Noise

"Noise" is entertaining and enlightening as Kosko takes you through a bevy of stimulating notions regarding the various forms of noise and how they affect our lives in both beneficial and detrimental ways. With rhythmic tenacity you explore the fundamental makeup of signals and the underlying associated energy. Kosko's explanation of stochastic resonance (SR) and how it can be exploited to tickle the best out of vibrational and oscillatory systems is fascinating. No one has to do any Fourier transforms here but every ME and EE sophomore should spend a weekend reading and contemplating what Kosko is offering in this fun book. "Noise" belongs on every engineer's bookshelf.

Notice that the ratings bifurcate and that most of the low ones admit to quitting pretty early. Kosko has a deeper emphasis on aspects of noise that are close to his own research, which is what I'd want and expect. If you're looking for popular biz-techno-babble, this isn't it. If you're looking for a classroom textbook on noise, complete with homework assignments, this isn't it either. If you'd like a fascinating introduction to the topic of noise, self-contained but with plenty of references to dig deeper, this is the book for you.

i knoow! i mean seriously - who would want to read a book where the last 1/3 is just notes and interpretation and source code and indices for the first 2/3? and talk about boring. what do you expect from a book with no commas?

This is a very well written book on the noise in our lives. I particularily like his definition of noise - it's unwanted signals that impact on our receivers. For the most part this is audio, and it widely depends upon the situation. I'm sure that that jerk in the car next to me with the booming heart-beat frequency music doesn't think the racket he is forcing upon the rest of us is noise. This is a popular science type book. It's written for the interested layman. He uses examples from examples from everyday life as examples. For instance in his chapter 'Fighting Noise with Noise' he uses the noise cancelling ability of modern electronics to enable a doctor (or the prospective mother) to hear the heart beat of a baby before it is born. I also liked his description of the frequency-hopping spread spectrum patent. Besides being one of the most beautiful women ever known, she was clearly no dummy. All in all light, readable and very enjoyable.

Kosko's latest book, Noise, wins on substance and writing style. This is popular science as it should appear. Kosko serves up surprisingly readable prose up front, and detailed footnotes at the end. Sure is refreshing to see that you can start anywhere in the text, then go deeper into the science at will by flipping to the back if you want the heavy artillery. I really enjoyed the chapter "White Noise ain't so White." Didn't know noise came in so many kinds and colors. Great read.