Rating: 
Summary: Disappointing
Review: I'm not sure if it's my fault or the book's fault, i just couldn't seem to grasp what's it's all about. It keeps repeating the same thing by giving us numerous way to illustrate the idea of black and white versus gray. It's bought last year and i still haven't finished yet (if I'm to finish it), during that period i've already read like 50 of other bestsellers and they didn't disappoint me except this seemingly popular book. I'm still open to the possibility of my own fault, email me if you want to enlighten me.
Rating: 
Summary: Entertainment or education? Expectation setting is key.
Review: I've never met Bart Kosko, but reading his book I feel as if I may have. It has a very freely associative (almost conversational) style that leads me to think Kosko lecture material might've made a substantial contribution to this work. Possibly Kosko's many discussions of the Buddha vs. Aristotle reflect the dualistic nature of Kosko himself- part parodoxical sage, part analytical rationalist- both personality poles seem to be represented in many of the Koskoian connections put forth (what Kosko might term 'the part in the whole'). Other mentionables:1) This book is pretty light on the math, even for pop-sci material. References citied are more than adequate for in-depth investigations of this material, however.
2) Kosko's extraverted enthusiasim for his subject matter is evident and may come across as overly-excited and unstructured rambling.
3) Explanatory style is broadly associative; examples provided draw from a variety of disciplines (which is somewhat expected of someone with degrees in philosophy/econ/EE/math), although not necessarily with equal rigour. Some philosophical and historic parallels might be contended; these need not detract from larger ideas of the book as there are plenty of solid explanations to choose from. After my first foray into this subject material it seems that as a tool, fuzzy logic posseses tremendous utility for computer scientists and engineers. As a new paradigm of thought in mathematics or physics, fuzzy logic's importance is definately more... well, fuzzy. As with any new tool, the development of new practitional paradigms might be necessary for portions of its potential user community; this book should be up to that task. As mentioned I've never met Kosko, but would certainly like to after reading his book; he's obviously an intelligent and interesting guy. The entertainment value of its ideas and engaging presentational style earn this book a five... had it rested solely on it's educational merits and coherency would've probably garnered it a three.
Rating: 
Summary: Too much Bart, not enough Fuzzy Thinking
Review: Kosko describes the emerging frontier science of "fuzzy logic", making the argument that by simplifying machine operation and making it more like human thinking, this technology will allow very powerful machines to greatly enhance human life. Though sometimes overwhelmed by his fascination with himself (you have to see Mark Leyner's _Et Tu, Babe_ for a similar character), and sometimes overtaken with such bizarre fantasies as cryogenics (the hope for immortality by freezing your body so that someday, someone will be able to revive you), this book provides not only a useful description of fuzziness for the lay person, but some further context for the Aristotle vs. Tao debate opened in _Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance_. I think someone less fascinated by their own experiences could produce a better book; not once, for example, does someone like Richard Epstein have to tell us that he is exceptionally intelligent in order for us to understand that he is.
Rating:
Summary: Too much Bart, not enough Fuzzy Thinking
Review: Kosko describes the emerging frontier science of "fuzzy logic", making the argument that by simplifying machine operation and making it more like human thinking, this technology will allow very powerful machines to greatly enhance human life. Though sometimes overwhelmed by his fascination with himself (you have to see Mark Leyner's _Et Tu, Babe_ for a similar character), and sometimes overtaken with such bizarre fantasies as cryogenics (the hope for immortality by freezing your body so that someday, someone will be able to revive you), this book provides not only a useful description of fuzziness for the lay person, but some further context for the Aristotle vs. Tao debate opened in _Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance_. I think someone less fascinated by their own experiences could produce a better book; not once, for example, does someone like Richard Epstein have to tell us that he is exceptionally intelligent in order for us to understand that he is.
