Anil Ananthaswamy

"It's the story of quantum mechanics told through the lens of the 'double-slit' experiment, showing how light passing through two slits cut into a cardboard sheet first challenged our understanding of light and the nature of reality almost two hundred years ago--and continues to do so"--

the elegant experiment that captures the enigma of our quantum reality

Through two doors at once

In the tradition of Oliver Sacks, a tour of the latest neuroscience of schizophrenia, autism, Alzheimer’s disease, ecstatic epilepsy, Cotard’s syndrome, out-of-body experiences, and other disorders—revealing the awesome power of the human sense of self from a master of science journalism Anil Ananthaswamy’s extensive in-depth interviews venture into the lives of individuals who offer perspectives that will change how you think about who you are. These individuals all lost some part of what we think of as our self, but they then offer remarkable, sometimes heart-wrenching insights into what remains. One man cut off his own leg. Another became one with the universe. We are learning about the self at a level of detail that Descartes (“I think therefore I am”) could never have imagined. Recent research into Alzheimer’s illuminates how memory creates your narrative self by using the same part of your brain for your past as for your future. But wait, those afflicted with Cotard’s syndrome think they are already dead; in a way, they believe that “I think therefore I am not.” Who—or what—can say that? Neuroscience has identified specific regions of the brain that, when they misfire, can cause the self to move back and forth between the body and a doppelgänger, or to leave the body entirely. So where in the brain, or mind, or body, is the self actually located? As Ananthaswamy elegantly reports, neuroscientists themselves now see that the elusive sense of self is both everywhere and nowhere in the human brain.

Investigations Into the Strange New Science of the Self

The Man Who Wasn't There

 rich, narrative explanation of the mathematics that has brought us machine learning and the ongoing explosion of artificial intelligence
Machine learning systems are making life-altering decisions for us: approving mortgage loans, determining whether a tumor is cancerous, or deciding if someone gets bail. They now influence developments and discoveries in chemistry, biology, and physics-the study of genomes, extrasolar planets, even the intricacies of quantum systems. And all this before large language models such as ChatGPT came on the scene.
We are living through a revolution in machine learning-powered Al that shows no signs of slowing down. This technology is based on relatively simple mathematical ideas, some of which go back centuries, including linear algebra and calculus, the stuff of seventeenth- and eighteenth-century mathematics. It took the birth and advancement of computer science and the kindling of 1990s computer chips designed for video games to ignite the explosion of Al that we see today. In this enlightening book, Anil Ananthaswamy explains the fundamental math behind machine learning, while suggesting intriguing links between artificial and natural intelligence. Might the same math underpin them both?
As Ananthaswamy resonantly concludes, to make safe and effective use of artificial intelligence, we need to understand its profound capabilities and limitations, the clues to which lie in the math that makes machine learning possible.

Why Machines Learn: The Elegant Math Behind Modern AI

a journey to Earth's extremes to unlock the secrets of the universe

The edge of physics

Includes bibliographical references (p. [287]-297) and index.

A Journey to Earth's Extremes to Unlock the Secrets of the Universe

The Edge of Physics

The clearest, most accessible explanation yet of the amazing world of quantum mechanics. How can matter behave both like a particle and a wave? Does a particle exist before we look at it or does the very act of looking bring it into reality? Are there hidden elements to reality missing from the orthodox view of quantum physics? And is there a place where the quantum world ends and our perceivable world begins? Many of science's greatest minds have grappled with these questions embodied by the simple yet elusive "double-slit" experiment. Thomas Young devised it in the early 1800s to show that light behaves like a wave, and in doing so opposed Isaac Newton’s theories. Nearly a century later, Albert Einstein showed that light comes in particles, and the experiment became key to a fierce debate with Niels Bohr over the nature of reality. Richard Feynman held that the double slit embodies the central mystery of the quantum world. Hypothesis after hypothesis, scientists have returned to this ingenious experiment to help them answer the deep questions about the fabric of our universe. With his extraordinary gift for making the complicated comprehensible, Anil Ananthaswamy travels around the world and through history, down to the smallest scales of physical reality we have yet fathomed for the answers. ***PRAISE FOR THROUGH TWO DOORS AT ONCE*** A Physics Book of the Year A Forbes Best Book of the Year A Kirkus Best Book of the Year A Smithsonian Favourite Book of the Year Publisher's Weekly Best Books of Autumn 'A fascinating read and a must for anyone who would like to find out the latest experimental advances made in this most fundamental of quantum experiments.' Physics World 'Ananthaswamy cleverly comes at quantum physics from a different direction... An excellent addition to the 'Quantum physics for the rest of us' shelf.' Brian Clegg, author of Are Numbers Real? and The Quantum Age 'A challenging and rewarding survey of how scientists are grappling with nature’s deepest, strangest secrets.' Wall Street Journal 'A fascinating tour through the cutting-edge physics the experiment keeps on spawning.' Scientific American 'Ananthaswamy gives an absolutely mind-boggling tour of how quantum physicists try to explain this “reality” that one of the most powerful scientific models of our era.' Smithsonian 'Offers beginners the tools they need to seriously engage with the philosophical questions that likely drew them to quantum mechanics.' Science 'At a time when popular physics writing so valorizes theory, a quietly welcome strength of Ananthaswamy’s book is how much human construction comes into focus here. This is not “nature” showing us, but us pressing “nature” for answers to our increasingly obsessional questions.' Washington Post 'Ananthaswamy's book is simply an outstanding exploration of the double slit experiment and what makes it so weird.' Forbes 'A thrilling survey of the most famous, enduring, and enigmatic experiment in the history of science.' Kirkus, starred review

