A New Kind of Science by Stephen Wolfram - May 2002

Champaign, Illinois: Wolfram Media, May 2002. Hardcover. First Edition, First Printing (stated). Fine book in a Fine jacket. Very slight wear to rear corners. Not from a library. No remainder mark. Not clipped. xiv + 1197 pages. Heavy item, extra charge for expedited or international shipping.

Starting from a collection of simple computer experiments the author shows how their unexpected results force a whole new way of looking at the operation of our universe. Wolfram uses his approach to tackle a remarkable array of fundamental problems in science, from the origins of apparent randomness in physical systems, to the development of complexity in biology, the ultimate scope and limitations of mathematics, the possibility of a truly fundamental theory of physics, the interplay between free will and determinism, and the character of intelligence in the universe.

Contents: Preface ix -- 1 The Foundations for a New Kind of Science I -- 2 The Crucial Experiment 23 -- 3 The World of Simple Programs 51 -- 4 Systems Based on Numbers 115 -- 5 Two Dimensions and Beyond 169 -- 6 Starting from Randomness 223 -- 7 Mechanisms in Programs and Nature 297 -- 8 Implications for Everyday Systems 363 -- 9 Fundamental Physics 433 -- 10 Processes of Perception and Analysis 547 -- 11 The Notion of Computation 637 -- 12 The Principle of Computational Equivalence 715 -- Notes 849 -- Index 1201.