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The World According to Physics
Quantum physicist, New York Times bestselling author, and BBC host Jim Al-Khalili offers a fascinating and illuminating look at what physics reveals about the world
Shining a light on the most profound insights revealed by modern physics, Jim Al-Khalili invites us all to understand what this crucially important science tells us about the universe and the nature of reality itself.
Al-Khalili begins by introducing the fundamental concepts of space, time, energy, and matter, and then describes the three pillars of modern physics--quantum theory, relativity, and thermodynamics--showing how all three must come together if we are ever to have a full understanding of reality. Using wonderful examples and thought-provoking analogies, Al-Khalili illuminates the physics of the extreme cosmic and quantum scales, the speculative frontiers of the field, and the physics that underpins our everyday experiences and technologies, bringing the reader up to speed with the biggest ideas in physics in just a few sittings. Physics is revealed as an intrepid human quest for ever more foundational principles that accurately explain the natural world we see around us, an undertaking guided by core values such as honesty and doubt. The knowledge discovered by physics both empowers and humbles us, and still, physics continues to delve valiantly into the unknown.
Making even the most enigmatic scientific ideas accessible and captivating, this deeply insightful book illuminates why physics matters to everyone and calls one and all to share in the profound adventure of seeking truth in the world around us.
Shining a light on the most profound insights revealed by modern physics, Jim Al-Khalili invites us all to understand what this crucially important science tells us about the universe and the nature of reality itself.
Al-Khalili begins by introducing the fundamental concepts of space, time, energy, and matter, and then describes the three pillars of modern physics--quantum theory, relativity, and thermodynamics--showing how all three must come together if we are ever to have a full understanding of reality. Using wonderful examples and thought-provoking analogies, Al-Khalili illuminates the physics of the extreme cosmic and quantum scales, the speculative frontiers of the field, and the physics that underpins our everyday experiences and technologies, bringing the reader up to speed with the biggest ideas in physics in just a few sittings. Physics is revealed as an intrepid human quest for ever more foundational principles that accurately explain the natural world we see around us, an undertaking guided by core values such as honesty and doubt. The knowledge discovered by physics both empowers and humbles us, and still, physics continues to delve valiantly into the unknown.
Making even the most enigmatic scientific ideas accessible and captivating, this deeply insightful book illuminates why physics matters to everyone and calls one and all to share in the profound adventure of seeking truth in the world around us.
304 pages, Hardcover
First published March 1, 2020
About the author
Jim Al-Khalili
36 books690 followersJameel Sadik "Jim" Al-Khalili is an Iraqi-British theoretical physicist, author and broadcaster. He is professor of theoretical physics and chair in the public engagement in science at the University of Surrey. He is a regular broadcaster and presenter of science programmes on BBC radio and television, and a frequent commentator about science in other British media.
In 2014, Al-Khalili was named as a RISE (Recognising Inspirational Scientists and Engineers) leader by the UK's Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC). He was President of Humanists UK between January 2013 and January 2016.
In 2014, Al-Khalili was named as a RISE (Recognising Inspirational Scientists and Engineers) leader by the UK's Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC). He was President of Humanists UK between January 2013 and January 2016.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 219 reviews
October 1, 2020
This deserves special mention among popular science intro to physics books. Jim Al-Khalili's writing is as beautiful as it is easy to understand. This book is perfect for someone with little to no knowledge of physics who is curious about the world and universe around them. It's also perfect for someone who already knows a bit about physics but wants that shot of awe that can be gotten when a really talented writer tackles a familiar topic. This book is particularly relevant to anyone contemplating studying just about any aspect of physics.
Have you ever wanted an extremely short summary of the major ideas in physics without having to go into the finer details? Somehow Al-Khalili has produced a book that gives very short summaries that highlight the mind-blowing features of physics in a manner that gives the reader just enough detail to understand physics but not a single detail more than needed, so that the reader won't drift off and get lost in those details. I actually do not think, to date, I have read such concise summaries of the topics covered in this book. The short summaries serve to paint a grand and spectacular portrait of reality. The only down side of this, if you can consider it a downside is that when you find a topic that fascinates you, you will have to read other books for a more in depth description of the topic.
Below are some topics covered in this book and suggestions of other books that delve deeper into those topics:
_________
Al-Khalili wrote a really nice summary of the Copenhagen interpretation but if you want to understand that better, you can read What is Real by Adam Becker.
If you want to learn more about gravitational waves, you will have to pick up a copy of Govert Schilling's beautiful book Ripples in Spacetime.
Al-Khalili will outline the major differences between inflation and bubble universes as well as loop quantum gravity, string theory, and M -theory. But you will have to read pop sci books by Brian Greene or Carlo Rovelli (Reality is Not What it Seems) to understand more.
If Kaluza-Klein theory piques your interest, you might have to wade through a Lisa Randall book to wrap your mind around tiny curled up dimensions.
Al-Khalili's short explanation of information (information and black holes or information and life) was a really nice primer but if you want to delve deeper, I recommend Paul Davies, the Demon in the Machine or Eric Smith's Origins of Nature for more on information theory and the emergence of life or Benjamin Schumacher's two lecture series on Gravity and Science of Information for more on information and black holes or information theory in general.
For general relativity, I would highly recommend Pedro Ferreira's The Perfect Theory.
Al-Khalili himself has authored plenty of books that delve deeply into the topics he covered in this compilation. No matter who you read, I suggest starting with this book which provides that perfect introduction to all of these topics and more.
_____________
I really enjoyed his very short section on life and physics. Al-Khalili co-authored a 2014 book Johnjoe McFadden titled Life on the Edge. It's been too long since I read that book but it almost felt to me as if maybe he has newer or different ideas than the ones of focus in his previous book. I would really love it if he wrote a current book on physics and life. He almost apologized for physics dipping their toes in the water or first life research. I think this is the *only* way we will come to truly understand how life emerged.
Amusingly, Al-Khalili devoted such little space to the concept of using beauty as a guide to find the equations that explain the universe, and yet, he said almost everything that needed to be said about, imo.
I cannot say enough good things about this primer on modern physics. If you have ever had trouble understanding other authors but still want to understand the overall picture of the nature of reality itself, I would definitely give Al-Khalili's The World According to Physics a try. Absolutely beautiful book. If you get the audio version, Al-Khalili himself narrates, which makes it all the better.
Update: It took me a while to find the video linked below, but when i was reading this book, I kept thinking of this video and thought it would be good to include in the review for anyone still struggling with the idea of infinite mass.
At one point in this book, Al-Khalili explained how, as objects approach the speed of light, more energy goes into their mass than into making them go faster. Infinite mass is usually a hard concept for people who have not taken physics courses. Since that section was so short, I think a lot of novices might need to visualize the concept more than what this book can offer. I remember the video below as giving one of the best explanations of this concept. It repeats the same info included in the book --
how the bending of spacetime, the movement of magnetic fields through spacetime, and importantly the limits on the speed of an object in space, can result in energy going into the mass of an object instead of going into its making the object go faster -- but creates more of a visual since it's in lecture form.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A5eaZ...
Have you ever wanted an extremely short summary of the major ideas in physics without having to go into the finer details? Somehow Al-Khalili has produced a book that gives very short summaries that highlight the mind-blowing features of physics in a manner that gives the reader just enough detail to understand physics but not a single detail more than needed, so that the reader won't drift off and get lost in those details. I actually do not think, to date, I have read such concise summaries of the topics covered in this book. The short summaries serve to paint a grand and spectacular portrait of reality. The only down side of this, if you can consider it a downside is that when you find a topic that fascinates you, you will have to read other books for a more in depth description of the topic.
Below are some topics covered in this book and suggestions of other books that delve deeper into those topics:
_________
Al-Khalili wrote a really nice summary of the Copenhagen interpretation but if you want to understand that better, you can read What is Real by Adam Becker.
