----- Original Message ----- From: Thane Plambeck To: math-fun@mailman.xmission.com Sent: Wednesday, November 20, 2002 12:58 AM Subject: [math-fun] Steven Krantz's review of A New Kind of Science Just *too* amusing. This is going to appear in the AMS Bulletin in Jan 2003, apparently. http://www.math.wustl.edu/~sk/wolfram.pdf Thane Plambeck 650 321 4884 office 650 323 4928 fax http://www.qxmail.com/home.htm Krantz is appropriately critical but failed to mention the book's absolutely atrocious style, which combines execrable writing with the apparent attitude that the general public (whom he imagines will be interested) must be written down to patronizingly. Granted, the public loves Bush so can't be very bright, but stupidity isn't enough of a qualification to be interested in ANKOS. Krantz uses the word hubris in connection with SW but "self-worship" is more accurate. I also find serious flaw with the book's layout, which uniquely combines wide, wasteful page margins with ultra-tiny diagrams and print. All in all, a miserably botched job. (I'm a Mathematica user.)