The Golem At Large

The authors demonstrate that the imperfections in technology are related to the uncertainties in science described in the first volume.

What is the golem? In Jewish mythology the Golem is an effigy or image brought to life. While not evil, it is a strong, clumsy and incomplete servant. Through a series of case studies, ranging from relativity and cold fusion to memory in worms and the sex lives of lizards, Harry Collins and Trevor Pinch debunk the traditional view that science is the straightforward result of competent theorization, observation and experimentation. Scientific certainty is the interpretation of ambiguous results. The very well received first edition generated much debate, reflected in a substantial new Afterword in this new edition, which seeks to place the book in what have become known as 'the science wars'.

A creature of Jewish mythology, a golem is an animated being made by man from clay and water who knows neither his own strength nor the extent of his ignorance. Like science and technology, the subjects of Harry Collins and Trevor Pinch's previous volumes, medicine is also a golem, and this Dr. Golem should not be blamed for its mistakes - they ...

From the Reviews "[This book] contains an excellent blend of both Shiny-specific topics ... and practical advice from software development that fits in nicely with Shiny apps. You will find many nuggets of wisdom sprinkled throughout these chapters...." Eric Nantz, Host of the R-Podcast and the Shiny Developer Series (from the Foreword) "[This] book is a gradual and pleasant invitation to the production-ready shiny apps world. It ...exposes a comprehensive and robust workflow powered by the {golem} package. [It] fills the not yet covered gap between shiny app development and deployment in such a thrilling way that it may be read in one sitting.... In the industry world, where processes robustness is a key toward productivity, this book will indubitably have a tremendous impact." David Granjon, Sr. Expert Data Science, Novartis Presented in full color, Engineering Production-Grade Shiny Apps helps people build production-grade shiny applications, by providing advice, tools, and a methodology to work on web applications with R. This book starts with an overview of the challenges which arise from any big web application project: organizing work, thinking about the user interface, the challenges of teamwork and the production environment. Then, it moves to a step-by-step methodology that goes from the idea to the end application. Each part of this process will cover in detail a series of tools and methods to use while building production-ready shiny applications. Finally, the book will end with a series of approaches and advice about optimizations for production. Features Focused on practical matters: This book does not cover Shiny concepts, but practical tools and methodologies to use for production. Based on experience: This book is a formalization of several years of experience building Shiny applications. Original content: This book presents new methodologies and tooling, not just a review of what already exists. Engineering Production-Grade Shiny Apps covers medium to advanced content about Shiny, so it will help people that are already familiar with building apps with Shiny, and who want to go one step further.

The authors demonstrate that the imperfections in technology are related to the uncertainties in science described in the first volume.

This retelling of an ancient Jewish legend will capture a new audience with its powerful illustrations and timeless text.

Retold from traditional sources and accompanied by David Wisniewski's unique cut-paper illustrations, Golem is a dramatic tale of supernatural forces invoked to save an oppressed people. It also offers a thought-provoking look at the consequences of unleashing power beyond human control. The afterword discusses the legend of the golem and its roots in the history of the Jews. A Caldecott Medal Book.

In the very successful and widely discussed first volume in the Golem series, The Golem: What You Should Know about Science, Harry Collins and Trevor Pinch likened science to the Golem, a creature from Jewish mythology, a powerful creature which, while not evil, can be dangerous because it is clumsy. In this second volume, the authors now consider the Golem of technology. In a series of case studies they demonstrate that the imperfections in technology are related to the uncertainties in science described in the first volume. The case studies cover the role of the Patriot anti-missile missile in the Gulf War, the Challenger space shuttle explosion, tests of nuclear fuel flasks and of anti-misting kerosene as a fuel for airplanes, economic modeling, the question of the origins of oil, analysis of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, and the contribution of lay expertise to the analysis of treatments for AIDS.