If you want to learn more about gravitational waves, you will have to pick up a copy of Govert Schilling's beautiful book Ripples in Spacetime.
Al-Khalili will outline the major differences between inflation and bubble universes as well as loop quantum gravity, string theory, and M -theory. But you will have to read pop sci books by Brian Greene or Carlo Rovelli (Reality is Not What it Seems) to understand more.
If Kaluza-Klein theory piques your interest, you might have to wade through a Lisa Randall book to wrap your mind around tiny curled up dimensions.
Al-Khalili's short explanation of information (information and black holes or information and life) was a really nice primer but if you want to delve deeper, I recommend Paul Davies, the Demon in the Machine or Eric Smith's Origins of Nature for more on information theory and the emergence of life or Benjamin Schumacher's two lecture series on Gravity and Science of Information for more on information and black holes or information theory in general.
For general relativity, I would highly recommend Pedro Ferreira's The Perfect Theory.
Al-Khalili himself has authored plenty of books that delve deeply into the topics he covered in this compilation. No matter who you read, I suggest starting with this book which provides that perfect introduction to all of these topics and more.
_____________
I really enjoyed his very short section on life and physics. Al-Khalili co-authored a 2014 book Johnjoe McFadden titled Life on the Edge. It's been too long since I read that book but it almost felt to me as if maybe he has newer or different ideas than the ones of focus in his previous book. I would really love it if he wrote a current book on physics and life. He almost apologized for physics dipping their toes in the water or first life research. I think this is the *only* way we will come to truly understand how life emerged.
Amusingly, Al-Khalili devoted such little space to the concept of using beauty as a guide to find the equations that explain the universe, and yet, he said almost everything that needed to be said about, imo.
I cannot say enough good things about this primer on modern physics. If you have ever had trouble understanding other authors but still want to understand the overall picture of the nature of reality itself, I would definitely give Al-Khalili's The World According to Physics a try. Absolutely beautiful book. If you get the audio version, Al-Khalili himself narrates, which makes it all the better.
Update: It took me a while to find the video linked below, but when i was reading this book, I kept thinking of this video and thought it would be good to include in the review for anyone still struggling with the idea of infinite mass.
At one point in this book, Al-Khalili explained how, as objects approach the speed of light, more energy goes into their mass than into making them go faster. Infinite mass is usually a hard concept for people who have not taken physics courses. Since that section was so short, I think a lot of novices might need to visualize the concept more than what this book can offer. I remember the video below as giving one of the best explanations of this concept. It repeats the same info included in the book --
how the bending of spacetime, the movement of magnetic fields through spacetime, and importantly the limits on the speed of an object in space, can result in energy going into the mass of an object instead of going into its making the object go faster -- but creates more of a visual since it's in lecture form.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A5eaZ...
March 10, 2020
There is a temptation on seeing this book to think it's another one of those physics titles that is thin on content, so they put it in an odd format small hardback and hope to win over those who don't usually buy science books. But that couldn't be further from the truth. In Jim Al-Khalili's The World According to Physics, we've got the best beginners' overview of what physics is all about that I've ever had the pleasure to read.
The language is straightforward and approachable. Rather than take the more common historical approach that builds up physics the way it was discovered, Al-Khalili starts with the 'three pillars' of physics: relativity, quantum theory and thermodynamics. In simple language with never an equation nor even a diagram in sight, the book lays out what physics is all about, what it has achieved and what it still needs to do.
That bit about no diagrams is an important indicator of how approachable the text is. Personally, I'm not very visual, but often a diagram is necessary to make an obscure aspect of physics comprehensible - but perhaps because of his experience as a radio presenter, Al-Khalili's use of words is precise and informative enough to fill the reader in with hardly a moment where you have to go back and read it again because it's not making sense (the classic moment where diagrams tend to be inserted).
This isn't a cold, impersonal approach - not only do we get a strong feeling for Al-Khalili's enthusiasm, we also see his personal biases, which he mostly makes clear. For example, although he doesn't baffle the reader too much with interpretations of quantum physics, he does admit it's one of his driving interests and makes the case that the 'shut up and calculate' approach isn't really proper science in his mind, because the scientist wants to know 'Why?' and 'How?'
Just occasionally the author does fall for the professional scientist's trap of assuming a little too much knowledge in his audience. This is very much a book for the kind of reader who, up to now, probably hasn't taken any interest in physics. So it might be a little too much to assume the reader knows what interference is when explaining why light was thought to be a wave. But such moments are rare. The only other slight moan I'd have is that the book is very one-sided on dark matter, pointing out where modified gravity theories don't match reality as well as dark matter, but omitting to say that there are also plenty of examples where modified gravity is closer to observation.
At the end of the book, Al-Khalili presents a defence of blue sky physics, making the sound point that plenty of work in the past that had no obvious application would later prove valuable, though he could have been more balanced in presenting the reasonable view that theoreticians who spend their working life not only dealing with extremely speculative topics, but those that don't even apply to the actual universe are really not doing science at all.
It's a bit of an odd-looking book - my copy, incidentally is royal blue, not the purple of the illustration - this is not helped by the blurb, which is pasted to the inner front cover as if someone forgot to include it and added it at the last minute. However, I wouldn't hesitate to say that if someone with no background in science asked for an introduction to what physics is all about I would say run, don't walk, to the bookshop and pick up a copy of The World According to Physics. It's that good.
The language is straightforward and approachable. Rather than take the more common historical approach that builds up physics the way it was discovered, Al-Khalili starts with the 'three pillars' of physics: relativity, quantum theory and thermodynamics. In simple language with never an equation nor even a diagram in sight, the book lays out what physics is all about, what it has achieved and what it still needs to do.
That bit about no diagrams is an important indicator of how approachable the text is. Personally, I'm not very visual, but often a diagram is necessary to make an obscure aspect of physics comprehensible - but perhaps because of his experience as a radio presenter, Al-Khalili's use of words is precise and informative enough to fill the reader in with hardly a moment where you have to go back and read it again because it's not making sense (the classic moment where diagrams tend to be inserted).
This isn't a cold, impersonal approach - not only do we get a strong feeling for Al-Khalili's enthusiasm, we also see his personal biases, which he mostly makes clear. For example, although he doesn't baffle the reader too much with interpretations of quantum physics, he does admit it's one of his driving interests and makes the case that the 'shut up and calculate' approach isn't really proper science in his mind, because the scientist wants to know 'Why?' and 'How?'
Just occasionally the author does fall for the professional scientist's trap of assuming a little too much knowledge in his audience. This is very much a book for the kind of reader who, up to now, probably hasn't taken any interest in physics. So it might be a little too much to assume the reader knows what interference is when explaining why light was thought to be a wave. But such moments are rare. The only other slight moan I'd have is that the book is very one-sided on dark matter, pointing out where modified gravity theories don't match reality as well as dark matter, but omitting to say that there are also plenty of examples where modified gravity is closer to observation.
At the end of the book, Al-Khalili presents a defence of blue sky physics, making the sound point that plenty of work in the past that had no obvious application would later prove valuable, though he could have been more balanced in presenting the reasonable view that theoreticians who spend their working life not only dealing with extremely speculative topics, but those that don't even apply to the actual universe are really not doing science at all.
It's a bit of an odd-looking book - my copy, incidentally is royal blue, not the purple of the illustration - this is not helped by the blurb, which is pasted to the inner front cover as if someone forgot to include it and added it at the last minute. However, I wouldn't hesitate to say that if someone with no background in science asked for an introduction to what physics is all about I would say run, don't walk, to the bookshop and pick up a copy of The World According to Physics. It's that good.
January 4, 2024
Primele două capitole trebuie citite cu atenție. Autorul prezintă "trei concepte care nu le sunt întotdeauna predate studenților la fizică, dar ar trebui fără îndoială să le fie predate". Acestea sunt:
-universalitatea legilor
-simetria; legile fizicii rămân aceleași atunci când o modificare e aplicată în mod egal pretutindeni.
