A Mind at Play

Winner of the Neumann Prize for the History of Mathematics

“A charming account of one of the 20th century’s most distinguished scientists…Readers will enjoy this portrait of a modern-day Da Vinci.” —Fortune

From the award-winning duo who coauthored Rome’s Last Citizen comes an exploration of the life of one of the foremost intellects of the 20th century Claude Shannon, the neglected major architect of the digital age—perfect for readers of The Innovators.

In their second collaboration, biographers Jimmy Soni and Rob Goodman present the story of Claude Shannon—one of the foremost intellects of the twentieth century and the architect of the Information Age, whose insights stand behind every computer built, email sent, video streamed, and webpage loaded. Claude Shannon was a groundbreaking polymath, a brilliant tinkerer, and a digital pioneer. He constructed the first wearable computer, outfoxed Vegas casinos, and built juggling robots. He also wrote the seminal text of the digital revolution, which has been called “the Magna Carta of the Information Age.” In this elegantly written, exhaustively researched biography, Soni and Goodman reveal Claude Shannon’s full story for the first time. With unique access to Shannon’s family and friends, A Mind at Play brings this singular innovator and always playful genius to life.