To err is human. Yet most of us go through life assuming (and sometimes insisting) that we are right about nearly everything, from the origins of the universe to how to load the dishwasher. If being wrong is so natural, why are we all so bad at imagining that our beliefs could be mistaken, and why do we react to our errors with surprise, denial, defensiveness, and shame?

This practical resource provides engineers with a comprehensive understanding of error control coding, an essential and widely applied area in modern digital communications. The goal of error control coding is to encode information in such a way that even if the channel (or storage medium) introduces errors, the receiver can correct the errors and recover the original transmitted information. This book includes the most useful modern and classic codes, including block, Reed Solomon, convolutional, turbo, and LDPC codes. Professionals find clear guidance on code construction, decoding algorithms, and error correcting performances. Moreover, this unique book introduces computer simulations integrally to help readers master key concepts. Including a companion DVD with MATLAB programs and supported with over 540 equations, this hands-on reference provides an in-depth treatment of a wide range of practical implementation issues. DVD is included! It contains carefully designed MATLAB programs that practitioners can apply to their projects in the field.