In 1979, a cult book by douglas hofstadter explored consciousness via a mathematical idea found in art and music. Intelligence, art, music, and life are a strange loop. Nearly three decades later, in my 2007 book i am a strange loop, i tried to express these same ideas more simply and more directly, and i hope i did a bit better the second time around. Hofstadters first book length journey into philosophy since godel, escher, bach. Compulsively readable and endlessly thoughtprovoking, this is a moving and profound inquiry into the nature of mind.
It arises when, by moving only upwards or downwards through the system, one finds oneself back where one started. In the big strange loops book hofstadter 2007 they referred in passing to translating in a broad sense, especially between godels theorem and english 145 and as an analogue of the replicability of patterns 224, 257 a theme that had helped organize the cognitive science of their big translation book hofstadter 1997 but never as. In his latest book, i am a strange loop, he visits once again many of the themes originally presented in that book. He writes, i hope this book will make you reflect in fresh ways on what being human is all aboutin fact, on what justplain being is all about. I am a strange loop quotes showing 125 of 25 in the end, we selfperceiving, selfinventing, lockedin mirages are little miracles of selfreference. I am a strange loop by douglas hofstadter issue 78. Hofstadter, a professor of cognitive science at indiana university, is best known for his pulitzer prize winning godel, escher, bach, or geb as he likes to call it. Where he describes this selfreferential mechanism as what describes the unique property of minds. Can self, soul, consciousness, i arise out of mere matter. Strangely wrongi must suggest something blasphemously arrogant. Actually, he has written a much more thorough and comprehensible book than i could, and in such a friendly and personal way that i feel i could call him doug. Douglas hofstadter, justifiably famous for godel, escher, bach wrote about the much trickier subject of mind and personal identity in this 2004 book. Subject, consciousness, strange loops, intelligence.
Mar 09, 2019 bach, escher and godels strange loops may have the answer in 1979, a cult book by douglas hofstadter explored consciousness via a mathematical idea found in art and music. What is a strange loop and what is it like to be one. Mar 27, 2007 these are the mysteries tackled in i am a strange loop, douglas r. These are the mysteries tackled in i am a strange loop, douglas r. A soul that can transcend space and time, survive death, and even possess others, is considered intellectually passe. Review of i am a strange loop by douglas hofstadter part 1. Scott oreilly loops the loop with douglas hofstadter. He had solved the mindbody problem, the mystery of who we really are. I am a strange loop should not be taken to mean douglas hofstadter is a strange loop. Douglas hofstadter is an american author who has written several books about philosophy, mathematics, and science. A more accurate, if admittedly less wieldy title for douglas hofstadters book about the phenomenon of consciousness would be ones i is a. Pulitzerprize winner douglas hofstadter takes on some weighty and wonderful questions in i am a strange loopamong them, the size of a soul and the vagaries of thoughtand proposes persuasive answers that surprised me both with their simplicity and their sense of optimism.
In the end, we are selfperceiving, selfinventing, lockedin mirages that are little miracles of selfreference. Compulsively readable and endlessly thoughtprovoking, this is the book hofstadters many readers have long been waiting for. The purpose of douglas hofstadter s new book is to make inroads into the nexus of self, selfawareness and consciousness by examining selfreferential structures in areas as diverse as art and mathematics. Today, more than two thousand years after heraclitus wrote those words, science has shrunk the boundaries of the soul considerably. How could it possibly live up to hofstadters original, pulitzer prizewinning work.
Douglas hofstadter in his book i am a strange loop coined this idea. You would not find the boundaries of the soul no matter how many paths you traveled, so deep is its measure. Hofstadter also feared after writing the book that many readers missed its central point. The i in the title refers to the concept of the i in all of us. Hofstadter s first book length journey into philosophy since godel, escher, bach. I am a strange loop by douglas hofstadter scott oreilly loops the loop with douglas hofstadter.
Best known for his pulitzer prize winning book, godel, escher, bach, published in 1979, douglas hofstadter continues his examination of selfreferential systems in his latest book. This seems to me to be a satisfying, although not necessarily complete, analysis of the strage of human consciousness in a material universe. Compulsively readable and endlessly thoughtprovoking, this is a moving and. This weekend i read a short fragment from douglas hofstadter s book i am a strange loop at my friends james and lucys wedding. A strange loop is a cyclic structure that goes through several levels in a hierarchical system. The first third of this book is the hofstadter that i expected to read dragging me through a laypersons guide to prime numbers, squares, the fibonacci series, principia mathematica and bertrand russells attempt to banish paradox from mathematics, and finally, godels discovery of the ultimate self reflective mathematical string which shattered russells dreams. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read i am a strange loop. I am a strange loop, too, and douglas hofstadter has written my book. The book is an introduction to the core ideas about self, selfreference, feedback loops and consciousness as an emergent phenomena. The interview below was conducted in september 2007 and was originally published, in hebrew, in the online culture magazine haayal hakore. A reflection on the loopy self arts the harvard crimson. I am a strange loop is a 2007 book by douglas hofstadter, examining in depth the concept of a strange loop to explain the sense of i. James is the person who initially introduced me to douglas hofstadter s earlier book godel, escher, bach. The concept of a strange loop was proposed and extensively discussed by douglas hofstadter in godel, escher, bach, and is further elaborated in hofstadters book i am a strange loop, published in 2007.
