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The Information: A History, a Theory, a Flood

by James Gleick

โ˜…โ˜…โ˜…โ˜…โ˜† 4.04 (17ย 207 ratings)
2011 ยท 527 pages ยท ~8h 47m read ยท Nonfiction

James Gleick traces the history of information technology, from African talking drums and the invention of alphabets to the birth of the digital age. He profiles key figures like Charles Babbage, Ada Lovelace, and Claude Shannon, illustrating how our relationship with data has evolved over centuries. This sweeping narrative explores how information has become the defining feature of our modern world, offering profound insights into how we communicate, store knowledge, and navigate the overwhelming flood of data in the twenty-first century.

A well-known book with a dedicated readership.

Topic: How It WorksStyle: Academic
sciencehistorytechnology

Notable Quotes

"When information is cheap, attention becomes expensive."
"It is not the amount of knowledge that makes a brain. It is not even the distribution of knowledge. It is the interconnectedness."
"Information is not knowledge and knowledge is not wisdom."

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