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cover of episode Fritterin’ Away Genius

Fritterin’ Away Genius

2021/5/14
logo of podcast Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford

Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford

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Tim Harford: 本集讲述了克劳德·香农传奇的一生,他不仅是信息论的奠基人,也是一位多才多艺的发明家。他与爱德华·索普合作,设计并成功测试了一个可以预测轮盘赌结果的可穿戴式计算机。香农在取得巨大成就后,却将大量时间投入到看似不务正业的项目中,例如国际象棋、魔方机器人、杂耍等,这引发了人们对其工作效率的讨论。但香农的故事也启示我们,多元探索和灵活的工作方式同样可能带来非凡的成就。 Claude Shannon: (间接通过其行为和成就展现) 香农的天才在于其对信息论的开创性贡献,以及其在工程和数学领域的杰出才能。他能够在信息论、计算机、工程等多个领域取得突破性进展,并同时保持对各种爱好和项目的热情。他参与设计并测试了预测轮盘赌结果的装置,展现了他对挑战的热情和解决问题的能力。 Ed Thorpe: (间接通过其行为和成就展现) 索普是一位数学家,他设计了一个打败轮盘赌的系统,并寻求香农的帮助来实现这一目标。他拥有精湛的数学能力和对赌博的深刻理解,这使得他能够与香农合作,创造出当时最先进的可穿戴计算机。 Tim Harford: 克劳德·香农的故事引发了对成功定义的思考。传统观点认为,成功源于坚持不懈的努力和专注于单一目标。然而,香农的事例挑战了这一观点。他取得了巨大的成就,但同时也广泛涉猎不同的领域,并乐于放弃未完成的项目。这表明,多元探索和灵活的工作方式也可能带来非凡的成就。香农的故事并非鼓励人们不专注,而是提醒人们不要过度专注,要保持创造力和改变方向的自由。香农丰富多彩的生活和多领域探索,让他拥有了丰富的记忆和人生体验,这与信息论中信息压缩的原理相呼应。

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Claude Shannon, known for his significant contributions to computer science, was also known for his diverse interests and projects, raising questions about the impact of his restlessness on his potential contributions to human knowledge.

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Claude Shannon was brilliant. He was the Einstein of computer science... only he loved "fritterin' away" his time building machines to play chess, solve Rubik's cubes and beat the house at roulette.

If Shannon had worked more diligently - instead of juggling, riding a unicycle and abandoning project after project - would he have made an even greater contribution to human knowledge? Maybe... and maybe not. Are restlessness and "fritterin'" important parts of a rich and creative life?

Read more about Tim's work at http://timharford.com/)

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