The Elegant Experiment that Captures the Enigma of our Quantum Reality

Through Two Doors at Once

Ya Ben Yoksam? - Benligin Labirentinde Bir Gezinti

A rich, narrative explanation of the mathematics that has brought us machine learning and the ongoing explosion of artificial intelligence Machine learning systems are making life-altering decisions for us: approving mortgage loans, determining whether a tumor is cancerous, or deciding if someone gets bail. They now influence developments and discoveries in chemistry, biology, and physics—the study of genomes, extrasolar planets, even the intricacies of quantum systems. And all this before large language models such as ChatGPT came on the scene. We are living through a revolution in machine learning-powered AI that shows no signs of slowing down. This technology is based on relatively simple mathematical ideas, some of which go back centuries, including linear algebra and calculus, the stuff of seventeenth- and eighteenth-century mathematics. It took the birth and advancement of computer science and the kindling of 1990s computer chips designed for video games to ignite the explosion of AI that we see today. In this enlightening book, Anil Ananthaswamy explains the fundamental math behind machine learning, while suggesting intriguing links between artificial and natural intelligence. Might the same math underpin them both? As Ananthaswamy resonantly concludes, to make safe and effective use of artificial intelligence, we need to understand its profound capabilities and limitations, the clues to which lie in the math that makes machine learning possible.

The Elegant Math Behind Modern AI

Why Machines Learn

Machine-learning systems are making life-altering decisions for us: approving mortgage loans, determining whether a tumour is cancerous, or deciding whether someone gets bail. They now influence discoveries in chemistry, biology and physics - the study of genomes, extra-solar planets, even the intricacies of quantum systems. We are living through a revolution in artificial intelligence that is not slowing down. This major shift is based on simple mathematics, some of which goes back centuries: linear algebra and calculus, the stuff of eighteenth-century mathematics. Indeed by the mid-1850s, a lot of the groundwork was all done. It took the development of computer science and the kindling of 1990s computer chips designed for video games to ignite the explosion of AI that we see all around us today. In this enlightening book, Anil Ananthaswamy explains the fundamental maths behind AI, which suggests that the basics of natural and artificial intelligence might follow the same mathematical rules. As Ananthaswamy resonantly concludes, to make the most of our most wondrous technologies we need to understand their profound limitations - the clues lie in the maths that makes AI possible.

The Elegant Maths Behind Modern AI

The Elegant Experiment that Captures the Enigma of Our Quantum Reality

Why is the universe expanding at an even faster rate? What is the nature of the 'dark matter' that makes up almost a quarter of the universe? The author sets out in search of the world's most audacious physics experiments: the telescopes and detectors that promise to shed new light on dark matter, dark energy and quantum gravity.