-reducționismul; întregul nu-i decât suma părților.
Fiecare concept are propriile limitări. De pildă, lumea se comportă foarte diferit la scări diferite. La scara planetelor, stelelor, galaxiilor, gravitația domină totul, dar nu joacă niciun rol dedectabil la scară atomică, acolo unde domină celelalte forțe.
Restul cărții este dedicat celor trei piloane funadamentale ale fizicii: termodinamica, relativitatea și mecanica cuantică.
-universalitatea legilor
-simetria; legile fizicii rămân aceleași atunci când o modificare e aplicată în mod egal pretutindeni.
-reducționismul; întregul nu-i decât suma părților.
Fiecare concept are propriile limitări. De pildă, lumea se comportă foarte diferit la scări diferite. La scara planetelor, stelelor, galaxiilor, gravitația domină totul, dar nu joacă niciun rol dedectabil la scară atomică, acolo unde domină celelalte forțe.
Restul cărții este dedicat celor trei piloane funadamentale ale fizicii: termodinamica, relativitatea și mecanica cuantică.
April 5, 2021
Being a big fan of Jim Al-Khalili's radio programme/podcast “The Life Scientific", I decided to read The World According to Physics. From the preface to the book's end you can feel the author's enthusiasm. As he says, "This book is an ode to physics". He wants to inspire other people with physics, just as he was inspired when he first started learning about it as a teenager.
This book takes a different route to the one that almost every other popular science book seems to take these days. Instead of starting with the usual historical approach, from the ancient greeks to modern physics, it begins with an overview of the three pillars of physics: relativity, quantum mechanics and thermodynamics. It then moves on to possible theories of unification and the future of physics, presenting the biggest challenges of present day physics. The last chapters highlight both the impact physics has on our daily lives and the role that the scientific method/thinking could have on our society if it was more widely used.
Jim Al-Khalili tries to cover almost everything about modern physics, but being a small book, it’s understandably not very comprehensive. I see this book as being a sort of glimpse of modern physics. It’s supposed to captivate the reader to read more about physics. It deals with what physicists know and what they don’t know, while exemplifying how physicists can be sure that they’re right about what they do know. It presents some of the most up to date ideas in physics. And it gets into some controversial topics here and there, when Jim Al-Khalili expresses his personal opinions. Summing-up, this book presents an assessment of modern physics.
If you already have some knowledge of modern physics, as is my case, then much of the book won’t come out as something new. Nevertheless, it was a pleasure to read The World According to Physics. It’s well-written, captivating and succeeds in the great task of reviewing a large part of physics. For people who want to get an insight or an introduction into the fascinating world of physics, this book represents a very clear description and I can’t recommend it enough.
This book takes a different route to the one that almost every other popular science book seems to take these days. Instead of starting with the usual historical approach, from the ancient greeks to modern physics, it begins with an overview of the three pillars of physics: relativity, quantum mechanics and thermodynamics. It then moves on to possible theories of unification and the future of physics, presenting the biggest challenges of present day physics. The last chapters highlight both the impact physics has on our daily lives and the role that the scientific method/thinking could have on our society if it was more widely used.
Jim Al-Khalili tries to cover almost everything about modern physics, but being a small book, it’s understandably not very comprehensive. I see this book as being a sort of glimpse of modern physics. It’s supposed to captivate the reader to read more about physics. It deals with what physicists know and what they don’t know, while exemplifying how physicists can be sure that they’re right about what they do know. It presents some of the most up to date ideas in physics. And it gets into some controversial topics here and there, when Jim Al-Khalili expresses his personal opinions. Summing-up, this book presents an assessment of modern physics.
If you already have some knowledge of modern physics, as is my case, then much of the book won’t come out as something new. Nevertheless, it was a pleasure to read The World According to Physics. It’s well-written, captivating and succeeds in the great task of reviewing a large part of physics. For people who want to get an insight or an introduction into the fascinating world of physics, this book represents a very clear description and I can’t recommend it enough.
April 15, 2021
The fundamental question that lingers after reading this book: should school textbooks focus on what is know or on what is yet unknown?
December 21, 2022
This was my first contact with Jim Al-Khalili and I can honestly say that I like his style: talented in explaining difficult concepts for the average person (me), not afraid to get into controversies, honest with the his, other scientists and physics shortcomings.
This is just a short introduction into modern physics, with much of the text being dedicated to the explaining of gravity, quantum mechanics, thermodynamics and physics search for the unifying theory and why this is important.
Al-Khalili acknowledges that what he wrote in this is not enough for one to get familiar with such a large subject like modern physics is, so, at the end of the book, he makes a list of other works if anyone is interesting in getting to know more about the above mentioned topics.
I will keep an eye on Mr. Al-Khalili in the future!
This is just a short introduction into modern physics, with much of the text being dedicated to the explaining of gravity, quantum mechanics, thermodynamics and physics search for the unifying theory and why this is important.
Al-Khalili acknowledges that what he wrote in this is not enough for one to get familiar with such a large subject like modern physics is, so, at the end of the book, he makes a list of other works if anyone is interesting in getting to know more about the above mentioned topics.
I will keep an eye on Mr. Al-Khalili in the future!
July 10, 2021
Красива наука обяснява света около ни: http://knigolandia.info/book-review/k...
Ал-Халили с много търпение и минимум формули (при Хокинг ли беше шегата, че всяка формула в книга намалява аудиторията ѝ наполовина?) проследява съвременното ни разбиране за света, говори кратко и в общи линии ясно за мащаби, пространство и време, енергия и материя, квантовия свят, термодинамиката �� стрелата на времето, обединението на днес несъвместимите основни физични теории, говори за бъдещето на физиката, както и за мен най-интересната глава: ползата от физиката. Дори това бегло изброяване, основано върху съдържанието, показва какъв обхват има изложението на автора, а думите му обемат само малко над 200 страници, така че няма от какво да се плашите.
Издателство Дамян Яков
http://knigolandia.info/book-review/k...
Ал-Халили с много търпение и минимум формули (при Хокинг ли беше шегата, че всяка формула в книга намалява аудиторията ѝ наполовина?) проследява съвременното ни разбиране за света, говори кратко и в общи линии ясно за мащаби, пространство и време, енергия и материя, квантовия свят, термодинамиката �� стрелата на времето, обединението на днес несъвместимите основни физични теории, говори за бъдещето на физиката, както и за мен най-интересната глава: ползата от физиката. Дори това бегло изброяване, основано върху съдържанието, показва какъв обхват има изложението на автора, а думите му обемат само малко над 200 страници, така че няма от какво да се плашите.
Издателство Дамян Яков
http://knigolandia.info/book-review/k...
November 21, 2021
الكتابة العلمية مهمة صعبة جدا، خاصة فيما يتعلق بافكار مجردة ورياضية، تقديمها للقارئ بدون معادلات عملية لا يتقنها الكثيرين..
طالما ابهرنا جيم الخليلي بمحتوى الوثائقيات التي عمل عليها كتابة وتقديما، انه عالِم متقن لفن التأليف العلمي..
الكتاب يستعرض اهم أركان الفيزياء بمشهدها الحالي بسلاسة وتفاصيل ضرورية، الكتاب رشيق ومرتب جدا ومفهوم وغير مرهق.. ويحوي الكثير من الدهشة...
لا أعتقد أن هناك نظارة أبهى من نظارة الفيزياء♥️
طالما ابهرنا جيم الخليلي بمحتوى الوثائقيات التي عمل عليها كتابة وتقديما، انه عالِم متقن لفن التأليف العلمي..
