History - Zeno Agency Ltd.

Andrew Hodges’s ALAN TURING: THE ENIGMA Out in Japan

Posted on Wednesday, June 29th, 2016

ALAN TURING: THE ENIGMA, Andrew Hodges‘s critically-acclaimed biography of the mathematician and father of computing, is available in Japan. Published by Keiso Shobo in two volumes as エニグマアラン・チューリング伝, here’s the synopsis…

解読不可能といわれたドイツの暗号機エニグマを攻略した史上最強の暗号解読者であり、コンピュータ科学の創始者であり、同性愛で罪に問われるという数奇な人生を送ったアラン・チューリング。彼は何を考え、何を感じ、そして生きたのか。数理物理学者でもある著者アンドルー・ホッジスがチューリングの生涯を鮮やかに描き出す。

はしがきは『ゲーデル、エッシャー、バッハ』（白揚社）のダグラス・ホフスタッターが執筆。

The book was adapted into the Oscar-winning movie THE IMITATION GAME, starring Benedict Cumberbatch, Keira Knightley and Charles Dance. ALAN TURING: THE ENIGMA is published in the UK by Vintage, and in the US by Princeton University Press. Here’s the English-language synopsis…

Alan Turing was the mathematician whose cipher-cracking transformed the Second World War. Taken on by British Intelligence in 1938, as a shy young Cambridge don, he combined brilliant logic with a flair for engineering. In 1940 his machines were breaking the Enigma-enciphered messages of Nazi Germany’s air force. He then headed the penetration of the super-secure U-boat communications.

But his vision went far beyond this achievement. Before the war he had invented the concept of the universal machine, and in 1945 he turned this into the first design for a digital computer.

Turing’s far-sighted plans for the digital era forged ahead into a vision for Artificial Intelligence. However, in 1952 his homosexuality rendered him a criminal and he was subjected to humiliating treatment. In 1954, aged 41, Alan Turing took his own life.

The biography has also been published widely in translation. Here’s just a small sampling of the fantastic reviews…

‘A first-rate presentation of the life of a first-rate scientific mind… it is hard to imagine a more thoughtful and warm biography than this one.’ — New York Times Book Review

‘Andrew Hodges, in this fine biography… brings Turing the thinker and Turing the man alive for the reader and thus allows us all to share in the privilege of knowing him.’ — Financial Times

‘One of the finest scientific biographies ever written.’ — New Yorker

‘This rather shadowy figure has now finally been lifted into the light of day… it has to be said that Andrew Hodges has put together an extraordinary story.’ — Sunday Telegraph

‘Hodges’s biography is sensitive, sympathetic and uncompromisingly intellectual. The maths is extremely hard work – but helps the lay reader to appreciate the scale of Turing’s achievements.’ — Independent on Sunday

More on John McHugo and the 2014 Transmission Award!

Posted on Wednesday, February 5th, 2014

Last month, we shared the news that John McHugo had been nominated for the 2014 Transmission Award, which is given each year by Salon London. John is nominated for work related to his latest book, A CONCISE HISTORY OF THE ARABS (published by Saqi Books). Since then, Salon London has posted a podcast about John’s work and the other two nominees.

For your listening pleasure, here is the podcast…

Here is the synopsis for A CONCISE HISTORY OF THE ARABS…

The key to understanding the Arab world – today and in the future – lies in unlocking its past.

John McHugo unfolds centuries of political, social and intellectual development, from the Roman Empire right up to the present day. Taking the reader beyond the headlines, McHugo presents a series of turning points in Arab history: the mission of the Prophet Muhammad, the expansion of Islam, the conflicts of the medieval and modern ages, the struggles against foreign domination, the rise of Islamism, and the end of the rule of dictators.

Accessible and penetrating, this concise history reveals how the Arab world has come to assume its present form and illuminates the choices that lie ahead in the wake of the Arab Spring.

John McHugo Transmission Award

Posted on Wednesday, January 15th, 2014

We are delighted to announce that John McHugo has been nominated for the 2014 Transmission Prize! The prize, launched in 2013 by Salon London, is designed to ‘celebrate inspired ideas, brilliantly communicated’.

John is nominated for his work related to his most recent book, A CONCISE HISTORY OF THE ARABS (published by Saqi Books), and a little bit more on that can be found here.

Many congratulations indeed to John! A very well-deserved nomination.

Here is the synopsis for John’s book…

The key to understanding the Arab world – today and in the future – lies in unlocking its past.

Accessible and penetrating, this concise history reveals how the Arab world has come to assume its present form and illuminates the choices that lie ahead in the wake of the Arab Spring.

Here’s some of what critics have said about the book…

‘Highly readable … Ideal for novices, it is also a useful and exciting read for those who have read much about the area but never had the whole story summed up in a single volume.’ — Jordan Times

‘Thrilling and poignant, woven with a layered texture of knowledge and empathy that deftly stitches familiar figures into the narrative in a fresh way.’ — David Gardner, International Affairs Editor, Financial Times

‘… for those who wish to know the background behind the news headlines, the book is a good—if somewhat demanding—place to start; and for those who at some point had some background in parts of subject, the book acts as a useful refresher.’ — Asian Review of Books

‘… always erudite…’ — The National

‘… provide[s] substantial help in understanding the political developments in the Middle East, including the Arab Spring.’ — The Tablet

Speaking of John’s work, we thought you might also be interested in his article from last year, about coffee and ‘How a drink for Arab mystics went global‘. If, like us, you are a committed drinker of coffee, this is a great read.