Harmonies of Disorder

Leone Montagnini has worked on the history and philosophy of science and technology for more than 20 years, during which time he has devoted much attention to cybernetics and the thought and work of Norbert Wiener. He holds a PhD in Computational and Computer Sciences, an MA in Philosophy, an MA in Sociology, and a degree in Nuclear Engineering. Dr. Montagnini has lectured across the world, including at Tsinghua University in Beijing, the Universities of Vienna, Budapest, and Helsinki, and the Scuola Normale Superiore in Pisa. He has published many journal articles and book chapters on his chosen topics.

• Introduction.- PART I 1894-1918.- Chapter 1 – Roots.- Chapter 2 – Education.- Chapter 3 - A young Philosopher.- PART II 1919-1939.- Chapter 4 - A Mathematician at work.- Chapter 5 - Reflections on Science and Technology.- PART III. 1940-1945.- Chapter 6 - Military Research Projects.- PART IV - 1946-1964.- Chapter 7 - After Hiroshima and Nagasaki.- Chapter 8 - The book Cybernetics.- Ch. 9 - After Cybernetics.- Conclusions.- References.- Index of names.- Subject index.

“This masterful scholarly work connects Wiener to the important thinkers who influenced him, and illuminates the many contributions Wiener made to the fields of mathematics, engineering, computer science, and philosophy. Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty and professionals.” (R. L. Pour, Choice, Vol. 55 (9), May, 2018)“Norbert Wiener was one of the great geniuses of the 20th century. Harmonies of disorder is a brilliant biography that carefully details every aspect of Wiener’s background and contributions without using any equations, making it accessible to general readers with an interest in science and its history … . The reader is privileged to see the thinking of a great genius and how significant developments of the 20th century came about. Every comprehensive library should have this book.” (Computing Reviews, January, 2018)“The whole book is very readable and gives important insightsinto the intellectual development of an outstanding thinker. Many links are discussed with respect to philosophy, social sciences, and physics and many well-known characters of the computer age like von Neumann and Wiener’s contacts with them are discussed. The book comprises an important step in understanding Wiener’s thinking.” (Thomas Sonar, zbMATH 1377.01002, 2018)“This is a thoughtful portrait of Norbert Wiener and well worth reading. The author provides a complete bibliography of Wiener’s published work as well as a large bibliography of related material.” (William J. Satzer, MAA Reviews, October, 2017)