes.”
— New York Times Book Review“Highly entertaining…a startling look at newly discovered universal laws.”
— Chicago Tribune“Gleick does an outstanding job of explaining the thought processes and investigative techniques that researchers bring to bear on chaos problems.”
— Amazon.com, editorial review“A ground-breaking book about what seems to be the future of physics.”
— Publishers Weekly“Chaos offers an absorbing look at trailblazers on a new scientific frontier.”
— Library Journal" So influential, on the public at large and a young, fractal enthralled me... "
— Jonathanstray, 2/17/2014" Very informative, but written to experts. If you are a novice at science (Like me) you won't get through this one fast... "
— Chrisanne, 2/15/2014" Great science book in "semi-laymens" terms. I had a blast reading this. "
— Ron, 2/4/2014" I even understood some of it. "
— Roxie, 2/1/2014" Keep in mind this is an older book published in the late 1980's and science just keeps moving along. However, with the wide ranging topics of Strange Attractors, Turbulence, Butterfly Effects, Non-Linear Systems, Uncertainty, and Fractals this book lays down a wonderful foundation into Chaos. Gleick provides a plethora of mini-bios on all the main characters in the science and steps you through the history. The book covers all of Chaos except for Get Smart. "
— Donald, 1/30/2014" I once wrote a really poor paper on chaos as an elective project for my continuous modeling math class in college. I wish I'd had this book then, because then my paper wouldn't have sucked. I really wanted to put this book down at points and go play with the math it was talking about, but usually I was reading this while commuting to work, so not the best time to do so. "
— Matt, 1/29/2014" Tough going at times, but offers a review of the great leap forward in math theory during the 70's and into the 80's. Print versions have good illustrations of fractiles, ferns, coiling smoke, etc. But not Audible, one handicap. "
— Richard, 1/22/2014" Great compilation of the events that led to discovery of a new branch of math and physics "
— Alaa, 1/18/2014" Can be avoided. Others have written better essays on such a topic (in French, though : Atlan for instance, or Prigogine). "
— Marc, 1/15/2014" realistically not as good as 'the information' "
— Freddie, 1/15/2014" a book that really got me thinking about how things relate. Also a great explanation of a complicated subject. "
— Daniel, 12/6/2013James Gleick is a leading chronicler of science and technology, the bestselling author of Chaos, Genius, and The Information. His books have been translated into thirty languages. Gleick, a former reporter and editor of the New York Times, lives in New York.
Rob Shapiro is a musician, writer, voice actor, and Earphones Award–winning narrator. He performed several seasons of radio comedy on Minneapolis Public Radio and voiced the titular lion in Leo the Lion. He is a musician and composer with his critically acclaimed band Populuxe. He is also a business consultant and software system designer.