الكتاب يستعرض اهم أركان الفيزياء بمشهدها الحالي بسلاسة وتفاصيل ضرورية، الكتاب رشيق ومرتب جدا ومفهوم وغير مرهق.. ويحوي الكثير من الدهشة...
لا أعتقد أن هناك نظارة أبهى من نظارة الفيزياء♥️
August 18, 2020
[disclosure: I am a colleague of the author and I read a draft for comment before its final publication. I am reviewing the published version here]
I suppose that I am not the target audience for this book: I'm a physics professor and spend my days thinking about the physical theories that govern the Univerise, and while I would have eagerly sought out this book as a teenager, now I tend not to feel I have the time to read such popular accounts of what is my day job.
I'm glad I read it, though. It reminded me of the excitement of the whole human intellectual endeavour, and the particular excitement of the whole of physics which I can sometimes forget when I am deep down some hole studying just a tiny part of a tiny part of it. To be reminded of the beauty of the Universe and of the methods we have developed to think about it, all written with passion and eloquence, is affirming and exciting.
As someone, too, who does mostly think about very specific aspects of physics, I even learned some things, particularly about the latest ideas in the physical description of time, information, the nature of the Universe... so this is not just a re-hash of the long-understood ideas that one can find in some popular physics books. If you read and mostly understand this book, you'll have a good overview of what the title promises.
I suppose that I am not the target audience for this book: I'm a physics professor and spend my days thinking about the physical theories that govern the Univerise, and while I would have eagerly sought out this book as a teenager, now I tend not to feel I have the time to read such popular accounts of what is my day job.
I'm glad I read it, though. It reminded me of the excitement of the whole human intellectual endeavour, and the particular excitement of the whole of physics which I can sometimes forget when I am deep down some hole studying just a tiny part of a tiny part of it. To be reminded of the beauty of the Universe and of the methods we have developed to think about it, all written with passion and eloquence, is affirming and exciting.
As someone, too, who does mostly think about very specific aspects of physics, I even learned some things, particularly about the latest ideas in the physical description of time, information, the nature of the Universe... so this is not just a re-hash of the long-understood ideas that one can find in some popular physics books. If you read and mostly understand this book, you'll have a good overview of what the title promises.
August 13, 2020
This is an excellent book full of inspiring ideas. Jim Al- Khalili is a physicist and a wonderful science popularizer. I'd read a few books written by him already. He tends to explain complex concepts in science in a very lucid and accessible way.
This book is all about physics; why it matters and how it was developed. The first chapter is about the awe of understanding. Why do we have this burning curiosity to learn how things work? Why did we create myths in the beginning? How did science replace these myths? Through rational analysis and careful observation—a painstaking process of testing and building up scientific evidence, rather than accepting stories and explanations with blind faith—we can now claim with a high degree of confidence that we know quite a lot about our universe. We can also now say with confidence that what mysteries remain need not be attributed to the supernatural. They are phenomena we have yet to understand—and which we hopefully will understand one day through reason, rational enquiry, and, yes … physics.
The second chapter is about scales. The world of physics only really came of age in the seventeenth century, thanks to a large extent to the invention of the two most important instruments in all of science: the telescope and the microscope. If we were only able to understand the world we can see with our naked eyes, then physics would not have got very far. once the microscope and the telescope were invented, they opened up windows on the world that dramatically increased our understanding, magnifying the very small and bringing closer the very far away.
Chapter three covers the enigma of space and time. Space and time are the substrates in which all events take place. However, such concepts are slippery. Common sense tells us that space and time should be in place from the start—that space is where events happen and the laws of physics are acted out, while the inexorable passage of time is, well, just is. But, is our commonsense view of space and time right? An important lesson physicists must learn is to not always trust common sense. After all, common sense tells us that the Earth is flat, but even the Ancient Greeks understood that its sheer size meant we could not easily discern its curvature, but that there were simple experiments they could perform to prove that it was in fact a sphere. Similarly, everyday experience tells us that light has the properties of a wave and therefore cannot also behave as though it were made up of a stream of individual particles.
some of the most important breakthroughs in physics have been the results of the logical conclusions drawn not from real experiments or observations, but from ‘thought experiments’, whereby the physicist considers some hypothesis and devises an imaginary experiment that can test its consequences. Some of the most famous thought experiments were conducted by Einstein and helped him develop his theories of relativity. Once his theories were fully developed of course they could be tested in real laboratory experiments.
Chapter four deals with energy and matter. In physics, the concept of energy indicates the capacity to do work; thus, the more energy something has, the more it is able to do, whether that ‘doing’ means moving matter from one place to another, heating it up, or just storing the energy for later use. The law of conservation of energy states that the total amount of energy in the universe is constant. The conservation of energy also tells us that perpetual motion machines are impossible, since energy cannot be continually conjured up from nowhere. In everyday language, mass is often taken to mean the same thing as weight. This is fine on Earth since the two quantities are proportional to each other: if you double a body’s mass you will also double its weight. But out in empty space, a body has no weight, even though its mass stays the same.
In chapter five we enter the weird world of quantum mechanics. An electron is in a superposition. It has a wave function. Based on Heisenberg's uncertainty principle, we cannot measure the velocity and position of a particle at the same time.
Chapter six is about thermodynamics and the arrow of time. when the system reaches equilibrium, its entropy is maximised, and the energy it contains is useless. So, in a sense, it is not energy that is needed to make the world go around, it is low entropy. If everything were in a state of equilibrium, nothing would happen. We need a system to be in a state of low entropy, far from equilibrium, to force energy to change from one form to another—in other words, to do work. Life is an example of a system that can maintain itself in a state of low entropy.
In chapter seven, the author tries to explain the roads to unification. And basically why physicists have this urge to unify different concepts in physics.
Chapter eight is about some of the problems physicists are dealing with and why nothing interesting has happened for a while in physics. We haven't been surprised for a long time. We haven't had revolutionary discoveries like that or Einstein.
Chapter nine is about the usefulness of physics. GPS systems are now such an integral part of our lives that we could not live without them. Not only do we take for granted the fact that we no longer get lost in unfamiliar parts of the world, but GPS has allowed us to see our planet from above and map it with remarkable detail, enabling us to study the way the Earth’s climate is changing, or to predict natural phenomena and help with disaster relief. an understanding of the quantum rules that explain how electrons behave in semiconductor materials like silicon has laid the foundation of our technological world. Without an understanding of semiconductors, we would not have developed the transistor and, later, the microchip and the computer.
And finally, chapter ten teaches you how to think like a physicist. Unlike politicians, physicists have no fear of admitting that they're wrong. Being wrong means there are more interesting things waiting to be discovered. People are often shocked to hear that many physicists—other than those who had dedicated years of their lives to building the Large Hadron Collider—were hoping that the Higgs boson would not be found. You see, not finding the Higgs would have meant that there really was something wrong with the Standard Model, opening the door to exciting new physics. Merely ticking a box to confirm something we already suspect to be true is just not as exciting as finding out that one needs to pursue hitherto unexplored paths of research.
This book is all about physics; why it matters and how it was developed. The first chapter is about the awe of understanding. Why do we have this burning curiosity to learn how things work? Why did we create myths in the beginning? How did science replace these myths? Through rational analysis and careful observation—a painstaking process of testing and building up scientific evidence, rather than accepting stories and explanations with blind faith—we can now claim with a high degree of confidence that we know quite a lot about our universe. We can also now say with confidence that what mysteries remain need not be attributed to the supernatural. They are phenomena we have yet to understand—and which we hopefully will understand one day through reason, rational enquiry, and, yes … physics.
The second chapter is about scales. The world of physics only really came of age in the seventeenth century, thanks to a large extent to the invention of the two most important instruments in all of science: the telescope and the microscope. If we were only able to understand the world we can see with our naked eyes, then physics would not have got very far. once the microscope and the telescope were invented, they opened up windows on the world that dramatically increased our understanding, magnifying the very small and bringing closer the very far away.
