Saturday, January 01, 2005

The National Academies Press--Free Online Books This posting is a followup to the previous posting about the Computer Science book from the National Academies Press (NAP). NAP is a valuable resource for free online books of academic value, books that can be used for instruction and for research. The online inventory includes more than 3000 books on subjects ranging from Agriculture to Urban Development. "The National Academies Press (NAP) was created by the National Academies to publish the reports issued by the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, the Institute of Medicine, and the National Research Council, all operating under a charter granted by the Congress of the United States. NAP publishes over 200 books a year on a wide range of topics in science, engineering, and health, capturing the most authoritative views on important issues in science and health policy. The institutions represented by NAP are unique in that they attract the nation's leading experts in every field to serve on their blue ribbon panels and committees. " NAP is a higher education book repository of great value. JH 4:24:50 PM    COMMENT []

Computer Science: Reflections on the Field, Reflections from the Field This online book is from the Computer Science and Telecommunications Board. Copies of the book and of individual chapters are also available for purchase from the National Academies Press. "Just a decade ago, the Internet was the domain of specialists and technology aficionados, requiring knowledge of file systems, format compatibilities, and operating system commands. Even the more user-friendly systems such as e-mail and net news principally served relatively small communities of technically savvy people. Until recently, the Internet, the World Wide Web, and e-commerce all would have seemed akin to magic to all but the most tech-savvy. Yet despite today’s widespread acceptance of and familiarity with computer capabilities, the details of how commonly used computer systems work remains a mystery for non-specialists. It is not magic, of course, that is at work. Nor did today’s system arise as a result of a direct evolution of previous technology." "Computer science is the study of computers and what they can do—the inherent powers and limitations of abstract computers, the design and characteristics of real computers, and the innumerable applications of computers to solving problems. Computer scientists seek to understand how to represent and to reason about processes and information. They create languages for representing these phenomena and develop methods for analyzing and creating the phenomena. They create abstractions, including abstractions that are themselves used to compose, manipulate, and represent other abstractions. They study the symbolic representation, implementation, manipulation, and communication of information. They create, study, experiment on, and improve real-world computational and information systems—the working hardware and software artifacts that embody the computing capabilities. They develop models, methods, and technologies to help design, realize, and operate these artifacts. They amplify human intellect through the automation of rote tasks and construction of new capabilities." I found the writing clear and the coverage extensive, with chapters covering both theoretical and applied computer science. The book should be of interest to readers who are outside the field of professional computer science but who make regular professional use of computers--such as instructional designers. The ideas, perspectives and trends in computer science are of importance to a broad audience of professionals in other fields. The computer science approach to problem solving (through algorithms, simulations, and modeling) is one that infuses many areas of modern thought.  JH 10:04:43 AM    COMMENT []