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275 reviews for:
Piękno Wszechświata. Superstruny, ukryte wymiary i poszukiwanie teorii ostatecznej
Brian Greene
4.03 AVERAGE
275 reviews for:
Piękno Wszechświata. Superstruny, ukryte wymiary i poszukiwanie teorii ostatecznej
Brian Greene
4.03 AVERAGE
I love Brian Greene with a passion. Not only is a he spectacularly eloquent and beautiful writer, but he is exceptionally talented at communicating complex topics to people who do not have the background to easily access them, without even a whit of condescension. That being said, good God is string theory dense as all hell. It is not Brian Greene's fault that the scientific community did not have an ultimate determination of string theory in 1999 (or, as far as I know, have not yet) but the explanations are definitely stronger on the more established theories leading up to it. Nevertheless, I come away from this book smarter (or at least, more informed) than when I started it, and enthused about scientific discovery.
Another good one from Brian Greene. This and Fabric of the Cosmos overlap a bit, but still satisfying and challenging.
Made me go “what the fuck” and have an existential crisis at least 10 times 👍
Oh, what to think? Fascinating, confusing, difficult, easy, questionable. This book is brilliant how simply it explains some 'basic' concepts of physics (quantum mechanics, general relativity, Newtonian gravity, and so on,) going them over and over again through metaphors to make sure one will stick and explain to you what is said, but then again, it's a book about (super)string theory which many physicists have criticized and rejected.
Maybe I should answer the question if I learned anything instead of focusing on if the subject is wrong or right as I have no qualifications to say either way? The answer is yes. Brian Greene's recount of general relativity, what is known about black holes, about string theory was thorough and clear, but at times, I have to confess, confusing and going over my head. There were times I wished that he would have tossed out all the history and who did what and when and just give me the gist so I wouldn't get lost in the dates, names, and times, but I know names matter (at least in this egoistic world we live in.) I understand why string theory still holds its gravity, and that is because of the need to combine gravitation with quantum mechanics, and if the thought of strings, makes this possible the appeal is great. And there is the thought of one unifying theory which explains the entire universe who wouldn't want that (I know several who don't, finding reductionism dangerous and wrong,) but it can't come with the price of tested data and functionality. Then there is the curiosity of eleven dimensions and the possibilities they bring, which I didn't quite understand.
Should you read the book? Yes and no. It's an interesting curiosity, well-written (at times, when the writer wants to be clear of some concept, but not when he gets lost in the name jungle or tiny details apartment,) and goes over a subject which has been greatly funded. So, I would say it's an important subject to understand.
Maybe I should answer the question if I learned anything instead of focusing on if the subject is wrong or right as I have no qualifications to say either way? The answer is yes. Brian Greene's recount of general relativity, what is known about black holes, about string theory was thorough and clear, but at times, I have to confess, confusing and going over my head. There were times I wished that he would have tossed out all the history and who did what and when and just give me the gist so I wouldn't get lost in the dates, names, and times, but I know names matter (at least in this egoistic world we live in.) I understand why string theory still holds its gravity, and that is because of the need to combine gravitation with quantum mechanics, and if the thought of strings, makes this possible the appeal is great. And there is the thought of one unifying theory which explains the entire universe who wouldn't want that (I know several who don't, finding reductionism dangerous and wrong,) but it can't come with the price of tested data and functionality. Then there is the curiosity of eleven dimensions and the possibilities they bring, which I didn't quite understand.
Should you read the book? Yes and no. It's an interesting curiosity, well-written (at times, when the writer wants to be clear of some concept, but not when he gets lost in the name jungle or tiny details apartment,) and goes over a subject which has been greatly funded. So, I would say it's an important subject to understand.
Brian Greene has a knack for telling a good story. But with 40% left, I still wasn't buying into this string idea. I'm not sure i understood it all, but I wasn't interested enough to finish.