Chapter three covers the enigma of space and time. Space and time are the substrates in which all events take place. However, such concepts are slippery. Common sense tells us that space and time should be in place from the start—that space is where events happen and the laws of physics are acted out, while the inexorable passage of time is, well, just is. But, is our commonsense view of space and time right? An important lesson physicists must learn is to not always trust common sense. After all, common sense tells us that the Earth is flat, but even the Ancient Greeks understood that its sheer size meant we could not easily discern its curvature, but that there were simple experiments they could perform to prove that it was in fact a sphere. Similarly, everyday experience tells us that light has the properties of a wave and therefore cannot also behave as though it were made up of a stream of individual particles.
some of the most important breakthroughs in physics have been the results of the logical conclusions drawn not from real experiments or observations, but from ‘thought experiments’, whereby the physicist considers some hypothesis and devises an imaginary experiment that can test its consequences. Some of the most famous thought experiments were conducted by Einstein and helped him develop his theories of relativity. Once his theories were fully developed of course they could be tested in real laboratory experiments.
Chapter four deals with energy and matter. In physics, the concept of energy indicates the capacity to do work; thus, the more energy something has, the more it is able to do, whether that ‘doing’ means moving matter from one place to another, heating it up, or just storing the energy for later use. The law of conservation of energy states that the total amount of energy in the universe is constant. The conservation of energy also tells us that perpetual motion machines are impossible, since energy cannot be continually conjured up from nowhere. In everyday language, mass is often taken to mean the same thing as weight. This is fine on Earth since the two quantities are proportional to each other: if you double a body’s mass you will also double its weight. But out in empty space, a body has no weight, even though its mass stays the same.
In chapter five we enter the weird world of quantum mechanics. An electron is in a superposition. It has a wave function. Based on Heisenberg's uncertainty principle, we cannot measure the velocity and position of a particle at the same time.
Chapter six is about thermodynamics and the arrow of time. when the system reaches equilibrium, its entropy is maximised, and the energy it contains is useless. So, in a sense, it is not energy that is needed to make the world go around, it is low entropy. If everything were in a state of equilibrium, nothing would happen. We need a system to be in a state of low entropy, far from equilibrium, to force energy to change from one form to another—in other words, to do work. Life is an example of a system that can maintain itself in a state of low entropy.
In chapter seven, the author tries to explain the roads to unification. And basically why physicists have this urge to unify different concepts in physics.
Chapter eight is about some of the problems physicists are dealing with and why nothing interesting has happened for a while in physics. We haven't been surprised for a long time. We haven't had revolutionary discoveries like that or Einstein.
Chapter nine is about the usefulness of physics. GPS systems are now such an integral part of our lives that we could not live without them. Not only do we take for granted the fact that we no longer get lost in unfamiliar parts of the world, but GPS has allowed us to see our planet from above and map it with remarkable detail, enabling us to study the way the Earth’s climate is changing, or to predict natural phenomena and help with disaster relief. an understanding of the quantum rules that explain how electrons behave in semiconductor materials like silicon has laid the foundation of our technological world. Without an understanding of semiconductors, we would not have developed the transistor and, later, the microchip and the computer.
And finally, chapter ten teaches you how to think like a physicist. Unlike politicians, physicists have no fear of admitting that they're wrong. Being wrong means there are more interesting things waiting to be discovered. People are often shocked to hear that many physicists—other than those who had dedicated years of their lives to building the Large Hadron Collider—were hoping that the Higgs boson would not be found. You see, not finding the Higgs would have meant that there really was something wrong with the Standard Model, opening the door to exciting new physics. Merely ticking a box to confirm something we already suspect to be true is just not as exciting as finding out that one needs to pursue hitherto unexplored paths of research.
March 25, 2021
I'm kinda ambivalent. I can see that folks would love this in relation to their physics abilities.
Al-Khalili does deliver on the world - as according to physics: there is a lot of rambling about physics shaping the world and vice versa. Which is all even obvious, so the author (who narrates his book -- I listened) strikes me as rather high on his horse.
Along with lots of jabber about what Theory means in science (and "we will cover that in a later chapter"), Al-Khalili does go reasonably deeply into 3 key elements of modern physics: relativity, quantum mechanics and thermodynamics. I did truly try to keep up, but I found it hard to follow. I still couldn't really say what a Higgs Boson particle is (and Al-K spent a lot of time on it), nor do I know why the Hadron collider was able to prove its existence. For only a single example.
Maybe what I was looking for was a basic course in quantum mechanics, and someone to explain to me why the general theory of relativity conflicts with quantum mechanics. Or maybe I should just stick with learning about trees and biological inter-connectivity.
Al-Khalili does deliver on the world - as according to physics: there is a lot of rambling about physics shaping the world and vice versa. Which is all even obvious, so the author (who narrates his book -- I listened) strikes me as rather high on his horse.
Along with lots of jabber about what Theory means in science (and "we will cover that in a later chapter"), Al-Khalili does go reasonably deeply into 3 key elements of modern physics: relativity, quantum mechanics and thermodynamics. I did truly try to keep up, but I found it hard to follow. I still couldn't really say what a Higgs Boson particle is (and Al-K spent a lot of time on it), nor do I know why the Hadron collider was able to prove its existence. For only a single example.
Maybe what I was looking for was a basic course in quantum mechanics, and someone to explain to me why the general theory of relativity conflicts with quantum mechanics. Or maybe I should just stick with learning about trees and biological inter-connectivity.
July 11, 2021
I really recommend this book! ❤️💕🥰😻
October 30, 2021
من تواضع للعلم رفعه.
كما هو في وثائقياته العلمية.. يذهب جيم الخليلي إلى تبسيط النظريات الفيزيائية و يجعلها في المتناول.. يقارب النظرية بالواقع و يعيد تأملاته على شكل فلسفات علمية عميقة لفهمه العلمي للعالم.
من تخصصه في الفيزياء .. يستعرض جيم الخليلي الأعمدة الثلاثة للفيزياء المعاصرة.. ١- نسبية آينشتاين ٢- ميكانيكا الكم ٣- الديناميكا الحرارية.
على مستوى المقاربة الفكرية يقول: "يلجأ بعض الأشخاص إلى الدين أو إلى نظام أيديلوجي أو معتقد آخر للعثور على إجابات لأسرار الحياة، لكن بالنسبة لي، ليس هناك بديل عن الافتراض الدقيق و الاختبار و الاستنتاج للحقائق حول العالم و التي هي السمة المميزة للطريقة العلمية"
الفيزياء لديه درس عملي و تطبيقي للتواضع و نبذ الغرور..
يقول في فصل "رهبة الفهم": "نبدأ من الجهل، لكننا نسعى للمعرفة"
في "فصل الزمان و المكان" فالفيزياء لا تعوّل كثيرًا على الإحساس… هي مختبر تجريبي يخضع للتجارب و التطبيقات فيقول :"الدرس المهم الذي يجب أن يتعلّمه الفيزيائيون هو عدم الوثوق بالحسّ السليم"
و يرسّخ هذه الفكرة نحو تذليل التفس البشرية في فصل "مستقبل الفيزياء" بقوله: "إننا بعيدون عن نهاية الفيزياء اليوم أكثر مما كنا نظن قبل عشرين أو ثلاثين سنة"
في فصل "التفكير كفيزيائي" يقدم لنا خلاصة حياته العلمية و أن الخطأ أحد أسباب التطور العلمي فيقول: "ارتكاب الأخطاء هو عادةً الطريقة التي يتقدّم بها العلم: فهي حتمية و نحن نتعلّم منها.
-إذا لم نرتكب أخطاء فكيف سنكتشف أي جديد عن العالم؟"
يقدّم الخليلي مصطلح جميل وهو مصطلح الفيزياء إنسانية..
