Powers of Two The Information Universe — Information as the Building Block of Everything

Is everything Information? This is a tantalizing question which emerges in modern physics, life sciences, astronomy and in today’s information and technology-driven society. In Powers of Two expert authors undertake a unique expedition - in words and images - throughout the world (and scales) of information. The story resembles, in a way, the classic “Powers of Ten” journeys through space: from us to the macro and the micro worlds. However, by following Powers of Two through the world of information, a completely different and timely paradigm unfolds: The Information Universe in nature and in our society. In this book, we experience how information lies at the very foundation of our understanding of the Universe.

Is everything Information? This is a tantalizing question which emerges in modern physics, life sciences, astronomy and in today’s information and technology-driven society. In Powers of Two expert authors undertake a unique expedition - in words and images - throughout the world (and scales) of information. The story resembles, in a way, the classic Powers of Ten journeys through space: from us to the macro and the micro worlds . However, by following Powers of Two through the world of information, a completely different and timely paradigm unfolds. Every power of two, 1, 2, 4, 8…. tells us a different story: starting from the creation of the very first bit at the Big Bang and the evolution of life, through 50 years of computational science, and finally into deep space, describing the information in black holes and even in the entire universe and beyond…. All this to address one question: Is our universe made of information? In this book, we experience the Information Universe in nature and in our society and how information lies at the very foundation of our understanding of the Universe.

From the Foreword by Robbert Dijkgraaf:

This book is in many ways a vastly extended version of Shannon’s one-page blueprint. It carries us all the way to the total information content of the Universe. And it bears testimony of how widespread the use of data has become in all aspects of life. Information is the connective tissue of the modern sciences. […] Undoubtedly, future generations will look back at this time, so much enthralled by Big Data and quantum computers, as beholden to the information metaphor. But that is exactly the value of this book. With its crisp descriptions and evocative illustrations, it brings the reader into the here and now, at the very frontier of scientific research, including the excitement and promise of all the outstanding questions and future discoveries.

Message for the e-reader of the book Powers of Two

The book has been designed to be read in two-page spreads in full screen mode.

For optimal reader experience in a downloaded .pdf file we strongly recommend you use the following settings in Adobe Acrobat Reader:

- Taskbar: View > Page Display > two page view
- Taskbar: View > Page Display > Show Cover Page in Two Page View
- Taskbar: ^ Preferences > Full Screen > deselect " Fill screen with one page at a time"
- Taskbar: View > Full screen mode or ctrl L (cmd L on a Mac)

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Note: for reading the previews on Spinger link (and on-line reading in a browser), the full screen two-page view only works with these browsers:

Firefox

- Taskbar: on top of the text, at the uppermost right you will see then >> (which is a drop-down menu) >> even double pages

- Fullscreen: F11 or Control+Cmd+F with Mac

Edge

- Taskbar middle: Two-page view and select show cover page separately