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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 006
EAN: 9780521785723
ISBN: 0521785723
Label: Cambridge University Press
Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 201
Publication Date: January 15, 2000
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Sales Rank: 553948
Studio: Cambridge University Press
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Rating:  - Concise, clear and thought-provoking
I see others have praised this book richly and a couple others poorly. One reviewer said one needed to be a mathematician and a physicist to understand the book. It would certainly help, but Penrose describes enough about the function of the math concepts he invokes so that I can follow him (and even in maths one has to have studied things like those density matrices to really understand in depth). I do understand about computability and problems which have been proven non-computable, and I think ... Read More
Rating: - Lucid approach to establish a quantum-based mind theory
Penrose concisely manages to give us an overview about 3 somehow interconnected fields, the mathematically described large-scale world, the deterministic quantum microcosm and the recently emergent mind science. His major aspiration is to see the new generation of scientists erecting a bridge between the quantum world and the always controversial substance of conscience.
Having in his mind (in a neo-platonic way) the idealistic nature of mathematics that apply to the physical world as a ... Read More
Rating: - With reservations, a fascinating discussion
As my background is mainly in the brain sciences, I was most interested in what Penrose had to say about consciousness and the brain in this book, so I'll concentrate mostly on the chapter that had to do with that. This is not to say I didn't enjoy the other chapters, just that I'm not as qualified to critique those as I am the one on the brain. There has been a lot of speculation in recent years about such things as computability and the brain, quantum consciousness, and so on, and I was interested ... Read More
Rating: - Penrose: Science needs a "revolution".
Let me first say something about Roger Penrose. One notices how certain other mathematicians and mathematical physicists speak of him. He is not only admired and respected; it seems that he is positively enjoyed! This may be a bit surprising when one notices that Penrose is something of a thorn in the side of several popular ideas in contemporary physics (and psychology). Cosmic inflation theories and ideas regarding the fundamental nature of quantum uncertainty find a formidable and articulate critic ... Read More
Rating:  - It just doesn't work...
Turned off by the strong AI type point of view of consciousness, yet looking for a scientific explanation, I have repeatedly turned to Penrose's work hoping he would have enlightening ideas. At first, he seems to be on the right track, but when he starts making conclusions, things go awry.
As a biology student, I can say that his understanding of biology seems mediocre at best. And physics may be even worse - in fact his skepticism about the "flatness" of the universe has recently been rendered ... Read More
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