لماذا الفيزياء إنسانية؟
يأتي جوابه: "إذا أردنا أن نعرف من أين أتينا، و من أين تشكّلت الذرات في أجسادنا - "لماذا" و "كيف" العالم و الكون الذي نعيش فيه- إذن فالفيزياء هي الطريق إلى فهم حقيقي للواقع".
كنت قلت سابقًا: أن النص الأدبي اقتراح جديد لفهم العالم.. ربما يشترك الأدب و الفيزياء في محاولة فهم العالم.. فالتجربة و الحس يتغذيان على المكوّنين التخيلي و الوجداني.. و الفيزياء شعرية العلم و فلسفته التي تعمل على فهم حقيقي للواقع منطلقة من تأملات تقود إلى تجارب و نظريات تقدّم فتوحاتها التي تغيّر فهمنا للعالم.
كما هو في وثائقياته العلمية.. يذهب جيم الخليلي إلى تبسيط النظريات الفيزيائية و يجعلها في المتناول.. يقارب النظرية بالواقع و يعيد تأملاته على شكل فلسفات علمية عميقة لفهمه العلمي للعالم.
من تخصصه في الفيزياء .. يستعرض جيم الخليلي الأعمدة الثلاثة للفيزياء المعاصرة.. ١- نسبية آينشتاين ٢- ميكانيكا الكم ٣- الديناميكا الحرارية.
على مستوى المقاربة الفكرية يقول: "يلجأ بعض الأشخاص إلى الدين أو إلى نظام أيديلوجي أو معتقد آخر للعثور على إجابات لأسرار الحياة، لكن بالنسبة لي، ليس هناك بديل عن الافتراض الدقيق و الاختبار و الاستنتاج للحقائق حول العالم و التي هي السمة المميزة للطريقة العلمية"
الفيزياء لديه درس عملي و تطبيقي للتواضع و نبذ الغرور..
يقول في فصل "رهبة الفهم": "نبدأ من الجهل، لكننا نسعى للمعرفة"
في "فصل الزمان و المكان" فالفيزياء لا تعوّل كثيرًا على الإحساس… هي مختبر تجريبي يخضع للتجارب و التطبيقات فيقول :"الدرس المهم الذي يجب أن يتعلّمه الفيزيائيون هو عدم الوثوق بالحسّ السليم"
و يرسّخ هذه الفكرة نحو تذليل التفس البشرية في فصل "مستقبل الفيزياء" بقوله: "إننا بعيدون عن نهاية الفيزياء اليوم أكثر مما كنا نظن قبل عشرين أو ثلاثين سنة"
في فصل "التفكير كفيزيائي" يقدم لنا خلاصة حياته العلمية و أن الخطأ أحد أسباب التطور العلمي فيقول: "ارتكاب الأخطاء هو عادةً الطريقة التي يتقدّم بها العلم: فهي حتمية و نحن نتعلّم منها.
-إذا لم نرتكب أخطاء فكيف سنكتشف أي جديد عن العالم؟"
يقدّم الخليلي مصطلح جميل وهو مصطلح الفيزياء إنسانية..
لماذا الفيزياء إنسانية؟
يأتي جوابه: "إذا أردنا أن نعرف من أين أتينا، و من أين تشكّلت الذرات في أجسادنا - "لماذا" و "كيف" العالم و الكون الذي نعيش فيه- إذن فالفيزياء هي الطريق إلى فهم حقيقي للواقع".
كنت قلت سابقًا: أن النص الأدبي اقتراح جديد لفهم العالم.. ربما يشترك الأدب و الفيزياء في محاولة فهم العالم.. فالتجربة و الحس يتغذيان على المكوّنين التخيلي و الوجداني.. و الفيزياء شعرية العلم و فلسفته التي تعمل على فهم حقيقي للواقع منطلقة من تأملات تقود إلى تجارب و نظريات تقدّم فتوحاتها التي تغيّر فهمنا للعالم.
September 2, 2021
I love the effortless learning I find in books like these. This one was great, as I’ve always found with this authors books, as I am a lover of Jim al-khalilis writings, I had to read the latest of his many wonderful popular science books.
This one lays a great basis for principles of physics and the universe and I loved reading about the Quantum world side of things - String theory, M-theory and loop quantum gravity along with the theory of the Multiverse and different interpretations of quantum mechanics. The chapter on Dark Matter and Dark Energy where really interesting too as well as applications for physics in our futures.
The entirety of this book was just amazing and really held my interest. It has a great way of reducing down complex concepts into ways that are easier to understand, and is a great book for those who don’t have much of a basis in this field, and those who just love physics!
I hope Jim never stops writing books like these, I’ve enjoyed every one of them I’ve read!
This one lays a great basis for principles of physics and the universe and I loved reading about the Quantum world side of things - String theory, M-theory and loop quantum gravity along with the theory of the Multiverse and different interpretations of quantum mechanics. The chapter on Dark Matter and Dark Energy where really interesting too as well as applications for physics in our futures.
The entirety of this book was just amazing and really held my interest. It has a great way of reducing down complex concepts into ways that are easier to understand, and is a great book for those who don’t have much of a basis in this field, and those who just love physics!
I hope Jim never stops writing books like these, I’ve enjoyed every one of them I’ve read!
December 15, 2021
كتاب جيد واستمتعت بقرائته بدايةً إلى أن بدأ التعقيد مع الدخول في تفاصيل النسبية العامة وميكانيكا الكم.
اللوم لا يقع على الكاتب بشكل كامل، هو حاول -ولو أنه كان بالإمكان أن يبسط أكثر- أن يسرد بشكل متسلسل وعام تطور الفيزياء، ولكن هذا العلم ليس من أسهل ألوان العلوم.
اللمحة الفلسفية بسيطة جدًا وغير متكررة.
لو كنتُ قارئًا في الفيزياء بشكل أعمق لكنت وجدت فائدة أكثر، ولكن لكوني قارئًا عام في هذا العلم وجدتني لم أستوعب الكم الهائل من المعلومات الذي يحمله الكتاب، واضطررت أن أقلب بعض الصفحات بلا فكرة عما قرأته.
برأيي، يجب على الكاتب وعلى المترجم أن يكون واضحًا للجميع أنه كتاب للمهتمين بالفيزياء مع خلفية علمية بها، وليس بشكل مباشر للقارئ العام.
اللوم لا يقع على الكاتب بشكل كامل، هو حاول -ولو أنه كان بالإمكان أن يبسط أكثر- أن يسرد بشكل متسلسل وعام تطور الفيزياء، ولكن هذا العلم ليس من أسهل ألوان العلوم.
اللمحة الفلسفية بسيطة جدًا وغير متكررة.
لو كنتُ قارئًا في الفيزياء بشكل أعمق لكنت وجدت فائدة أكثر، ولكن لكوني قارئًا عام في هذا العلم وجدتني لم أستوعب الكم الهائل من المعلومات الذي يحمله الكتاب، واضطررت أن أقلب بعض الصفحات بلا فكرة عما قرأته.
برأيي، يجب على الكاتب وعلى المترجم أن يكون واضحًا للجميع أنه كتاب للمهتمين بالفيزياء مع خلفية علمية بها، وليس بشكل مباشر للقارئ العام.
December 16, 2021
.... hal yang sudah kita temukan ternyata hanya 5% dari keseleruhan alam semesta. Yang 95%, dikenal sebagai zat gelap dan energi gelap, masih miterius.(hal.122)
.... dalam sains, kita tidak pernah bisa berkata mengetahui segalanya dengan pasti.(hal.174)
Ujung-ujungnya, ahli fisika hanya manusia biasa.(hal.175)
Ketika menamatkan buku ini, saya jadi teringat dua buku (yang juga kebetulan disebut oleh Jim Al-Khalili di buku ini: Yang Jauh Tersembunyi: Fisika Kuantum dan Teori Banyak-Dunia dan Relativitas: Teori Khusus dan Umum. Dua buku ini adalah yang membahas dua dari tiga sokoguru fisika, realivitas dan mekanika kuantum. Dan selalulah, saya yang tidak memahami banyak hal soal fisika terutama yang "sungguh dasar" begini terpukau dan terusik isi kepala saya.
