Fundamentals: Ten Keys to Reality
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- Create Date：2021-03-30 13:11:07
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- Author：Frank Wilczek
- ISBN：0241302463
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Summary
One of our great contemporary scientists reveals the ten profound insights that illuminate what everyone should know about the physical world
In Fundamentals， Nobel laureate Frank Wilczek offers the reader a simple yet profound exploration of reality based on the deep revelations of modern science。 With clarity and an infectious sense of joy， he guides us through the essential concepts that form our understanding of what the world is and how it works。 Through these pages， we come to see our reality in a new way--bigger， fuller， and stranger than it looked before。
Synthesizing basic questions， facts， and dazzling speculations， Wilczek investigates the ideas that form our understanding of the universe: time， space， matter， energy， complexity， and complementarity。 He excavates the history of fundamental science， exploring what we know and how we know it， while journeying to the horizons of the scientific world to give us a glimpse of what we may soon discover。 Brilliant， lucid， and accessible， this celebration of human ingenuity and imagination will expand your world and your mind。
In Fundamentals， Nobel laureate Frank Wilczek offers the reader a simple yet profound exploration of reality based on the deep revelations of modern science。 With clarity and an infectious sense of joy， he guides us through the essential concepts that form our understanding of what the world is and how it works。 Through these pages， we come to see our reality in a new way--bigger， fuller， and stranger than it looked before。
Synthesizing basic questions， facts， and dazzling speculations， Wilczek investigates the ideas that form our understanding of the universe: time， space， matter， energy， complexity， and complementarity。 He excavates the history of fundamental science， exploring what we know and how we know it， while journeying to the horizons of the scientific world to give us a glimpse of what we may soon discover。 Brilliant， lucid， and accessible， this celebration of human ingenuity and imagination will expand your world and your mind。
Reviews
Richard
，
Easy to read， written in the emphatic voice of a Nobel Prizewinning physicist who clearly knows the subject。 I especially liked the summaries:Four （Deceptively） Easy Principles1。 The basic laws describe change。 Distinguish between “state” and “laws”。 Laws describe change。2。 The basic laws are universal。3。 Locality: they’re true at every level。 Behavior in the immediate future depends only on current conditions in the immediate vicinity。4。 Precision: There are no exceptions， ever， to the laws。Pri Easy to read， written in the emphatic voice of a Nobel Prizewinning physicist who clearly knows the subject。 I especially liked the summaries:Four （Deceptively） Easy Principles1。 The basic laws describe change。 Distinguish between “state” and “laws”。 Laws describe change。2。 The basic laws are universal。3。 Locality: they’re true at every level。 Behavior in the immediate future depends only on current conditions in the immediate vicinity。4。 Precision: There are no exceptions， ever， to the laws。Primary properties of matter from which all other properties can be derived:mass， charge， spin 。。。more
Hamid
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We now understand， in considerable detail， how molecules—and ultimately， quarks， gluons， electrons， and photons—manage to accomplish extraordinary feats。 They are complicated things that matter can do， by following the laws of physics。 No more， and no less。These understandings do not subtract from the glory of life。 Rather， they magnify the glory of matter。Science teaches us what is， not what ought to be。 Science can help us attain our goals， once they are chosen， but it does not choose our goal We now understand， in considerable detail， how molecules—and ultimately， quarks， gluons， electrons， and photons—manage to accomplish extraordinary feats。 They are complicated things that matter can do， by following the laws of physics。 No more， and no less。These understandings do not subtract from the glory of life。 Rather， they magnify the glory of matter。Science teaches us what is， not what ought to be。 Science can help us attain our goals， once they are chosen， but it does not choose our goals for us。The fundamentals of science are not comfortable。 As they teach us， they challenge our habits of thought。 Most profoundly， they raise the bar for what we should expect from true understanding。 They raise it so high as to make the understanding we have achieved seem eternally inadequate。The fundamentals of science can undermine faith in received beliefs and conventional wisdom。 In particular， they make it difficult to take mythological stories about natural phenomena seriously。 It has become all but impossible to believe that Apollo pulls the Sun across the sky with his chariot。The division of experience into internal and external worlds comes to seem superficial。 For babies， that division is a useful discovery， and for adults， it is a convenient rule of thumb。 But our best understanding suggests that there is just one world， after all。 Matter， deeply understood， has ample room for minds。 。。。more
Gary Beauregard Bottomley
