New Books Network

Mathematics August 9, 2022

Probability and Forensic Evidence

Theory, Philosophy, and Applications

Ronald Meester and Klaas Slooten

Hosted by Marc Goulet

In Probability and Forensic Evidence: Theory, Philosophy, and Applications (Cambridge UP, 2021), Ronald Meester and Klaas Slooten address the role of statistics and probability in the evaluation of forensic evidence, including …

Architecture July 8, 2022

Formulations

Architecture, Mathematics, Culture

Andrew Witt

Hosted by Bryan Toepfer

In Formulations: Architecture, Mathematics, Culture (MIT Press, 2022), Andrew Witt examines the visual, methodological, and cultural intersections between architecture and mathematics. The linkages Witt explores involve not the mystic transcendence …

Economics June 30, 2022

Formal Models of Domestic Politics

Scott Gehlbach

Hosted by Peter Lorentzen

Formal mathematical models have provided tremendous insights into politics in recent decades. Formal Models of Domestic Politics (Cambridge UP, 2021) is the leading graduate textbook covering the crucial models that …

Economics June 22, 2022

Don't Trust Your Gut

Using Data to Get What You Really Want in LIfe

Seth Stephens-Davidowitz

Hosted by Peter Lorentzen

Today I talked to Seth Stephens-Davidowitz about his new book Don't Trust Your Gut: Using Data to Get What You Really Want in LIfe (Dey Street Books, 2022) Looking for advice on how …

Science June 21, 2022

Plan S for Shock

Science. Shock. Solution. Speed.

Robert-Jan Smits and Rachael Pells

Hosted by Galina Limorenko

Plan S: the open access initiative that changed the face of global research. Robert-Jan Smits and Rachael Pells's book Plan S for Shock: Science. Shock. Solution. Speed. (Ubiquity Press, 2022) tells …

Music June 9, 2022

Mathematical Music

From Antiquity to Music AI

Nikita Braguinski

Hosted by David Golland

What is mathematical music? In Mathematical Music from Antiquity to AI (Routledge, 2022), musicologist Nikita Braguinski discusses how mathematics has historically been used to make music, how it continues to …

Mathematics May 10, 2022

Teaching Mathematics Through Games

Mindy Capaldi

Hosted by Cory Brunson

Games are an established aide in pre-college mathematics education. Meanwhile, innumerable popular books have investigated the mathematics of games. In a new edited volume for the AMS/MAA Classroom Resource Materials …

Scholarly Communication April 13, 2022

The Science of Science

Dashun Wang and Albert-László Barabási

Hosted by Daniel Shea

Listen to this interview of Dashun Wang, Professor at the Kellogg School of Management and McCormick School of Engineering at Northwestern University, and also with Albert-László Barabási, Robert Gray Dodge …

Scholarly Communication March 31, 2022

Science Research Writing

For Native and Non-Native Speakers of English

Hilary Glasman-Deal

Hosted by Daniel Shea

Listen to this interview of Hilary Glasman-Deal, teacher of STEMM communication at the Centre for Academic English, Imperial College London, and author ofScience Research Writing For Native and Non-Native Speakers …

Science, Technology, and Society March 30, 2022

A New History of Modern Computing

Thomas Haigh and Paul E. Ceruzzi

Hosted by Austin Clyde

In A New History of Modern Computing (MIT Press, 2021), Thomas Haigh and Paul Ceruzzi trace changes leading to the computer becoming a ubiquitous technology. Over the past fifty years, the computer …

Sociology March 28, 2022

Algorithms and the End of Politics

How Technology Shapes 21st-Century American Life

Scott Timcke

Hosted by Michael Johnston

As the US contends with issues of populism and de-democratization, this timely study considers the impacts of digital technologies on the country’s politics and society. In Algorithms and the End …

Language March 23, 2022

Language Vs. Reality

Why Language Is Good for Lawyers and Bad for Scientists

N. J. Enfield

Hosted by Malcolm Keating

Nick Enfield’s book, Language vs. Reality: Why Language is Good for Lawyers and Bad for Scientists (MIT Press, 2022), argues that language is primarily for social coordination, not precisely transferring …

Science, Technology, and Society March 21, 2022

The Atlas of AI

Power, Politics, and the Planetary Costs of Artificial Intelligence

Kate Crawford

Hosted by Matthew Jordan

What happens when artificial intelligence saturates political life and depletes the planet? How is AI shaping our understanding of ourselves and our societies? In The Atlas of AI: Power, Politics, and …

Scholarly Communication March 21, 2022

The Scientist’s Guide to Writing

How to Write More Easily and Effectively Throughout Your Scientific Career, 2nd ed.

Stephen B. Heard

Hosted by Daniel Shea

Listen to this interview of Stephen Heard, Professor of Biology at the University of New Brunswick. We talk about his book The Scientist’s Guide to Writing: How to Write More Easily …

Science, Technology, and Society March 16, 2022

The Constitution of Algorithms

Ground-Truthing, Programming, Formulating

Florian Jaton

Hosted by Austin Clyde

The Constitution of Algorithms: Ground-Truthing, Programming, Formulating (MIT Press, 2021) is a laboratory study that investigates how algorithms come into existence. Algorithms--often associated with the terms big data, machine learning, or artificial …

Law March 4, 2022

Predict and Surveil

Data, Discretion, and the Future of Policing

Sarah Brayne

Hosted by Cory Brunson

Police use of advanced data collection and analysis technologies—or, "big data policing"—continues to receive both positive and negative attention through media, activism, and politics. While some high-profile cases illustrate its …

Science, Technology, and Society February 16, 2022

Your Wit Is My Command

Building AIs with a Sense of Humor

Tony Veale

Hosted by Galina Limorenko

Most robots and smart devices are not known for their joke-telling abilities. And yet, as computer scientist Tony Veale explains in Your Wit Is My Command (MIT Press, 2021), machines …

Mathematics February 10, 2022

Bernoulli's Fallacy

Statistical Illogic and the Crisis of Modern Science

Aubrey Clayton

Hosted by Galina Limorenko

There is a logical flaw in the statistical methods used across experimental science. This fault is not a minor academic quibble: it underlies a reproducibility crisis now threatening entire disciplines …

Mathematics February 1, 2022

Breaking Barriers

Student Success in Community College Mathematics

Brian Cafarella

Hosted by Cory Brunson

Students' success in mathematics at community colleges has been the subject of thorough quantitative research, which has reported poor overall results and described a range of explanations for them. Even …

Technology January 20, 2022

In AI We Trust

Power, Illusion and Control of Predictive Algorithms

Helga Nowotny

Hosted by Galina Limorenko

Today I talked to Helga Nowotny about her new book In AI We Trust: Power, Illusion and Control of Predictive Algorithms (Polity, 2021).One of the most persistent concerns about the future is …