Kalau penulis bilang, ahli fisika sekarang ini baru bisa menemukan 5% rahasia misteri, pastilah lebih banyak manusia di muka bumi ini yang seperti saya, yang menerima fenomena fisika sebagai ilmu pengetahuan, tanpa memahami bahwa fisika adalah cara pandang dan berpikir terhadap bagaimana dunia berkerja. Baik skala makro maupun mikro.
Penjelasan soal tiga sokoguru (relaitivitas, mekanika kuantum, dan termodinamika) meski dianggap oleh penulisnya sebagai "semacam cara singkat" tapi tetap bikin mikir kok. Yang seru ya itu, ternyata dunia ini bahkan yang seolah sudah bisa dijelaskan dengan teori dan perhitungan fisika, masih saja bisa saling berkontradiksi antar satu sakaguru dengan yang lain.
Dan, saya sungguh suka cara penulis memosisikan dirinya dan fisika. Dia tidak pernah menganggap dirinya yang paling ahli, dan pembaca diajak "seru-seruan"---ibarat anak kecil main air di tepi pantai. Tidak perlu sampai tenggelam, tapi sudah tahu kalau samudera di sana begitu luas dan berair asin. Kalau yang ingin memperdalam, maka daftar buku di bagian akhir adalah kano yang disediakan oleh Jim Al-Khalili untuk semakin ke tengah pembahasan fisika.
March 14, 2022
Wah. Akhirnya kasih 5 bintang lagi buat salah satu buku yg nyeritain fisika kuantum.
Sangat terkesima dengan contoh-contoh problem yg disajikan sehingga mudah untuk dipahami. Walaupun buku ini terkesan sangat singkat, padat, dan jelas. Buku ini bisa dijadikan sebagai pembuka untuk mengetahui ttg fisika kuantum dan kemana saintis akan membawanya. Bab terakhir di buku ini tak kalah menarik karena he told us what actually it is.
Sangat terkesima dengan contoh-contoh problem yg disajikan sehingga mudah untuk dipahami. Walaupun buku ini terkesan sangat singkat, padat, dan jelas. Buku ini bisa dijadikan sebagai pembuka untuk mengetahui ttg fisika kuantum dan kemana saintis akan membawanya. Bab terakhir di buku ini tak kalah menarik karena he told us what actually it is.
February 26, 2023
Hoci som dala tejto knihe 3 hviezdičky, nepovažujte to prosím za smerodajné. Táto kniha mi dala naozaj zabrať, ale sama neviem, či to bolo skrátka len mojou neznalosťou (a tým, že som sa s fyzikou stretla naposledy v škole pred ôsmymi rokmi) alebo to bolo chybou autora, ktorý mi to nevedel dostatočne vysvetliť (tu zas spomínam na skvelú knihu Philippa Dettmera o Imunológii). Knižku odkladám, verím, že sa k nej ešte v priebehu rokov vrátim a budem vedieť poskytnúť konečné hodnotenie z mojej strany. A s fyzikou to, samozrejme, ešte nevzdávam! :)
Autor nám v knižke ponúkol prienik do súčasnej fyziky. Snažil sa stručne opísať čo už zhruba z tohto vedného odboru vieme a čo nás eštelen čaká. Verím, že pre nadšencov fyziky to môže byť príjemná jednohubka. Pre úplných laikov by som však zvolila niečo jednoduchšie.
Autor nám v knižke ponúkol prienik do súčasnej fyziky. Snažil sa stručne opísať čo už zhruba z tohto vedného odboru vieme a čo nás eštelen čaká. Verím, že pre nadšencov fyziky to môže byť príjemná jednohubka. Pre úplných laikov by som však zvolila niečo jednoduchšie.
June 3, 2024
Al-Khalili introduces the reader to the wonderful and mind boggling world of physics, and makes difficult concepts easy to grasp. As a non-physicist, I was amazed at the authors ability to describe in words what so often is explained mainly through mathematical equations. For example, I had previously felt that quantum mechanics was hard to grasp, and although it most certainly is strange at its core, this book made me understand the current thinking on the matter. Highly recommend this book for anyone curious about the way the world works - and I mean, who isn’t?
August 21, 2024
Not my favorite science book. The author had some great analogies, but I found myself bored at times. Maybe I’m just not really a physics girly.
October 5, 2023
When understood; a great book, when I failed; a lousy one
September 5, 2022
A clear introduction, written from a straightforward realist perspective.
December 23, 2022
e promovată ca fiind ‘simplă’, în anumite aspecte este, în altele ai nevoie de poate mai multe explicații;
— dar da, îți deschide ochii
— dar da, îți deschide ochii
May 16, 2024
كتاب فيزيائي أنصح الجميع بقرائته. جيم الخليلي أبدع في كتابته.
June 29, 2021
If you are new to various buzz concepts of physics and looking for layman explanation then the book is for you.The book at a very basic level has covered the three pillars of physics Quantum mechanics, Theory of Relativity and thermodynamics. Excellent read!!
November 1, 2021
I really enjoyed this book because it provided a 10,000 foot view of the world of physics for all of us nonscientists. It was approachable and easy to understand. I also love that it updated me on all the latest controversies and discoveries that are on the cutting edge of the field right now.
If you're looking for a book with a lot of depth, this is definitely not it, but if you're a casual enthusiast and a layman like me, this book will keep you abreast of what's going on in the field. It's a delightfully approachable and quick read.
If you're looking for a book with a lot of depth, this is definitely not it, but if you're a casual enthusiast and a layman like me, this book will keep you abreast of what's going on in the field. It's a delightfully approachable and quick read.
September 28, 2020
This is an introductory text to physics that provides a brief outline of relativity, quantum theory and thermodynamics, with a lot of personal anecdotes by the author. It's ok, but I'm not sure how much a novice will understand from this simplified explanation of physics.
March 3, 2023
That was an amazing and beautifully written book!
in this book prof Jim Al-khaliliy discussed how physics shape and explains our reality and how can we understand our universe better from the lenses of physics.
the book has 10 chapters in which he gave a really well introduction to many areas in physics and discussed multiple mind intriguing theories and discoveries about our universe.
also he discussed the main forces of nature which they are:
-gravity.
-electromagnetism.
- the strong and weak nuclear force.
and the journey and search for combining them all together in an absolute theory that can be our "Theory of everything".
and the boundary between the quantum world and the large classical world, and how much the rules describing the quantum world differs from the rules of our large world and divide them into two separate realities although they belong into one. and how marvelous to see our universe as a deterministic although the world of quantum mechanics is completely the opposite in its randomness and probabilities.
Prof Jim provided a really well intro about the major pillars of physics: The general and special relativity , quantum mechanics and thermodynamics and the description and identification of " Time" according to each one of them,
in Special Relativity:
Time is combined with space into a four-dimensional spacetime.
while in General relativity:
Time is part of the physical fabric of the universe a dimension that can be stretched and wrapped by gravity.
in Quantum mechanics:
Time is just a parameter in an equation and time is reversible.
and in Thermodynamics:
Time is neither a parameter nor a dimension but an irreversible arrow pointing from past to future in the direction of increasing entropy.
also discussed the laws of thermodynamics and how these laws describe how future is driven by the past, so the state of our entire universe at the present moment can be traced back in time a step by step all the way to the big bang and how this approach can be used to predict our universe future.