A strange loop is selfreferential object, like a snake eating its own tail. Hofstadter will change your idea of what it is to be creative and even what it is to be human. It is a strange loop generated by a myriad of lesser loops. Now, in the ai revolution, that concept could solve a vital question. I am a strange loop by douglas hofstadter, used abebooks. Buy i am a strange loop book online at low prices in india. I am a strange loop, by douglas hofstadter the independent.
Hofstadter was written in 2008 and is the authors follow up to godel, escher, bach, also known as geb. Douglas hofstadter is a distinguished professor of cognitive science and comparative literature at indiana university. His new book, as brilliant and provocative as earlier ones, is a colorful mix of. Compulsively readable and endlessly thoughtprovoking, this is the book hofstadter s many readers have long been waiting for. Apr 08, 2018 huge credit to david szakaly for his visual representation of a strange loop. Mar 23, 2019 following on from their strange loops triptych, marcus du sautoy and joana seguro discuss the inspiration behind the work douglas hofstadters 1979 book godel escher bach. I am a strange loop attempts to correct this problem by better illustrating how. A guided tour through douglas hofstadter s paradoxical concept of strange loops. These are the mysteries tackled in i am a strange loop, douglas hofstadters first book length journey into philosophy since godel, escher, bach.
May 16, 2017 i recently finished i am a strange loop by douglas hofstadter. The concept of a strange loop was originally developed in his 1979 book godel, escher, bach. In this book, hofstadter observes that due to the attention that other aspects of geb garnered, the main point, that of strange loops being the origin of the human. Get unlimited access to the best stories on medium and support writers while youre at. Book list life purpose course forum reality is a strange loop. The strange loops explain much of what i experienced and when i combine the information from this video with your what is god parts 1 and 2, im able to re.
This is a question that hofstadter, like searle, cannot bring himself to ask. An eternal golden braid, and i am a strange loop, and more on. I am a strange loop by douglas hofstadter, used abebooks passion for books. Strange loops of translation doug robinson many loops. The book sits on shelves with its cover proclaiming, i am a strange loop. Hofstadter, one of whose specialties is the study of feedback loops in complex systems, coins sometimes unfortunate terms for our own loopy ways of thinking, among them thinkodynamics and statistical mentalics, but the governing idea is a fruitful one. And the book does an excellent job of presenting his views on just how the i forms in a brain, what kind of hardware may be necessary for an i, what kinds of i am out there, and on how many brains a single i may live. And indeed, it is impossible to come away from this book without having introduced elements of. Douglas hodstadter i am a strage loop, perseus books. These are the mysteries tackled in i am a strange loop, douglas hofstadters first booklength journey into philosophy since godel, escher, bach. Godel, escher, bach by douglas hofstadter the strange loop phenomenon occurs whenever by moving upwards or downwards through the levels of some hierarchical system, we unexpectedly find ourselves right back where we started. Access a free summary of i am a strange loop, by douglas hofstadter and 20,000 other business, leadership and nonfiction books on getabstract. The most recent, published this year by basic, is douglas.
Hofstadter is college professor of cognitive science and computer science at indiana university, bloomington, indiana. Hofstadter wrote i am a strange loop, published in 2007, to spell out this theme more clearly, to explain what an i is. It is one thing to analyze the relation between three applications their results in math, visual art, and music of selfreferencing thought, and quite another to analyze the entity doing the. Its mixture of logic, music and visual art blended the richness of the humanities and the rigor of the sciences in an altogether unforgettable confection that won a. It is a minute portion of the universe, a glob of dead matter within our skull, not only observing itself, but aware it is observing itself. A tangled hierarchy is a hierarchical consciousness system in which a strange loop appears. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. These are the mysteries tackled in i am a strange loop, douglas hofstadter s first book length journey into philosophy since goedel, escher, bach. Hofstadter always has an intriguing and playful way to present his thinking. Strange loop syndrome my little corner of the spectrum book godel, escher, bach. He is perhaps most famous for his book godel, escher, bach which explores strange loops, or selfreferential systems. The voynich code the worlds most mysterious manuscript the secrets of nature duration.
I am a strange loop is a 2007 book by douglas hofstadter, examining in depth the concept of. Strange loop syndrome my little corner of the spectrum. It won both the pulitzer prize for general nonfiction and a national book award at that time called the american book award for science. I am a strange loop by douglas hofstadter abebooks passion for books. One of our greatest philosophers and scientists of the mind. I am a strange loop by douglas hofstadter abebooks. In this talk ill try to get across the crux of these intuitions about the mysterious concept of i. There are largescale and smallscale things happening within our minds all the. The strange loop in deep learning intuition machine medium. An eternal golden braid is still something of a marvel.
Metamagical themas, the mind s i, fluid concepts and creative. Twenty years after it topped the bestseller charts, douglas r. Does an i exert genuine power over the particles in our brain, or is it helplessly pushed around by the laws of physics. Hofstadter and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. Hofstadter has long been fascinated by self reference loops. Pulitzerprize winner douglas hofstadter takes on some weighty and wonderful questions in i am a strange. Strange loops may involve selfreference and paradox. I am a strange loop by douglas hofstadter issue 78 philosophy.
Twentyeight years ago, douglas hofstadter published a book titled goedel, escher, bach that earned him instant academic renown and a cultlike following. Oct 24, 2008 for that reason, i was tentative in 2007 when hofstadter released i am a strange loop, a thinner book than the earlier tome, and of narrower scope but still tackling a broad and deep subject. Hofstadter felt a need to write a new book because so many people misperceived geb as a hodgepodge of neat things with no central theme. When i saw a copy of i am a strange loop in a usedbook store, and hofstadter said in the intro it was his update of godel, escher, bach, i figured this was my.
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