The New Turing Omnibus: Sixty-Six Excursions in Computer Science

I really got a kick out of this book. It's a creative exploration of various computer science concepts. I actually gave this to my college AI teacher because I thought it was a better book than what we used.

If you are interested in Computer Science, reading this book is like watching a "Best Of" from your favorite TV show. It has a a 3-5 page headline on 66 different topics (with references, a must-have for academics) written so that anyone can understand the general idea without any background in the area being described.

The New Turing Omnibus is a gentle pass over many of the abstract concepts of computer science. It focuses on concepts, so if you want to learn to program in a given language, or if you want to master your Windows or Linux OS, look elsewhere. However, it does review all of the theoretical matters, from automata to logic maps, algorithmic analysis and beyond. It is a great read for a budding Computer Scientist, Electrical Engineer or Mathematician. Ideal readers would be younger students in Math or CompSci who want a gentle introduction to the real underlying concepts that govern all of Computer Science. Definatly a must for all CompSci book shelves.

While nearly everyone knows the broad range of computer applications, there are few who know the depth and breadth of knowledge that makes up the discipline of computer science. In fact, it can be argued that in the near future many of the fields that are now independent will be considered as just another sub-discipline of computer science. This book, a collection of brief essays in the field, is another spike to be used in nailing down that argument.A wide variety of topics are covered, from neural networks and information transfer to algorithm analysis and complexity. While each essay is necessarily brief, it satisfies all the criteria of an explanatory vignette. Brief, with a sufficient foundation for further study, and pointers to the next rung on the ladder of understanding. Each section also contains a small collection of supplementary problems. It would have helped if solutions or at least hints to these problems had been included.There are times when a phrase is used without introduction; however, that is not a problem, as an icon index is used to group the topics together.The finest introduction to the ever expanding range of computer science that I have ever seen, this book should be read by all those interested in computers. Even experts will be enriched by what they find.Published in Journal of Recreational Mathematics, reprinted with permission.

This book provides an excellent overview (or review) of theoretical Computer Science. If there are any of you who think that the high end of computer science is another form of mathematics, then this book is for you. If you think that computer science is just programming then maybe you should take a look at this book as well. After reading this book you will have a good overview of the "science" of computer science. I find too often that most of the undergraduate books in computer science tend to focus on the software engineering side of the field. When you finish this book, you will have been exposed to everything from genetic algorithms to Godel's theorem. The book covers advanced topics such as natural language thoery, but still introduces them on an introductory level. This book is still a little tough for those who have only studied programming. However, any computer scince major (or someone with the equivelent exposure to CS) would find this book to be an excellent reference and review of the things he (or she) would have missed or forgotten in their studies. Incidently, the book presents problems (no solutions, what's new) and refrences at the end of each chapter for further study. The bottom line is this: This book is the closest thing to a hybrid textbook/encylcopedia of computer science. It covers almost every imaginable topic in computer science and should be on every CS major's bookshelf.