Book Review ~~ Mathematical Machines ~~

Today I read the article Mathematical Machines, one of many articles published by Scientific American many years ago. It provided an intriguing comparison of the efficiency of different machines. However, since the article was written such a long time ago, much of the knowledge it mentions is commonplace now; for example, while its point about how computers that used binary code were far more efficient than computers using decimal code was well-reasoned mathematically, and many of the machines it mentions are practically obsolete now. The article mentions machines that can add numbers of ten digits at incredibly fast paces, when online calculators or even actual calculators now are far more efficient, as there are just a few buttons to push instead of the complex machinery and tubes they had back then just for addition. Still, I enjoyed reading the article, as it brought up a variety of points about how, while machines might need very exact instructions to work, when they received precise instructions they work quickly and invariably produce the correct answers. Even now, much of the general idea behind this article still applies, despite the fact that the majority of the technology at the time the article was written is completely outdated compared to modern technology. Though it probably wouldn’t help anyone who wanted to learn something truly new or intriguing, the article was still fairly interesting, and I would recommend it to anyone who wants a nice short read that provides a glimpse into how technology used to be and rate this article 9.4/10.

Book Review ~~ The Murderer ~~

Today I read the short story “The Murderer,” by Ray Bradbury. It was set in the near future, when technology had become a near-addiction for the majority of the world. In the story, people are constantly communicating with each other in various ways; people speak through intercoms, phones ring, and wrist radios buzz. One man, however, who terms himself ‘The Murderer’, hates this state of consistent machine-produced noise and tries to destroy all machines that produce noise, such as his novel-reading, weather-reporting, jingle-jangling house, wrist radio, television, and more. He tried to change all of this by protesting, but to no avail — instead, he was arrested. Bradbury’s description of the world in his story mirrors the current world quite well, although the world described in Bradbury’s story is slightly more technology-focused than our own. More than fifty years in the past, Bradbury was able to envision the technology of today, and even that of the future. I really enjoyed reading “The Murderer” and would rate it 9.6/10. I recommend it to anyone who is interested in a thought-provoking short story.