Perspective

"The Information" is both a history of the concept of information as well as an essay on the modern flood of information that faces us.

Gleick constructs a history of the development of the concept of information theory beginning at the dawn of history with the invention of writing and the alphabet. He looks at these developments from a modern perspective, identifying the major contributions that were made with the benefit of hindsight. Many of the concepts whose origins he identifies were not widely recognized as being important at the time they were articulated, Gleick explains, but by finding the connections between these historical events and our modern flood of information he gives them the recognition that he thinks they deserve. Wherever possible, Gleick provides biographical information on the major figures he identifies, giving an historical background that helps to place them in the line of development of...