To reach douglas hofstadter, you can find his public contact information online. The man who would teach machines to think the atlantic. Jul 04, 2018 douglas hofstadters book godel, escher, bach. It always takes longer than you expect, even when you take into account hofstadter s law, and meaning lies as much in the mind of the reader as in the haiku.
Escher, and composer johann sebastian bach, the book expounds concepts fundamental to mathematics, symmetry, and intelligence. Aug 30, 2011 in 1980 a 34yearold professor of computer science at indiana university named douglas hofstadter won the pulitzer prize for godel escher bach, making it one of the greatest and most unlikely success stories in the history of the prize. In a sense, this dazzling and wellknown work is the core of all of hofstadters subsequent writings. Oct 10, 2017 the field of artificial intelligence may finally be coming back around to douglas hofstadter. Douglas richard hofstadter born february 15, 1945 is an american professor of cognitive science whose research focuses on the sense of i, 2 3 consciousness, analogymaking, artistic creation, literary translation, and discovery in mathematics and physics. Pulitzerprize winner douglas hofstadter takes on some weighty and wonderful questions in i am a strange loopamong them, the size of a soul and the vagaries of thoughtand proposes persuasive answers that surprised me both with their simplicity and their sense of optimism. With godel, escher, bach and metamagical themas, douglas hofstadter has ushered in a new, more personal approach to science writing. Hofstadter is bestknown for his book godel, escher, bach geb for short. Its a venerated book among a certain stripe of computer scientist and mathematician, and its reputed to have inspired generations of people to pursue the study of logic and artificial intelligence.
Twenty years after it topped the bestseller charts, douglas r. His new book, as brilliant and provocative as earlier ones, is a colorful mix of. Hofstadter is the son of nobel prizewinning physicist robert hofstadter. Harkening back, through a long evolutionary journey, the compelling inner codes of dna have written the rules for the brain as hardware. He is perhaps most famous for his book godel, escher, bach which explores strange loops, or selfreferential systems. An eternal golden braid by douglas hofstadter basic books, 1979.
Douglas richard hofstadter is an american scholar of cognitive science, physics, and comparative literature whose research focuses on consciousness, thinking and creativity. By exploring common themes in the lives and works of logician kurt godel, artist m. Godel, escher, bach by douglas hofstadter alltime 100. Douglas richard hofstadter hohfstatur, a computer scientist, has used ideas from many fields, particularly from selfreferential systems, to illustrate the subtle ways in which the human mind. Sep 10, 2009 in this presidential lecture, cognitive scientist douglas hofstadter examines the role and contributions of analogy in cognition, using a variety of analogies to illustrate his points. It turns out that an eerie type of chaos can lurk just behind a facade of order and yet, deep inside the chaos lurks an even eerier type of order. Douglas richard hofstadter born february 15, 1945 is an american scholar of cognitive science, physics, and comparative literature whose research includes concepts such as the sense of self in relation to the external world, consciousness, analogymaking, artistic creation, literary translation, and discovery in mathematics and physics. Since winning a pulitzer prize in nonfiction for his 1979 book godel, escher, bach. Scott oreilly loops the loop with douglas hofstadter.
American professor of cognitive science who won both the pulitzer prize and the national book award for his book, godel, escher, bach. Mar 09, 2019 in 1979, a cult book by douglas hofstadter explored consciousness via a mathematical idea found in art and music. Douglas hofstadter lyrics, songs, and albums genius. An eternal golden braid, also known as geb, is a 1979 book by douglas hofstadter. Buy a cheap copy of i am a strange loop book by douglas r. For the general reader and the computer techie alike, this book still sets a. Douglas hofstadter project gutenberg selfpublishing.
Douglas hofstadter, the pulitzer prizewinning author of godel. The interview below was conducted in september 2007 and was originally published, in hebrew, in the online culture magazine haayal hakore. Douglas hofstadter, filosofo, cientifico y academico estadounidense. Hofstadter believes that these embedded rules allow the potential for a flexibility and transitional capability to an almost infinitely complex level. An eternal golden braid is a classic text thats had a strong influence on countless people.
Douglas grew up on the campus of stanford university, where his father was a professor. Douglass hofstadters pi in the sky the washington post. One of our greatest philosophers and scientists of the mind. An eternal golden braid 1979 won a pulitzer prize and has influenced sf thinking about computers and ai. Hofstadter books list of books by author douglas r.
Now, in the ai revolution, that concept could solve a vital question. But hofstadters remarkably formalist and intellectual book about poetic translation is, at the same time, rich with emotion. Douglas hofstadter is an american author who has written several books about philosophy, mathematics, and science. An eternal golden braid, and i am a strange loop, and more on. Review of douglas hofstadter i am a strange loop 2007. Hofstadters law, which he named after himself, states that it always takes longer to complete tasks of substantial complexity than you originally thought it would born. Hofstadters hymn to language overflows with chatty narration and personal anecdotes, all revolving around a tightly formed nucleus. Pulitzerprize winner douglas hofstadter takes on some weighty and wonderful questions in i am a strange loopamong. Apr 01, 2007 you first became known in 1979, when you published godel, escher, bach, a campus classic, which finds parallels between the brains of bach, m. Irrationality is the square root of all evil sep, 1983 scientific american 249 3 article reprinted in metamagical themas 1985. Get all the lyrics to songs by douglas hofstadter and join the genius community of music scholars to learn the meaning behind the lyrics.
Questions for douglas hofstadter the mind reader deborah. Author 1945 us academic and computer scientist, currently professor of cognitive science at indiana university, whose massive popularscience book godel, escher, bach. Why i dont love godel, escher, bach infinite negative utility. Hofstadters clean, lucid prose offers a deeper understanding of the topics covered in this book. In his latest book, i am a strange loop, he visits once again many of the themes originally presented in that book. Douglas hofstadter bio, facts, family famous birthdays. Douglas hofstadter born february 15, 1945 is famous for being psychologist.
It won both the pulitzer prize for general nonfiction and a. Hofstadter, a professor of cognitive science at indiana university, is best known for his pulitzer prize winning godel, escher, bach, or geb as he likes to call it. Hofstadter and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. Review of douglas hofstadter i am a strange loop 2007 chapter pdf available december 2016. An eternal golden braid won both the pulitzer prize for general nonfiction and a national book award at that time.
Jan 30, 2018 douglas hofstadter is a professor of cognitive science and comparative literature at indiana university at bloomington. An eternal golden braid is still something of a marvel. Besides being a profound and entertaining meditation on human thought and creativity, this book looks at the surprising points of contact between the music of bach, the artwork of escher, and the mathematics of godel. Douglas hofstadter born february 15, 1945 is a mathematician, cognitive scientist, and pulitzer prize winning author. The book is filled with puzzles, including hofstadters famous mu puzzle. Ernest davis, new york university recently, while trying, like everyone else, to think deep thoughts about deep blue, i recalled a. Fantasies and reflections on self and soul by douglas r. As a person born on this date, douglas hofstadter is listed in our database as the 1st most popular celebrity for the day february 15 and the 100th most popular for the year 1945.
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