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Part V

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The Digital Revolution

When this part of the book made its debut in the 1993 edition, it was titled "Coding Information." In the 2003 edition, the title was changed to "The Digital Revolution." Since none of the mathematics in this part had changed, why was the title changed? Here is a partial list of reasons: broadband, wireless Internet connections, Google, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, eBay, Amazon, smart phones, text messages, Tumblr, Instagram, Snapfish, blogs, iTunes, global position satellites, e-Books, digital cameras, and online dating sites.

Little did we know in 2003 that within another decade, the digital revolution would spawn social, political, and commercial revolutions as well. In this part of the book, we examine some of the mathematics that made these revolutions possible.