Book Review - The Art of Computer Programming, Volume 4, Fascicle 4 : Generating All Trees--History of Combinatorial Generation
Category Book Reviews
I've known about The Art of Computer Programming volumes by Donald E. Knuth for some time, but I've always avoided reviewing them for fear of not being able to do them justice. But after being contacted specifically by the publisher asking if I was interested in the latest - The Art of Computer Programming, Volume 4, Fascicle 4 : Generating All Trees--History of Combinatorial Generation - I decided to give it a try. For the right audience, this is really good stuff. But I can tell you that I'm not it...
Content:
Chapter 7 - Combinatorial Searching: 7.2 - Generating All Possibilities; 7.2.1 - Generating Basic Combinatorial Patterns; 7.2.1.1 - Generating all n-tuples; 7.2.1.2 - Generating all permutations; 7.2.1.3 - Generating all combinations; 7.2.1.4 - Generating all partitions; 7.2.1.5 - Generating all set partitions; 7.2.1.6 - Generating all trees; 7.2.1.7 - History and further references; Answers to Exercises; Index and Glossary
Don't refresh your browser thinking the Content section didn't load properly. There's just chapter 7... For those who don't understand the "fascicle" concept (like I didn't before getting this volume), it's a small book (120 pages) of material that either updates writings in previous volumes or a "preview" of material that will eventually be rolled into a single volume (in this case, volume 4). Knuth has a lot of information he wants to convey, and by using fascicles, the public can get a steady flow of information and help shape the continuing evolution of the series. Interesting concept, and one I can appreciate. Another review stated that this was probably one of the "skimpiest" volumes in terms of mathematical knowledge. If true, then I fear what will await me with future installments. To get the most of out Knuth's work, you really do need to be well-grounded in computer science and mathematical theory. Every page is populated with numerous formulas to prove the subject matter, and I'll admit to being completely lost in most of it. That doesn't mean the book isn't good. It *is* excellent work, but I'm definitely not the target audience. I don't come from a formal computer science and mathematics background, so I'd have to really slog through everything from page 1 with supporting texts in order to fully benefit from it.
It wasn't a total loss for me, though... I enjoyed the History and Further References chapter, where he shows the tree theory and how it affected such things as literature and culture through the ages. Whether the ancient Chinese had all this in mind when developing the I Ching is open to debate, but the theory and underpinnings of trees is definitely there. And for those readers who really want to work through and apply the material, there are exercises galore at the end (with answers graciously provided for those who get stuck). You could likely set up a college level course based on this (and associated) book, and it would be foundational to a computer science degree.
So, for the right audience, this is the type of book that will allow for weeks of thought and learning. But if you're more like me, someone who deals more with business systems and development (without a comp sci degree to back it up), you'll likely miss most of the value here.
I've known about The Art of Computer Programming volumes by Donald E. Knuth for some time, but I've always avoided reviewing them for fear of not being able to do them justice. But after being contacted specifically by the publisher asking if I was interested in the latest - The Art of Computer Programming, Volume 4, Fascicle 4 : Generating All Trees--History of Combinatorial Generation - I decided to give it a try. For the right audience, this is really good stuff. But I can tell you that I'm not it...
Content:
Chapter 7 - Combinatorial Searching: 7.2 - Generating All Possibilities; 7.2.1 - Generating Basic Combinatorial Patterns; 7.2.1.1 - Generating all n-tuples; 7.2.1.2 - Generating all permutations; 7.2.1.3 - Generating all combinations; 7.2.1.4 - Generating all partitions; 7.2.1.5 - Generating all set partitions; 7.2.1.6 - Generating all trees; 7.2.1.7 - History and further references; Answers to Exercises; Index and Glossary
Don't refresh your browser thinking the Content section didn't load properly. There's just chapter 7... For those who don't understand the "fascicle" concept (like I didn't before getting this volume), it's a small book (120 pages) of material that either updates writings in previous volumes or a "preview" of material that will eventually be rolled into a single volume (in this case, volume 4). Knuth has a lot of information he wants to convey, and by using fascicles, the public can get a steady flow of information and help shape the continuing evolution of the series. Interesting concept, and one I can appreciate. Another review stated that this was probably one of the "skimpiest" volumes in terms of mathematical knowledge. If true, then I fear what will await me with future installments. To get the most of out Knuth's work, you really do need to be well-grounded in computer science and mathematical theory. Every page is populated with numerous formulas to prove the subject matter, and I'll admit to being completely lost in most of it. That doesn't mean the book isn't good. It *is* excellent work, but I'm definitely not the target audience. I don't come from a formal computer science and mathematics background, so I'd have to really slog through everything from page 1 with supporting texts in order to fully benefit from it.
It wasn't a total loss for me, though... I enjoyed the History and Further References chapter, where he shows the tree theory and how it affected such things as literature and culture through the ages. Whether the ancient Chinese had all this in mind when developing the I Ching is open to debate, but the theory and underpinnings of trees is definitely there. And for those readers who really want to work through and apply the material, there are exercises galore at the end (with answers graciously provided for those who get stuck). You could likely set up a college level course based on this (and associated) book, and it would be foundational to a computer science degree.
So, for the right audience, this is the type of book that will allow for weeks of thought and learning. But if you're more like me, someone who deals more with business systems and development (without a comp sci degree to back it up), you'll likely miss most of the value here.
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