Cellular Automata: A Discrete Universe | 
 enlarge | Author: Andrew Ilachinski
Publisher: World Scientific Publishing Company
Category: Book
Buy New: $70.00
New (2) Used (1) from $67.95
Rating:  2 reviews
Sales Rank: 472063
Media: Paperback
Pages: 840
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 3
Dimensions (in): 9.4 x 6.3 x 1.7
ISBN: 981238183X
EAN: 9789812381835
Publication Date: July 2001
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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Product Description
Cellular automata are a class of spatially and temporally discrete mathematical systems characterized by local interaction and synchronous dynamical evolution. Introduced by the mathematician John von Neumann in the 1950s as simple models of biological self-reproduction, they are prototypical models for complex systems and processes consisting of a large number of simple, homogeneous, locally interacting components. Cellular automata have been the focus of great attention over the years because of their ability to generate a rich spectrum of very complex patterns of behavior out of sets of relatively simple underlying rules. Moreover, they appear to capture many essential features of complex self-organizing cooperative behavior observed in real systems. This book provides a summary of the basic properties of cellular automata, and explores in depth many important cellular-automata-related research areas, including artificial life, chaos, emergence, fractals, nonlinear dynamics, and self-organization. It also presents a broad review of the speculative proposition that cellular automata may eventually prove to be theoretical harbingers of a fundamentally new information-based, discrete physics. Designed to be accessible at the junior/senior undergraduate level and above, the book will be of interest to all students, researchers, and professionals wanting to learn about order, chaos, and the emergence of complexity. It contains an extensive bibliography and provides a listing of cellular automata resources available on the World Wide Web.
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| Customer Reviews:
 A well-written, comprehensive introduction to the field August 27, 2002
5 out of 6 found this review helpful
Cellular Automata: A Discrete Universe is a fascinating overview of the wide variety of discrete systems researchers have developed in the past quarter-century, and how these might be used to model a range of natural phenomena, including (in the book's most speculative section) the universe itself. Illustrations are supplied in all the right places--serving to enlighten, rather than overwhelm, the reader. The list of references is superb, making the book not only a great introduction and an important reference, but also a valuable guide to the field of complexity.
 disappointing September 23, 2001
27 out of 31 found this review helpful
This book is clearly a labor of love and contains a great wealth of material. However, it sorely lacks focus, the presentation is unclear and the results are often out of date. Here is a selection of more particular criticisms. Many rules remain undefined and the reader has to guess their details. The writer seems to be unfamiliar with the last five years worth of research, so particularly the chapter on probabilistic CA is not worth much. Far too many parts of the book are outlines of original papers (or books) with details omitted. Many claims in the said papers are accepted without scrutiny. (Two examples: (1) There is absolutely no evidence that any cellular automaton studied by Packard and Wolfram has a shape that is close to circular. (2) It has been discovered as far back as 1989 that the famous FHP lattice gas does NOT approach the two-dimensional Navier-Stokes equation, due to the fact that viscosity increases to infinity with increasing size of a finite system.) World Scientific editors need to do a much better job.
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