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area43's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
4.0
bookaneer's review against another edition
4.0
Speculative non-fiction! Lots of interesting tech discussed from space elevator to artificial retina and space solar energy, but there's also some amusing bits about how aliens would look like. Fun read especially if you're an SF fan.
sigurdas's review against another edition
5.0
The following citation from this book pretty much sums it up for me:
"For example, think of a two-dimensional world of Flatlanders, who, like cookie men, can only move left or right, but never “up.” Imagine that there was once a beautiful three-dimensional crystal that exploded, showering fragments onto Flatland. Over the years, the Flatlanders have reassembled this crystal into two large fragments. But as hard as they try, they are unable to fit these last two fragments together. Then one day, a Flatlander makes the outrageous proposal that if they move one fragment “up,” into the unseen third dimension, then the two fragments would fit together and form a beautiful three-dimensional crystal. So the key to re-creating the crystal was moving the fragments through the third dimension. By analogy, these two fragments are relativity theory and the quantum theory, the crystal is string theory, and the explosion was the Big Bang."
dingakaa's review against another edition
4.0
A nice, easy read.
I first encountered Kaku with his second book, Hyperspace, and was a physics major at the time. I finished that book almost as quickly as I changed careers, though for different reasons.
I loved his writing then, which was accessible for a pratically-lay person. Today, far removed from a career in physics, his writing is just as enjoyable and intriguing. This book is a whistlestop tour across the domains of science that will likely propel us in the future (mostly based on being able to leave Earth). With a mixture of hard science and educated conjecture, he supposes what it would take for humans to become space-faring, and what that might one day look like. He finishes with a discussion on string theory (his domain) and how this fits into humans mastering the cosmos. Invariably, it is the best chapter.
I'd recommend this for anyone curious about the subject, as it has enough to satisfy any itch related to modern science.
I first encountered Kaku with his second book, Hyperspace, and was a physics major at the time. I finished that book almost as quickly as I changed careers, though for different reasons.
I loved his writing then, which was accessible for a pratically-lay person. Today, far removed from a career in physics, his writing is just as enjoyable and intriguing. This book is a whistlestop tour across the domains of science that will likely propel us in the future (mostly based on being able to leave Earth). With a mixture of hard science and educated conjecture, he supposes what it would take for humans to become space-faring, and what that might one day look like. He finishes with a discussion on string theory (his domain) and how this fits into humans mastering the cosmos. Invariably, it is the best chapter.
I'd recommend this for anyone curious about the subject, as it has enough to satisfy any itch related to modern science.
scythe7's review against another edition
3.0
Interesting thought experiment, but I feel it goes too far. For me, half of the book was very interesting, but once it starts talking about type 3 to type 4 civilizations it is mostly guess work but shown as if it was based on science. It feels too much.
elementchaos's review against another edition
3.0
This was a bit disappointing, just because I was expecting something a bit more technical.
Most of the topics here were the things I was hoping for, but rather than just a breif discussion, which this book did, I was hoping for more technical applications. In other words - I was expecting more of a text book.
This book was very very easy to read. Someone who knows nothing about physics would be able to understand this, and since the topics are super "in fashion" with all the Star Wars and Star Trek reboots going on, many people will love this. And I did, once I accepted that there was no math in this.
Most of the topics here were the things I was hoping for, but rather than just a breif discussion, which this book did, I was hoping for more technical applications. In other words - I was expecting more of a text book.
This book was very very easy to read. Someone who knows nothing about physics would be able to understand this, and since the topics are super "in fashion" with all the Star Wars and Star Trek reboots going on, many people will love this. And I did, once I accepted that there was no math in this.
mar's review against another edition
challenging
hopeful
inspiring
4.0
the billionaires arent gonna fuck you bro