Dispatches from the Frontiers of Cosmology

A scientific and globetrotting exploration of the physics experiments changing the ways we understand our universe. Why is the universe expanding? What is the nature of dark matter? Do other universes exist? In this timely and original book, science writer Anil Ananthaswamy embarks on a global journey to some of the world’s most inhospitable and dramatic research sites to witness first-hand the audacious physics experiments conducted to answer profound questions about the nature of the universe. From the Atacama Desert in the Chilean Andes to the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope on Mount Paranal to deep inside an abandoned iron mine in Minnesota and to the East Antarctic Ice Sheet, Ananthaswamy weaves together stories about the people and places at the heart of this cosmological research. While explaining the immense questions that scientists are trying to answer, Ananthaswamy provides an accessible and unique portrait of the universe and our quest to understand it. An atmospheric, engaging and illuminating read, The Edge of Physics depicts science as a human process and brings cosmology with all its rarefied concepts down to earth. ***PRAISE FOR THE EDGE OF PHYSICS*** 'A travelogue that celebrates the blood, sweat and tears that drive our understanding of the universe.' Guardian 'An excellent book. The author has a great knack of making difficult subjects comprehensible. I thoroughly enjoyed it.' Sir Patrick Moore 'A remarkable narrative that combines fundamental physics with high adventure.' New Scientist 'The ultimate physics-adventure travelogue... brilliant.' Physics World 'A grand tour of modern day cosmology's sacred places... evocative... engaging... refreshing... a taste of science in the heroic mode.' BBC Sky at Night 'Clean, elegant prose, humming with interest.' Robert MacFarlene 'An accomplished and timely overview of modern cosmology and particle astrophysics.' Nature

*Nominated for the 2016 PEN/E.O. Wilson Literary Science Writing Award* *An NBC News Notable Science Book of 2015* *Named one of Publishers Weekly's Best Books of 2015* *A Book of the Month for Brain HQ/Posit Science* *Selected by Forbes as a Must Read Brain Book of 2015* *On Life Changes Network’s list of the Top 10 Books That Could Change Your Life of 2015* In the tradition of Oliver Sacks, a tour of the latest neuroscience of schizophrenia, autism, Alzheimer’s disease, ecstatic epilepsy, Cotard’s syndrome, out-of-body experiences, and other disorders—revealing the awesome power of the human sense of self from a master of science journalism. Anil Ananthaswamy’s extensive in-depth interviews venture into the lives of individuals who offer perspectives that will change how you think about who you are. These individuals all lost some part of what we think of as our self, but they then offer remarkable, sometimes heart-wrenching insights into what remains. One man cut off his own leg. Another became one with the universe. We are learning about the self at a level of detail that Descartes (“I think therefore I am”) could never have imagined. Recent research into Alzheimer’s illuminates how memory creates your narrative self by using the same part of your brain for your past as for your future. But wait, those afflicted with Cotard’s syndrome think they are already dead; in a way, they believe that “I think therefore I am not.” Who—or what—can say that? Neuroscience has identified specific regions of the brain that, when they misfire, can cause the self to move back and forth between the body and a doppelgänger, or to leave the body entirely. So where in the brain, or mind, or body, is the self actually located? As Ananthaswamy elegantly reports, neuroscientists themselves now see that the elusive sense of self is both everywhere and nowhere in the human brain.

Investigations into the Strange New Science of the Self

One of Smithsonian's Favorite Books of 2018 One of Forbes's 2018 Best Books About Astronomy, Physics and Mathematics One of Kirkus's Best Books of 2018 The intellectual adventure story of the "double-slit" experiment, showing how a sunbeam split into two paths first challenged our understanding of light and then the nature of reality itself--and continues to almost 200 years later. Many of science's greatest minds have grappled with the simple yet elusive "double-slit" experiment. Thomas Young devised it in the early 1800s to show that light behaves like a wave, and in doing so opposed Isaac Newton. Nearly a century later, Albert Einstein showed that light comes in quanta, or particles, and the experiment became key to a fierce debate between Einstein and Niels Bohr over the nature of reality. Richard Feynman held that the double slit embodies the central mystery of the quantum world. Decade after decade, hypothesis after hypothesis, scientists have returned to this ingenious experiment to help them answer deeper and deeper questions about the fabric of the universe. How can a single particle behave both like a particle and a wave? Does a particle exist before we look at it, or does the very act of looking create reality? Are there hidden aspects to reality missing from the orthodox view of quantum physics? Is there a place where the quantum world ends and the familiar classical world of our daily lives begins, and if so, can we find it? And if there's no such place, then does the universe split into two each time a particle goes through the double slit? With his extraordinarily gifted eloquence, Anil Ananthaswamy travels around the world and through history, down to the smallest scales of physical reality we have yet fathomed. Through Two Doors at Once is the most fantastic voyage you can take.

Anil Ananthaswamy

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