Rating:
Summary: New Perspective on Logic and Science
Review: Kosko struggles to articulate the upcoming paradigm shift from Aristotelian logic to multivalent Fuzzy Logic in the world of commercial technology. He does a good job of explaining the concepts behind the "new" field of fuzzy thinking, but has a hard time expressing the mathematics of it. To give him credit, though, he had to write a book understandable by the lay, and therefore couldn't get too in depth with his equations. But if you have any background in calculus, you'll have no trouble learning from the footnotes. Aside from the introduction to fuzzy logic, Kosko dips into his personal life to talk about his contributions to the field. I found his digressions extremely interesting and his views enlightening. It's important to take a lot of what he says with a grain of salt, however (he likes to wax philosophical perhaps more than is appropriate), but he is an amiable character nonetheless. Overall, this is a good read. It's informative not only scientifically, but philosophically as well. Kosko's style is engaging, although too heroic in some passages, and thorough. Because of its controversial nature, some readers may find it offensive. But if you don't mind entertaining alternative opinions and don't mind suspending tendencies for dismissing foreign ideas (which a lot of the people who gave this book bad reviews couldn't apparently handle), you'll enjoy this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Fuzzy Primer Makes The Grade
Review: Let me start with a little context. I'm a scientist/engineer, and I enjoy reading these popular science books as a primer to fields I'm not well versed in, but would like to know more about. For me, this book was less about philosophy and more about the history and underpinnings of fuzzy logic. From my viewpoint, this book fulfilled my objective. I now feel I have a sufficient introduction that I can dig deeper into this interesting topic. Will I? Absolutely. I believe there is much I can do with fuzzy logic in my day-to-day research, and I'm grateful to the author for making me aware of it. What about the philosophical aspects of the book? The author clearly feels that western culture is hostile to the notion of fuzzy logic. I'll extend on that a little further. I think western science is hostile to new ideas in general, not just fuzzy logic. But, I will agree that it is for the same reason he cites. Western science tends to see every new idea as true or false. Since new ideas tend to contradict old ideas which have achieved the status of true, then new ideas by their very nature are instantly regarded as false. Only with the passage of much time or with overwhelming evidence does an old paradigm die. Eastern culture, by contrast, is not so quick to reject a new idea since "shades of gray" is woven into the culture. No wonder, then, that fuzzy logic has emerged in the east in real products while we still debate whether fuzzy logic exists. Who should read this book? Definitely this is worthwhile for scientists and engineers of all stripes, but should be considered a must read for those involved in system engineering. Laypersons with a scientific interest will find this book to be accessible and will be rewarded for reading it. Others without a scientific interest may also find this book worthwhile since fuzzy logic is likely to become a technological force in the near future. Rating is 4 stars. Good read, but I save 5 stars only for great literature.
Rating: 
Summary: A kid's newfound excitement
Review: Mr. Bart's excitement in finding something which had been known to the world for thousands of years is amusing. But he saw it for himself fought to let other people know that he knows it, but that doesnot make him a seer of truth nor the Columbus of new ideas. The worst thing I found in this book is he tried to prove something right at the cost of proving something wrong. In the process he showed his immaturity of thoughts and he cannibalized what he tried to show the world, the peaceful coexistence of ideas in a middle-path. He fought a crusade of the east vs. the west, "logical" science vs. fuzzy science completely ruling out the emergence of a synergical consciousness. I disliked the book and donot think I would jump to read his other publications. He has a lot more to learn to sound convincing and needs to change his attitude towards knowledge.
Rating:
Summary: Is it Really a New Science?
Review: Regardless of how you answer the question of whether this is a new science or not, this book should be read if you are interested in:
· gaining some insight into how artificial intelligence can work.
· understanding how humans make decisions.
· how fuzzy logic can be applied to social issues.
· the difference between fuzzy logic and probability. I suggest that you ignore the anger, and black and white debate about whether or not this is a gray world. Also ignore the seemingly simple examples and strive to understand the underlying principles. This book is about how science can interpret and react to the gray world in which we live. Bart Kosko relives his struggle against the math and science community for recognition of fuzzy logic. Mr. Kosko gives an explanation of fuzzy logic and how it can be used in the world around us. He correlates fuzzy logic to biological and human systems. He also waxes philosophical at times, which one can either enjoy or ignore or a little of both. The claim of Mr. Kosko is that nothing is black and white, either/or, on or off. I see no reason to debate this all or nothing claim. There is much that is gray and much to be learned by focusing on fuzzy logic, particularly in bio-systems. I must admit that I did not understand the logic in some of Mr. Kosko's examples. Nor do I completely understand the difference between probability science and fuzzy logic. However, this book did give me a glimpse of how computers can be used to mimic human and other biological systems. In such systems, there are a myriad of variables and it is very complicated to set up decision trees and mathematical models. By using rules that allow a range of answers and allowing all these variables to be measured at the same time, a decision can be reached using fuzzy logic. One very interesting insight gained from this book is a comparison to a rule in quantum physics that states that the faster an objects moves, the less specific can one determine the location of the object. In looking at real world systems, the closer one looks at the system, the more fuzzy becomes the solution. I definitely see this whenever looking at our everyday life issues. The more one looks at the situation, the more complicated it becomes and the less sure is the solution.
Rating:
Summary: No in depth mathematical or practical info on fuzzy logic.
Review: The book constantly gives examples that the universe is fuzzy without giving details on how fuzzy logic is applied to practical applications. Very philosophical without mathematics, very fuzzy book.
Rating:
Summary: Scatty, but informative
Review: There really doesn't seem to be much doubt that the book wanders across the map. It trails through Buddhism, cryonics, methods of meditation, parking lots, and apples on its way towards attempting to present its theory of fuzzy logic. I can understand why somebody quite familiar with the theories involved might find it quite frustrating as discipline and rigor didn't seem to be two of its strong points. For me, however, it was a useful read. I have been curious about Data Mining and Neural Networks and the book was recommended to me as a place to begin with the concepts and what I found was that once I got the hang of the loopiness, it did a remarkably good job of bringing home some of the basic ideas to a math challenged person (me). I tend to be a suspicious person, so I wasn't convinced by some of his more grandious claims and I think I like Aristotle rather better than he does, but these points didn't prevent me from feeling like I got something out of the book. At the very least, I felt like I finished Fuzzy Thinking a bit better armed to dig further into the subject matter, which was really what I was trying to accomplish in the first place.
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