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Book Reviews of Infinity and the Mind

Infinity and the Mind
Infinity and the Mind
Author: Rudy Rucker
ISBN-13: 9780553255317
ISBN-10: 0553255312
Publication Date: 11/1/1983
Edition: Reissue
Rating:
  • Currently 3.5/5 Stars.
 5

3.5 stars, based on 5 ratings
Publisher: Bantam
Book Type: Paperback
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In Infinity and the Mind, Rudy Rucker leads an excursion to that stretch of the universe he calls the "Mindscape," where he explores infinity in all its forms: potential and actual, mathematical and physical, theological and mundane. Here Rucker acquaints us with Gödel's rotating universe, in which it is theoretically possible to travel into the past, and explains an interpretation of quantum mechanics in which billions of parallel worlds are produced every microsecond. It is in the realm of infinity, he maintains, that mathematics, science, and logic merge with the fantastic. By closely examining the paradoxes that arise from this merging, we can learn a great deal about the human mind, its powers, and its limitations.
Using cartoons, puzzles, and quotations to enliven his text, Rucker guides us through such topics as the paradoxes of set theory, the possibilities of physical infinities, and the results of Gödel's incompleteness theorems. His personal encounters with Gödel the mathematician and philosopher provide a rare glimpse at genius and reveal what very few mathematicians have dared to admit: the transcendent implications of Platonic realism.