The Physical Nature of Information : A Short Course.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Falkovich, Gregory.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Statistical physics.

Information theory.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (233 pages)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Princeton : Princeton University Press, 2025.

Summary:

"Information theory, or the study of how information is quantified/stored/retrieved, has historically existed at the intersection of math, computer science, and electrical engineering. However, there are many emerging applications within various subfields in physics, as well as other scientific disciplines. This text grew out of a one semester graduate-level course on information theory, initially intended for the physics community. The course has since been taught in several different countries and institutions, to a mix of physicists, engineers, computer scientists, biologists, and economists. While the primary audience is physics, the book will also be appropriate for scholars in other disciplines who have a strong mathematical foundation. The book is panoramic, trying to combine into a reasonably coherent whole the subjects that are taught in much details in different departments: thermodynamics and statistical mechanics (as taught in physics and engineering), dynamical chaos (as taught in physics and applied mathematics), information and communication theories (as taught in computer science and engineering), with the ultimate goal of revealing the essential unity between different fields and disciplines"-- Provided by publisher.

"A unified introduction to information theory for scientistsApplications of information theory span a broad range of disciplines today. This book presents a unified treatment of the subject for students and practitioners in the sciences. It teaches the tools universally used by physicists working on quantum computers and black holes, engineers designing self-driving cars, traders perfecting market strategies, chemists playing with molecules, biologists studying cells and living beings, linguists analyzing languages, and neuroscientists figuring out how the brain works. No matter what area of science you specialize in, The Physical Nature of Information unlocks the power of information theory to test the limits imposed by uncertainty.Provides a panoramic approach to information theoryDraws on examples from physics, engineering, biology, economics, and linguisticsApplications range from thermodynamics and statistical mechanics to dynamical chaos, information and communication theories, and quantum informationIncludes materials for lectures and tutorials along with exercises with detailed solutionsCan be used to design a one-semester introductory courseIdeal for self-study by graduate students and advanced undergraduatesInvaluable for scholars seeking new research opportunities"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Frontmatter

CONTENTS

PREFACE

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

1 Thermodynamics and Statistical Physics

2 Basics of Information Theory

3 Applications of Information Theory

4 New Second Law of Thermodynamics

5 Inevitability of Irreversibility

6 Fundamental Limits of Uncertainty

7 Conclusion

Appendix Extras, Exercises, and Solutions

Index

Notes:

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

ISBN:

9780691266541

0691266549

OCLC:

1465673315