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joshualeet697 's review for:
Reality is Not What it Seems: The Journey to Quantum Gravity
by Carlo Rovelli
3.8/5 - A reasonable comprehensible book for the layman with a few daunting concepts that may require you to reread a passage here or there. Probably one of the best explainers for lay-people. If you want to read about quantum gravity, this is probably your best option. He takes a complex subject and for the most part does a good job of explaining it for the layman. Some more complex bits are added in footnotes at times, but they're inconsequential to a general understanding of the concepts.
An interesting look at the journey to quantum gravity. We get a brief overview of a lot of historical figures who played their part in the progression of our current understanding and concepts\theories etc in physics. There were a couple times where the author could have explained things perhaps a bit clearer or more concisely, but overall it was pretty good.
There were moments toward the end where I felt the book should have ended by now, but I was tired when reading the last bit, so that's probably just me being a bit tired and impatient. I enjoyed it, but the last bit of the book didn't add too much once we got beyond the layered quantum fields aspect.
I found the spinfoam bits a bit confusing. There were 3 or 4 pages where I was just like, okay, I'm not going to get this right now completely. I was never that great a physics or maths student (I did a BA in English with honours, so take that as you will) .
I also found that the author would elaborate on things at times, just a few times, where I didn't feel like a layman was really meant to get what he said. Some terms were referred to without explanation (I forget what).
Again, not a bad book. If you're interested in the topic, it is definitely a good read. You probably won't find a more approachable book on the topic. I can't imagine, anyway. 95% of it was quite well explained for a middle aged layman like me with a curiosity of science and the absence of the physics and maths background.
An interesting look at the journey to quantum gravity. We get a brief overview of a lot of historical figures who played their part in the progression of our current understanding and concepts\theories etc in physics. There were a couple times where the author could have explained things perhaps a bit clearer or more concisely, but overall it was pretty good.
There were moments toward the end where I felt the book should have ended by now, but I was tired when reading the last bit, so that's probably just me being a bit tired and impatient. I enjoyed it, but the last bit of the book didn't add too much once we got beyond the layered quantum fields aspect.
I found the spinfoam bits a bit confusing. There were 3 or 4 pages where I was just like, okay, I'm not going to get this right now completely. I was never that great a physics or maths student (I did a BA in English with honours, so take that as you will) .
I also found that the author would elaborate on things at times, just a few times, where I didn't feel like a layman was really meant to get what he said. Some terms were referred to without explanation (I forget what).
Again, not a bad book. If you're interested in the topic, it is definitely a good read. You probably won't find a more approachable book on the topic. I can't imagine, anyway. 95% of it was quite well explained for a middle aged layman like me with a curiosity of science and the absence of the physics and maths background.