Also discussed many of the other theories such as the dark matter, dark energy, superstrings theory, chaos , supersymmetry,inflation,multiverse theory and many many more and the application of physics and how it contributed in the advance of the human civilization.
in the end the book describes the different application of physics such as quantum computing and navigation and the connection to other science fields.
I totally agree with prof. Jim in which he said that our universe maybe completely is deterministic and any unpredictability about its future evolution is due to the shortcomings in our ability with certainty to know what will happen next.
simply one of the best books that i have read so far, Prof Jim Al-khaliliy has a really easy and compelling writing style , and a reader with no scientific background would enjoy reading it.
Thank you Prof. Jim Al-khaliliy for providing such a wonderful work!.
in this book prof Jim Al-khaliliy discussed how physics shape and explains our reality and how can we understand our universe better from the lenses of physics.
the book has 10 chapters in which he gave a really well introduction to many areas in physics and discussed multiple mind intriguing theories and discoveries about our universe.
also he discussed the main forces of nature which they are:
-gravity.
-electromagnetism.
- the strong and weak nuclear force.
and the journey and search for combining them all together in an absolute theory that can be our "Theory of everything".
and the boundary between the quantum world and the large classical world, and how much the rules describing the quantum world differs from the rules of our large world and divide them into two separate realities although they belong into one. and how marvelous to see our universe as a deterministic although the world of quantum mechanics is completely the opposite in its randomness and probabilities.
Prof Jim provided a really well intro about the major pillars of physics: The general and special relativity , quantum mechanics and thermodynamics and the description and identification of " Time" according to each one of them,
in Special Relativity:
Time is combined with space into a four-dimensional spacetime.
while in General relativity:
Time is part of the physical fabric of the universe a dimension that can be stretched and wrapped by gravity.
in Quantum mechanics:
Time is just a parameter in an equation and time is reversible.
and in Thermodynamics:
Time is neither a parameter nor a dimension but an irreversible arrow pointing from past to future in the direction of increasing entropy.
also discussed the laws of thermodynamics and how these laws describe how future is driven by the past, so the state of our entire universe at the present moment can be traced back in time a step by step all the way to the big bang and how this approach can be used to predict our universe future.
Also discussed many of the other theories such as the dark matter, dark energy, superstrings theory, chaos , supersymmetry,inflation,multiverse theory and many many more and the application of physics and how it contributed in the advance of the human civilization.
in the end the book describes the different application of physics such as quantum computing and navigation and the connection to other science fields.
I totally agree with prof. Jim in which he said that our universe maybe completely is deterministic and any unpredictability about its future evolution is due to the shortcomings in our ability with certainty to know what will happen next.
simply one of the best books that i have read so far, Prof Jim Al-khaliliy has a really easy and compelling writing style , and a reader with no scientific background would enjoy reading it.
Thank you Prof. Jim Al-khaliliy for providing such a wonderful work!.
January 1, 2023
Say with me…PHYSICS IS BEAUTIFUL ✨
Awal tahun 2023 diawali dgn membaca buku Dunia Menurut Fisika. Buku ini sebenarnya lebih seperti pengantar fisika, di mana penulisnya mengajak kita utk memahami fenomena-fenomena dunia melalui kacamata Ilmu Fisika.
Al-Khalili membagi tonggak-tonggak Fisika dlm buku ini menjadi 3, yaitu 1) Relativitas umum, 2) Mekanika kuantum, dan 3) Termodinamika. Buku ini membahas teori-teori fisika dari masa Newton hingga fisika modern. Melalui buku ini saya baru mengetahui bahwa teori Newton ternyata udah disempurnakan oleh Einstein. Padahal, sewaktu sekolah dulu buku-buku Fisika saya lebih sering membahas dalil Newton daripada teori Einstein. Kiranya buku ini juga dapat menjadi pengantar Fisika yang baik bagi murid-murid sekolah. Buku ini cukup informatif terutama dalam membahas fenomena ruang-waktu menurut 3 tonggak Fisika tadi. Ngl, this book makes my heart pounding hard just like when someone encountered their crush 😩 Di buku ini juga saya baru mengetahui bahwa massa benda ternyata bisa berubah bergantung dr kecepatan (terutama kalau kecepatannya mendekati kecepatan cahaya). Hal inilah yg membuat saya merasa mapel Fisika di sekolah saya dulu ternyata cukup outdated ya 😅
Kelebihan dari buku ini adalah penulis mengakui bahwa meskipun ilmu fisika adalah ilmu yang menjawab fenomena alam, namun baru sekitar 5% objek di seluruh dunia saya yang mampu diteliti oleh ilmu Fisika, 95%-nya msh berupa dark matter yang belum dapat diobservasi. Selain itu, penulis juga menggunakan reasoning yang kuat untuk menjelaskan beberapa decision yang diambil ilmuwan dalam menentukan teori-teori yang ada. Saya menghargai usaha penulis untuk menempatkan struktur penulisan yang disusun berdasarkan kapasitas pembaca menyerap informasi yang ada. Kelemahan buku ini menurut saya adalah penulis seringkali memuji ilmu Fisika dari awal sampai akhir hingga pada beberapa bagian beliau terkesan mendiskreditkan ilmu-ilmu lain. Overall, menurut saya ini adalah buku pengantar Fisika yg baik bagi pemula. Gara-gara buku ini saya jadi pengen baca bukunya Stephen Hawkings & Einstein juga wkwk.
⭐ 4.5 // 5
Awal tahun 2023 diawali dgn membaca buku Dunia Menurut Fisika. Buku ini sebenarnya lebih seperti pengantar fisika, di mana penulisnya mengajak kita utk memahami fenomena-fenomena dunia melalui kacamata Ilmu Fisika.
Al-Khalili membagi tonggak-tonggak Fisika dlm buku ini menjadi 3, yaitu 1) Relativitas umum, 2) Mekanika kuantum, dan 3) Termodinamika. Buku ini membahas teori-teori fisika dari masa Newton hingga fisika modern. Melalui buku ini saya baru mengetahui bahwa teori Newton ternyata udah disempurnakan oleh Einstein. Padahal, sewaktu sekolah dulu buku-buku Fisika saya lebih sering membahas dalil Newton daripada teori Einstein. Kiranya buku ini juga dapat menjadi pengantar Fisika yang baik bagi murid-murid sekolah. Buku ini cukup informatif terutama dalam membahas fenomena ruang-waktu menurut 3 tonggak Fisika tadi. Ngl, this book makes my heart pounding hard just like when someone encountered their crush 😩 Di buku ini juga saya baru mengetahui bahwa massa benda ternyata bisa berubah bergantung dr kecepatan (terutama kalau kecepatannya mendekati kecepatan cahaya). Hal inilah yg membuat saya merasa mapel Fisika di sekolah saya dulu ternyata cukup outdated ya 😅
Kelebihan dari buku ini adalah penulis mengakui bahwa meskipun ilmu fisika adalah ilmu yang menjawab fenomena alam, namun baru sekitar 5% objek di seluruh dunia saya yang mampu diteliti oleh ilmu Fisika, 95%-nya msh berupa dark matter yang belum dapat diobservasi. Selain itu, penulis juga menggunakan reasoning yang kuat untuk menjelaskan beberapa decision yang diambil ilmuwan dalam menentukan teori-teori yang ada. Saya menghargai usaha penulis untuk menempatkan struktur penulisan yang disusun berdasarkan kapasitas pembaca menyerap informasi yang ada. Kelemahan buku ini menurut saya adalah penulis seringkali memuji ilmu Fisika dari awal sampai akhir hingga pada beberapa bagian beliau terkesan mendiskreditkan ilmu-ilmu lain. Overall, menurut saya ini adalah buku pengantar Fisika yg baik bagi pemula. Gara-gara buku ini saya jadi pengen baca bukunya Stephen Hawkings & Einstein juga wkwk.
⭐ 4.5 // 5
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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