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Compact statements about the universe and ultimately what it means to the part of the universe that has become self-aware to such a degree where we can take a stand on our own understanding about the universe and ask what makes up the universe itself？ A compact statement from within this book: the universe is made up of the void and atoms， or in other words space-time and things， and even more compactly things at their fundamental nature must have three properties， mass， charge， and spin。 Everyt Compact statements about the universe and ultimately what it means to the part of the universe that has become self-aware to such a degree where we can take a stand on our own understanding about the universe and ask what makes up the universe itself？ A compact statement from within this book: the universe is made up of the void and atoms， or in other words space-time and things， and even more compactly things at their fundamental nature must have three properties， mass， charge， and spin。 Everything that is a thing is made up of fundamental particles which have those three properties。 This book was made up of such fundamental assertions which related our current understanding with how to really think about the four fundamental forces of nature with fields and matter such that the zoo of particles seemed to make sense at least for how long I was reading this book。 I have no idea how somebody would review this book negatively。 Though I do think the book misfires on its main theme of one must be ‘born-again’ and see the world with new eyes as a child does， but where the book really succeeds is in giving the reader the connections that are inherent with modern day physics such that the reader can deconvolve QED， QCD， gravity and weak forces and the particles that constitute the universe and understand at a level that anyone can appreciate。 My only criticism would be a picayune criticism and that is when he referred to Soren Kierkegaard as a ‘mystic and a philosopher’， the author did that when he mentioned Niels Bohr was influenced by Kierkegaard。 That just seemed so different from how I would have described Kierkegaard。 Overall there was a complete package of how one should consider our current best understanding about the universe and what it is and provides clever ways to think about the void and the atoms， or space-time and matter。 。。。more
William Schram
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Frank Wilczek writes about the fundamental aspects of reality in Fundamentals。 Wilczek explores the field with an infectious joy and sense of wonder。 For example， how do scientists determine the age of the Universe？ How do we even know the Universe has a beginning at all？ Well， thanks to the Cosmic Radiation Background， we can calculate these things。 It goes deeper than that， but I don't want to go too deep into it。Wilczek's book is a primer on Physics。 While it does have some equations， most of Frank Wilczek writes about the fundamental aspects of reality in Fundamentals。 Wilczek explores the field with an infectious joy and sense of wonder。 For example， how do scientists determine the age of the Universe？ How do we even know the Universe has a beginning at all？ Well， thanks to the Cosmic Radiation Background， we can calculate these things。 It goes deeper than that， but I don't want to go too deep into it。Wilczek's book is a primer on Physics。 While it does have some equations， most of them are the Mass-Energy equivalence equation from Einstein。 The book is fascinating， and if you have the chance， you should give it a shot。 You might not take too much out of the book since it is an overview and doesn't contain new research， but it does have a lot of ideas。 。。。more
Joe
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A nice survey of physics but the reborn / conservative / fundamental vocabulary seemed on。 Not really central， but I found his speculation on the future of computers and intelligence fascinating。
Jack Hicks
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Fundamentals， Ten Keys to Reality， Frank Wilczek， 2021In 1794， English Poet， William Blake posited a brilliant， intuitive idea in his poem “Auguries of Innocence:“To see a universe in a grain of sandTo see a heaven in a wildflowerTo hold infinity in the palm of your handAnd eternity in an hour”Amazingly he was right; Contained within a grain of sand are almost all the basic particles and forces that make up the entire universe。 In an hour is contained the same principals of time in a century or Fundamentals， Ten Keys to Reality， Frank Wilczek， 2021In 1794， English Poet， William Blake posited a brilliant， intuitive idea in his poem “Auguries of Innocence:“To see a universe in a grain of sandTo see a heaven in a wildflowerTo hold infinity in the palm of your handAnd eternity in an hour”Amazingly he was right; Contained within a grain of sand are almost all the basic particles and forces that make up the entire universe。 In an hour is contained the same principals of time in a century or the 13-billion-year age of the universe。 All this knowledge has come to light just in the 20th and 21st centuries through the discovery and revelations of Quantum Physics。 In this volume， Nobel Prize winner in Physics Frank Wilczek takes you through these fundamental discoveries in an engagingly readable form and relates how these findings have affected not only our very conceptions of the universe but through application of these findings the very fabric our lives。Here is how Wilczek， brilliant physicist， describes time: “That there is a shared， universal pace is a deep fact about the way the physical world works。 