The Turk
by Standage, Tom
In the annals of man and machine, The Turk has to rank among the most astonishing stories. In 1769, Baron Von Kempelen, engineer to the Imperial Court in Vienna, was so unimpressed by the performance of a visiting conjurer that he boasted he could do better. He built a mechanical chess-playing mannequin, dressed like a Turk, capable of beating even the Court's best players. Over the next decades, the Turk toured the courts of Europe to tremendous acclaim. Amid the craze for automata that swept Europe during the late 18th and early 19th centuries, as the Industrial Revolution developed, it was one of the wonders of its time: Benjamin Franklin and Napoleon were among the luminaries who lost to it. Eventually, the Turk ended up in America, where it toured for many years before being destroyed by a fire in 1854. But was it a fraud? The colorful story of the Turk involves a diverse cast of Ludwig van Beethoven, Edgar Allen Poe, Charles Babbage and many others, and encompasses the history of magic, the rise of machines, the debate over mechanical reasoning, and the early days of artificial intelligence.
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The Turk: The Life And Times Of The Famous Eighteenth-Century Chess-Playing Machine
by Standage, Tom
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- 2002
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New York: Walker & Company. Hardcover. 2002. 1st Edition. Small 8vo 272pp . Fine in Fine DJ. B&W Illustrations. A Hungarian nobleman named Wolfgang von Kempelen construted a mechanical man, powered by clockwork, dressed in a Turkish costume, and capable of playing chess. His contraption was an instant success and enjoyed an illustrious career in Europe and America . Item Price
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The Turk : The Life and Times of the Famous 19th Century Chess-Playing Machine
by Tom Standage
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Walker & Company, 2002. Hardcover. Good. Pages can have notes/highlighting. Spine may show signs of wear. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less.Dust jacket quality is not guaranteed. Item Price
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The Turk: The Life and Times of the Famous 18th Century Chess Playing Machine
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The Turk: The Life and Times of the Famous Eighteenth-Century Chess-Playing Machine
by Standage, Tom
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The Turk: Inscribed
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U.S.A.: Walker Books, 2002. Book. Near Fine. Hardcover. Signed by Author(s). 1ST. Excellent Copy - Signed - For Bill Howe, With Best Wishes - By The Author On The Title Page. A First Edition, First Printing. Book Is In Near Fine Condition. Boards Are Clean, No Real Shelf Wear. Interior Is Clean And Legible. Not Remaindered. Dust Jacket Is… Read more about this item Item Price
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The Turk
by Standage, Tom
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New York: Walker and Co., 2002. Edition Not Specified. Very Good +/Very Good+ DJ. 12mo = 7-9". n/a. Printing Not Spec. Hardcover. Clean interior and exterior. No highlights or markings in text. Bright copy. Strong and tight binding. DJ is matte, clean, crisp. Item Price
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The Turk: The Life and Times of the Famous 18th Century Chess Playing Machine
by Standage, Tom
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Walker & Co./ Dept. Printing & Graphic Arts, Harvard College Library, Gordonsville, Virginia, U.S.A, 2002. 1st Edition. Hard Cover. Fine/Fine. 272pp. Illustrated. An investigation into the truth about "a mechanical man, fashioned from wood, powered by clockwork, dressed in a stylish Turkish costume - and capable of playing chess." KB4L Size: 8vo - over 7¾"… Read more about this item Item Price
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The Turk: The Life and Times of the Famous Eighteenth-Century Chess-Playing Machine
by Tom Standage
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The Turk: The Life and Times of the Famous 19th Century Chess-Playing Machine
by Standage, Tom
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The Turk: The Life and Times of the Famous Eighteenth-Century Chess-Playing Machine
by Standage, Tom
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The Turk : The Life and Times of the Famous 19th Century Chess-Playing Machine
by Standage, Tom
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The Turk: The Life and Times of the Famous Eighteenth-Century Chess-Playing Machine
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by Standage, Tom
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The Turk: The Life and Times of the Famous Eighteenth-Century Chess-Playing Machine
by Standage, Tom
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The Turk: The Life and Times of the Famous Eighteenth-Century Chess-Playing Machine
by Standage, Tom
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The Turk; the life and Times of the famous Eighteenth-Century Chess-Playing MacHine
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The Turk : The Life and Times of the Famous Eighteenth-Century Chess-Playing Machine
by Standage, Tom
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The Turk: The Life and Times of the Famous Eighteenth-Century Chess-Playing Machine
by Standage, Tom
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- 2003-08-05
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The Turk: The Life and Times of the Famous Eighteenth-Century Chess-Playing Machine
by Standage, Tom
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The Turk: The Life and Times of the Famous Eighteenth-Century Chess-Playing Machine
by Tom Standage
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- 2002-04-01
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