October 2023 MBR The Computer Shelf

The Computer Shelf

ChatGPT for Dummies
Pam Baker
For Dummies
c/o Wiley
https://www.wiley.com/en-us
9781394204632 $19.99 pbk / $12.00 Kindle

https://www.amazon.com/ChatGPT-Dummies-Computer-tech/dp/1394204639

Synopsis: ChatGPT For Dummies demystifies the artificial intelligence tool that can answer questions, write essays, and generate just about any kind of text it's asked for. This powerful example of generative AI is widely predicted to upend education and business. In this book, you'll learn how ChatGPT works and how you can operate it in a way that yields satisfactory results. You'll also explore the ethics of using AI-generated content for various purposes. Written by a journalist who's been on the front lines of artificial intelligence for over a decade, this book dives deep into ChatGPT's potential, so you can make informed decisions - without asking ChatGPT for help.

Learn how ChatGPT works and how it fits into the world of generative AI
Harness the power of ChatGPT to help you, and avoid letting it hinder you
Write queries that deliver the kind of response you want
Take a look into how the ChatGPT API interacts with other tools and platforms

This just-in-time Dummies title is perfect for any life or career may be impacted by ChatGPT and other AI. ChatGPT is just the tip of the iceberg, and this book can help you prepare for the future.

Critique: Upholding the "For Dummies" series tradition of making difficult topics as accessible and reader-friendly as possible, ChatGPT for Dummies tackles the disruptive yet labor-saving potential of ChatGPT and similar artificial intelligence language-learning models - generative AI "chatbots" that can write an essay, produce code, or create art in response to a prompt. ChatGPT has the potential to revolutionize knowledge industries, yet ChatGPT also has tremendous pitfalls, including its notorious tendency to "hallucinate", or make false and fictitious statements that it emphatically affirms to be true. Tips for writing ChatGPT prompts in business or daily life, warnings about ChatGPT's limits and the ethics of using AI responsibly, plain-terms explanations of how ChatGPT works and more fill this "must-have" reference resource for everyday laypeople and knowledge industry professionals alike. Highly recommended! It should be noted for personal reading lists that ChatGPT for Dummies is also available in a Kindle edition ($12.00).

Modeling and Simulation in Python
Allen B. Downy
No Starch Press
www.nostarch.com
9781718502161, $39.99, PB, 280pp

https://www.amazon.com/Modeling-Simulation-Python-Allen-Downey/dp/1718502168

Synopsis: With the publication of "Modeling and Simulation in Python: An Introduction for Scientists and Engineers", Allen B. Downy provides a thorough but easy-to-follow introduction to physical modeling -- that is, the art of describing and simulating real-world systems.

Readers are guided through modeling things like world population growth, infectious disease, bungee jumping, baseball flight trajectories, celestial mechanics, and more while simultaneously developing a strong understanding of fundamental programming concepts like loops, vectors, and functions.

Clear and concise, with a focus on learning by doing, "Modeling and Simulation in Python: An Introduction for Scientists and Engineers" spares the reader abstract, theoretical complexities and gets right to hands-on examples that show how to produce useful models and simulations.

Critique: An ideal introduction to Python and its predictive applications, "Modeling and Simulation in Python: An Introduction for Scientists and Engineers" is comprehensive, exceptionally well organized, and thoroughly 'user friendly' in presentation. While a strongly recommended pick for personal, professional, community, college, and university library Computer Software and Python Programing collections, as well as supplemental Data Modeling/Programing curriculum studies lists. It should also be noted that "Modeling and Simulation in Python: An Introduction for Scientists and Engineers" is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $23.99).

Editorial Note: Allen Downey (https://www.allendowney.com/wp) is a Staff Scientist at DrivenData and Professor Emeritus at Olin College, where he taught Modeling and Simulation and other classes related to software and data science. He is the author of several textbooks, including Think Python, Think Bayes, and Elements of Data Science. Previously, he taught at Wellesley College and Colby College. He received his Ph.D. in computer science from the University of California, Berkeley in 1997. His undergraduate and master's degrees are from the Civil Engineering department at MIT. He is the author of Probably Overthinking It, a blog about data science and Bayesian statistics.

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