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3.63 AVERAGE
3.63 AVERAGE
When it sticks to the history of particle physics, this is OK. There's a lot of competition though, and it probably isn't the best: for all his credentials Krauss just isn't the most engaging writer.
Too often, though this becomes pound-shop Dawkins: falling into the same traps, but without the elegance. Dawkins is no theologian; Krauss struggles with philosophy too.
The biggest problem though is Krauss himself; he uses this book to continue Twitter spats, to complain about journals that didn't publish his work and to repeatedly point out how many time this book has been reprinted. The man seems to have enough chips on his shoulder to supply a medium-sized seaside town through the peak holiday season. It's not endearing, and it distracts from what purports to be the primary narrative.
Too often, though this becomes pound-shop Dawkins: falling into the same traps, but without the elegance. Dawkins is no theologian; Krauss struggles with philosophy too.
The biggest problem though is Krauss himself; he uses this book to continue Twitter spats, to complain about journals that didn't publish his work and to repeatedly point out how many time this book has been reprinted. The man seems to have enough chips on his shoulder to supply a medium-sized seaside town through the peak holiday season. It's not endearing, and it distracts from what purports to be the primary narrative.
informative
medium-paced
While not exactly what I was looking for when I bought the book, I enjoyed gaining a better understanding of the history of physics - that being essentially what this book is - as someone who has limited knowledge of many of these concepts.
Although the book started strong, later sections on quantum theories were less well explained and simplified. Lots of jargon. One pretty useless analogy about an ice crystal. Krauss may be describing the best story ever told but he hasn't seemed to learn much about good storytelling in the process. He also obsesses a bit about significance in academia, such as exact dates of when things were discovered or published and who was who's supervisor at what university - stuff that isn't interesting to the general reader.
An OK read on the whole.
Although the book started strong, later sections on quantum theories were less well explained and simplified. Lots of jargon. One pretty useless analogy about an ice crystal. Krauss may be describing the best story ever told but he hasn't seemed to learn much about good storytelling in the process. He also obsesses a bit about significance in academia, such as exact dates of when things were discovered or published and who was who's supervisor at what university - stuff that isn't interesting to the general reader.
An OK read on the whole.
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
It's a strange world we live in, as Krauss attempts to show us in THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD... SO FAR, and you know what, what is great? That the scientific method has made it possible to understand how the universe works, on the big scale and the infinitely small scale, is a wondrous thing. But I have to say, I don't think Krauss' latest book manages to show that. I enjoy Krauss' writing in general; I adored his book A UNIVERSE FROM NOTHING and am usually quick to read his contributions to different magazines and newspapers. However, this book is apparently the exception.
THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD... SO FAR is another book that shows the scientific journey; from Newton to today. How we went from understanding the objects that we see in everyday life, to the smallest particles in the universe (that we know of). The beginning, regarding objects we can see and touch, is solid. Krauss's explanations are worth reading if you're new to physics, but if you aren't, you've already heard most of it. When we move onto the more complex theories, relativity, quantum mechanics and particle physics, we're on a rocky road; Krauss's examples and comparisons are, while not wrong, complex as well and I don't think they do justice to the concepts. It's understandable; they have little or no easy comparisons to the Newton mechanics; no falling apples here, no. It's difficult to explain it to readers without a mathematical background, and given that the math itself can be difficult, it's easy to see how there might be a glitch in communicating the theories. Krauss knows his stuff, there's no doubt about it, but I don't think this book is better at explaining where modern science came from or where it is today.
You'll like this if you're a fan of Krauss though. If you're new to these pop-science books, you'll probably like it you enjoy Krauss' writing. If you're not a fan of him, have read several books on this subject, or if you can't handle Krauss' jabs at organized religion, you probably won't love it or even like it.
THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD... SO FAR is another book that shows the scientific journey; from Newton to today. How we went from understanding the objects that we see in everyday life, to the smallest particles in the universe (that we know of). The beginning, regarding objects we can see and touch, is solid. Krauss's explanations are worth reading if you're new to physics, but if you aren't, you've already heard most of it. When we move onto the more complex theories, relativity, quantum mechanics and particle physics, we're on a rocky road; Krauss's examples and comparisons are, while not wrong, complex as well and I don't think they do justice to the concepts. It's understandable; they have little or no easy comparisons to the Newton mechanics; no falling apples here, no. It's difficult to explain it to readers without a mathematical background, and given that the math itself can be difficult, it's easy to see how there might be a glitch in communicating the theories. Krauss knows his stuff, there's no doubt about it, but I don't think this book is better at explaining where modern science came from or where it is today.
You'll like this if you're a fan of Krauss though. If you're new to these pop-science books, you'll probably like it you enjoy Krauss' writing. If you're not a fan of him, have read several books on this subject, or if you can't handle Krauss' jabs at organized religion, you probably won't love it or even like it.
Way over my head, I have to admit. But I have read quite a few similar books on physics and math, and even if much of that was also, in reality, too complicated I enjoyed most if them. This book have no intention to draw you in unless you understand most of what is written. And it is quite boring with details on every small step made by various scientist on the way to current theories.
A bit technical at times but always always always awe-inspiring. I'm also a huge fan not only of Krauss himself but his writing style. It's so accessible and easy to follow. This book makes me want to go back and revisit A Universe From Nothing.
The book starts with a bang as follows
"In the beginning there was light.
But more than this, there was gravity.
After that, all hell broke loose…"
After this I held on dearly for a thrilling ride. A page turner that exfoliates the complexities of physics, time and space. It lays out how discoveries in physics have happened, from the time of Plato to Faraday, Einstein and now Higgs-Boson. This book is an epitome of teaching science via storytelling. Each chapter builds on the previous one and there never seems to be a loss of continuity in the storyline. Krauss shows how each seemingly obscure research makes human life better. Instead of making the 'unknown' of how & why we are here dreary, he makes it inspirational and urges us all to move away from a solipsistic mind-set to a free-inquiry mode which would arouse curiosity of future generations. Krauss in his inimitable style makes physics easy to imbibe and imbue, but not patronizingly simple enough. This book has piqued my interest in physics and I do plan to continue my path to learning more on these seemingly-obscure topics.
"In the beginning there was light.
But more than this, there was gravity.
After that, all hell broke loose…"
After this I held on dearly for a thrilling ride. A page turner that exfoliates the complexities of physics, time and space. It lays out how discoveries in physics have happened, from the time of Plato to Faraday, Einstein and now Higgs-Boson. This book is an epitome of teaching science via storytelling. Each chapter builds on the previous one and there never seems to be a loss of continuity in the storyline. Krauss shows how each seemingly obscure research makes human life better. Instead of making the 'unknown' of how & why we are here dreary, he makes it inspirational and urges us all to move away from a solipsistic mind-set to a free-inquiry mode which would arouse curiosity of future generations. Krauss in his inimitable style makes physics easy to imbibe and imbue, but not patronizingly simple enough. This book has piqued my interest in physics and I do plan to continue my path to learning more on these seemingly-obscure topics.