To express the pace itself， we say that there is something that all the world’s cycles tap into， which tells them when to repeat。 That something is time， by definition， is time。 Time is the drummer to which change marches。 Two other manifestations of time are central to human experience。 One is music。 In playing music together， we rely on our expectation that everyone involved will stay in sync。 While the experience is so familiar that we tend to take it for granted， it provides convincing evidence that we share， with high accuracy， a common notion of the passage of time。” Maybe this is why we as humans are so fascinated and can be so engaged in music; we are participating in the very time rhythms of the universe。 This struck me as an interesting analogy: Imagine a radio station broadcasting Beethoven’s ninth symphony。 Without a radio receiver you have no idea that this music is around you or even exists。 Turn on the radio and the beautiful harmonies and melodies pour forth into your ears。 Now imagine yourself looking out on a beautiful bed of flowers。 Photons of light reflected off the flowers enter your eyes and activate the cones and rods in your eyes which then send electrical signals to your brain which then enter your consciousness and are interpreted as the vibrant colors of the visible spectrum。 Just as the radio receiver your brain has received these electromagnetic emissions and converted them into a reality that only exists within you。 Our consciousness it turns out is quite limited。 The spectrum that we can perceive turns out to be an exceedingly small part of the entire electromagnetic spectrum， just one octave out of 66 total octaves。 A large part of 20th and 21st century science has turned on augmenting our very limited consciousness and exploring those other 65 octaves through the use of innovative science and technology。 We have discovered the remnant microwave radiation from the big bang。 We have discovered gravity waves that verify Einstein’s Theory of General Relativity。 We have used x-rays and particle accelerators to discover the very structure and essence of matter， of the atom itself。 From these discoveries have come the technologies of today such as computers， digital cameras， AI， GPS to name a few。 A counter intuitive fact you might not be aware: Matter as perceived as something solid is not solid at all but in fact is 99。99% empty space between the nucleus of an atom and it’s surrounding electrons。 Another mind-blowing discovery is that what we might assume as something solid， the mass in the nucleus of atoms is mostly the fast-moving energy of subatomic particles such as Quarks and Gluons within the nucleus。 We really are ephemeral creatures mostly composed of energy itself and you really do have an inner Chi。What is to be gained by knowledge of some rather seemingly esoteric knowledge about the fundamental subatomic particles， forces and laws that govern the creation and the appearance of the universe？ Maybe in a way it tells us who we are as humans， how and where we are in the universe。 “There is both majestic simplicity and strange beauty in this view of the world。 Within it， we must consider ourselves noy as unique objects， （souls）， outside of the physical world， but rather as coherent， dynamic patterns in matter。 It is an unfamiliar perspective。 Were it not so strongly supported by the fundamentals of science， it would seem farfetched？ But it has the virtue of truth。 And once embraced， it can come to seem liberating”。This quotation from Einstein seemed particularly relevant to where we as humans are today: “ A human being is part of a whole， called the Universe， a part limited in time and space。 He experiences himself， his thoughts， and feelings， as something separated from the rest， a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness。 This delusion is a kind of prison for us， restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few nearest us。 Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circles of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty”。This book is not only for science geeks。 There is no mathematics， but it helps to have some understanding of basic physics and a flexible mind that can bend around some of the counter intuitive concepts。 JACK 。。。more
Irene
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A brilliant man wrote a book about Physics and the Math to support the Laws of Matter for a lay person or me。 Explanations are written for anyone who wants to understand the basics。 Recommended for a general audience and even non readers。
Joe
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extremely disappointing -- seemed more like a rambling memoir， than a book about science。 And the section trying to explain the difference （or perhaps the similarity， who knows？） between particles and fields was HORRIBLE！
Robert
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I can’t improve on Krista’s excellent review。 Fundamentals is mind- expanding but also in part confounding to this 78 year old （who struggled with solid geometry）。 But read it anyway。 It’s awe-inspiring and identifies one with， well， a god of sorts。
Toby Katz
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This book is anything but it’s title。 I have also read Jim Al Kalili’s book and felt it developed theories from the bottom upwards which is much more useful to a non-physicist like me。 I found Wilzcek’s book chaotic and his thinking tangential。 Jumping into grand theories without the use of analogies or metaphors to explain them well。 Then suddenly summarising and attempting to link the theories to everyday technology without a bridge。A disordered， chaotic and frustrating read indeed。