My belief is based on the fact that string theory is the first science in hundreds of years to be pursued in pre-Baconian fashion, without any adequate experimental guidance.
Philip Warren Anderson
Since the middle of the 20th century, the fundamental problem of physics has been finding the Theory of Everything: A theory that would reconcile Relativity, Einstein's theory of the very large; to live alongside of Quantum Mechanics, the paradoxical theory of probabilities on the subatomic level. Both worldviews have been proved, insofar as any scientific theory is ever proved. And neither will allow for the other to be completely correct.
Professor Greene (who disdains the title of "Professor" or "Doctor", by omission) explains the two theories very well, even to someone who has read about them innumerable times. (In particular, his explanations of Relativity are extraordinary well done.)
This incredible clarity of purpose and prose continues when he continues into string theory, quantum gravity, and M-theory, although it is dimmed a bit. The book is not math-heavy by any means, relegating such diversions to the endnotes.
(Unfortunately, there are also many fascinating historical explanations relegated to these same notes. Turning to an endnote, the reader never knows if they'll find an historical illumination, or a block of equations.)
Apparently, the world is composed of scores of vibrating, undulating loops of string, looped through dimensions beyond our perception. These explanations are are deftly written, and hold the readers attention well. When the narrative moves along to the five competing string theories, and to M-theory, the One Ring of that will unite modern physics, the story becomes a little difficult to follow. But this is a minor quibble.
When the author details his own small contribution to the field, it is downplayed, giving much credit to his collaborators. A sense of barely contained pride is present in the text simultaneously, giving a wonderful tension to this chapter.
Since string theory is unproven, the book can't help but end on a tenuous note. The author is hopeful that technology will advance to the point where it is possible to prove that superstring theory is more than a blue-sky physicist's dream.
Philip Warren Anderson
Since the middle of the 20th century, the fundamental problem of physics has been finding the Theory of Everything: A theory that would reconcile Relativity, Einstein's theory of the very large; to live alongside of Quantum Mechanics, the paradoxical theory of probabilities on the subatomic level. Both worldviews have been proved, insofar as any scientific theory is ever proved. And neither will allow for the other to be completely correct.
Professor Greene (who disdains the title of "Professor" or "Doctor", by omission) explains the two theories very well, even to someone who has read about them innumerable times. (In particular, his explanations of Relativity are extraordinary well done.)
This incredible clarity of purpose and prose continues when he continues into string theory, quantum gravity, and M-theory, although it is dimmed a bit. The book is not math-heavy by any means, relegating such diversions to the endnotes.
(Unfortunately, there are also many fascinating historical explanations relegated to these same notes. Turning to an endnote, the reader never knows if they'll find an historical illumination, or a block of equations.)
Apparently, the world is composed of scores of vibrating, undulating loops of string, looped through dimensions beyond our perception. These explanations are are deftly written, and hold the readers attention well. When the narrative moves along to the five competing string theories, and to M-theory, the One Ring of that will unite modern physics, the story becomes a little difficult to follow. But this is a minor quibble.
When the author details his own small contribution to the field, it is downplayed, giving much credit to his collaborators. A sense of barely contained pride is present in the text simultaneously, giving a wonderful tension to this chapter.
Since string theory is unproven, the book can't help but end on a tenuous note. The author is hopeful that technology will advance to the point where it is possible to prove that superstring theory is more than a blue-sky physicist's dream.
I enjoyed learning more about the weirdness of quantum physics, but some of this was definitely over my head. I do think Green does as well as you can expect at explaining very difficult concepts in a simple way. I'd give it more than 3 stars, except the book is 13 years old at this point and some of the information is pretty outdated. If you're looking to read up on this topic, you can probably find something better written more recently.
challenging
hopeful
informative
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
Use of diagrams assists explanation. Taken through step by step and previous topics are built on and repeated so it’s difficult to lose yourself.
challenging
informative
slow-paced
challenging
informative
slow-paced