Gödel, Escher, Bach by Douglas Hofstadter
An Eternal Golden Braid
The book explores concepts of formal systems, recursion, self-reference, and infinity through the interdisciplinary lens of mathematics, art, and music. The narrative intertwines biographical sketches of the titular figures - a mathematician, an artist, and a composer - with dialogues and discussions to illustrate complex ideas. The author uses these figures as metaphors to delve into the nature of human cognition and consciousness, suggesting that our minds are essentially self-referential systems akin to the works of Gödel, Escher, and Bach.
The 1387th greatest book of all time
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- Published
- 1979
- Nationality
- American
- Length
- Long
- Pages
- 777
- Original Language
- English
- Avg User Rating
-
(4.2)
- Alternate Titles
- None
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This book is on the following 9 lists:
- 5th on Best Science Book Ever (the Royal Institution of Great Britain)
- 729th on Our Users' Honorable Mention Favorite Books of All Time (The Greatest Books Users)
- 1,000 Books to Read Before You Die: A Life-Changing List (1,000 Books to Read Before You Die(Book))
- 50 Best Cult Books (Telegraph)
- Harenberg Buch der 1000 Bücher (Harenberg Buch der 1000 Bücher)
- Pulitzer Prize for Non-Fiction (Pulitzer Prize)
- Select 100 (University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee)
- The 100 Greatest Non-Fiction Books (The Guardian)
- Time Magazine's All-TIME 100 Best Non-Fiction Books (Time Magazine)