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agathaw 's review for:
Seven Brief Lessons on Physics
by Carlo Rovelli
I think I went into this book with the rather naive idea that after reading it I would understand quantum mechanics and the theory of relativity. Turns out there is quite a lot to it and even physicists do not always have a clear idea of what it means and what it entails for our understanding of the world. Whilst I may not understand in detail I get the jist of what Rovelli was trying to teach us but the ideas themselves are not what I found fascinating but the process in which these ideas come about. The constant challenging of a ideas and of what we think we know to be true.
In the second lesson on quantum mechanics we learn of the work of Niels Bohr who was a pioneer in quantum mechanics with the idea of quantum leaps which was further explored by Werner Heisenberg. Although not agreeing with their work seeing it as too chaotic Einstein still put Werner forward for a Nobel Prize due to the how he had understood the world even if Einstein himself couldn't make sense of the idea. It went back and forth between Bohr and Einstein challenging the idea trying to prove and disprove and both apparently ended up altering their thinking. Rovelli tells us how Einstein devised experiments to prove how it didn't work one being the 'box of light'. After Bohr died a photo of his blackboard showed a drawing of Einsteins box of light experiment. He was still willing to challenge his ideas and develop them.
Another issue I found fascinating was the idea that the theory of relativity and quantum mechanics don't actually fit together they both work but both have very different ideas as to how the world is structured. This is the job of physicists now to try and unite these two theories. A field of study called Quantum gravity is trying to do just that as well Loop quantum gravity which I believe Rovelli is part of and discusses more in his book 'Reality is not what it seems' which I hope to pick up at some point.
Overall I really enjoyed this read and it made me think. If anyone reading this spots any errors in my understanding of the book or the theories contained within please post and let me know.
In the second lesson on quantum mechanics we learn of the work of Niels Bohr who was a pioneer in quantum mechanics with the idea of quantum leaps which was further explored by Werner Heisenberg. Although not agreeing with their work seeing it as too chaotic Einstein still put Werner forward for a Nobel Prize due to the how he had understood the world even if Einstein himself couldn't make sense of the idea. It went back and forth between Bohr and Einstein challenging the idea trying to prove and disprove and both apparently ended up altering their thinking. Rovelli tells us how Einstein devised experiments to prove how it didn't work one being the 'box of light'. After Bohr died a photo of his blackboard showed a drawing of Einsteins box of light experiment. He was still willing to challenge his ideas and develop them.
Another issue I found fascinating was the idea that the theory of relativity and quantum mechanics don't actually fit together they both work but both have very different ideas as to how the world is structured. This is the job of physicists now to try and unite these two theories. A field of study called Quantum gravity is trying to do just that as well Loop quantum gravity which I believe Rovelli is part of and discusses more in his book 'Reality is not what it seems' which I hope to pick up at some point.
Overall I really enjoyed this read and it made me think. If anyone reading this spots any errors in my understanding of the book or the theories contained within please post and let me know.