Lisa
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This is a nice overview of atomic physics told from the perspective of a professional who remains amazed by the way the world works even after himself uncovered many of its secrets。
Cate
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Wilczek wrote this book for a general audience， to give us a glimpse behind the curtain and hear what's going on in science today。 I readily admit that I was quickly lost in the "simplified" formulae and explanations of quantum zibs and zabs， but I love this book。It was a challenge for me to hold on through the pages （and， ahem， pages） that I did not understand。 I enjoyed having my mind stretched and made to think outside of my normal comfort zone。 The bits that I did understand stay with me sti Wilczek wrote this book for a general audience， to give us a glimpse behind the curtain and hear what's going on in science today。 I readily admit that I was quickly lost in the "simplified" formulae and explanations of quantum zibs and zabs， but I love this book。It was a challenge for me to hold on through the pages （and， ahem， pages） that I did not understand。 I enjoyed having my mind stretched and made to think outside of my normal comfort zone。 The bits that I did understand stay with me still and give me a sense of awe when I'm walking down the street。 It's hopeful， it's exciting。 The universe is a marvel， and I enjoyed the chance to walk alongside Wilczek and consider how he sees the world around us。 。。。more
Michael Reilly
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This is the best type of popular science books。 It takes very hard subjects and does the best possible job of giving a basic understanding。 Wilczek summarizes the current scientific thought on basic issues like;How big is space and how do we know？ What is time and how long is it and how do we know？ What are the basic particles of the universal and what rules govern their behavior？ How much matter and energy is there and how do we know？How old is the universe， how long will it continue and how do This is the best type of popular science books。 It takes very hard subjects and does the best possible job of giving a basic understanding。 Wilczek summarizes the current scientific thought on basic issues like;How big is space and how do we know？ What is time and how long is it and how do we know？ What are the basic particles of the universal and what rules govern their behavior？ How much matter and energy is there and how do we know？How old is the universe， how long will it continue and how do we know？ Wilczek is the amazingly rare combination of brilliant scientist and great writer。 He won a Nobel prize in Physics for his graduate work and received a McArthur Genius grant。 He has made big discoveries in several different fields of physics。 Wilczek concentrates on explaining the facts， logic and support for the conclusions made by scientist。 He repeatedly shows how speculative theories about the tiniest and most elusive particles are confirmed by multiple bits of evidence and reasoning。 The level of science here is just at my level。 No math。 Some sections that have to be read closely a couple of times。 A few places where I just lost track。 I didn't entirely understand the theory he won the Nobel Prize for。 It is no more complicated than necessary but as complicated as needed to fairly outline the current state of the science。 Wilczek also emphasizes that these type of questions are never answered definitively。 The penultimate chapter is a great summary of the mysteries which physicist are focusing on now。 Why does time only go in one direction？ All of the other laws of science are time symmetrical， that is they work going forward or backwards。 But time only moves in one direction。 Why？ Wilczek outlines three theories that are being explored。 Where and what is the dark matter？ Multiple pieces of evidence seem to make it clear that there is a huge amount of matter and energy in the universe that we can't find。 It is called "dark matter" and "dark energy"。 When the theories of gravity， relativity and quantum mechanics are applied to the knowledge we have gained from modern telescopes and microscopes， it appears that there is stuff missing somewhere。 Wilczek outlines the lines of research on that issue。 Wilczek very clearly says that he is simplifying very complicated subjects in an attempt to give us the most general sense of what scientist believe about the world today。 He does a great job。 （Although， I suppose， how would I know if he didn't？） 。。。more
Sunil Thomas
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Get a grip on particle physics and what keeps us all together。
Kate Windnagel
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What a drag。 （Pun intended）
Nan Patience
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Excellently written， which is unusual for a scientist。 Wilczek's got a touch of human madness， and he's a good narrator into the logic of science。 As a layperson， I panicked halfway through that I wouldn't make it to the end。 But I did--ish。 If I'm understanding his projections for what the future holds， I would agree， but what he views as gains， I view as losses in the overall scope of the human agenda。 I was excited to read this while finishing the upteenth draft of my novel。Sincerely，The cohe Excellently written， which is unusual for a scientist。 Wilczek's got a touch of human madness， and he's a good narrator into the logic of science。 As a layperson， I panicked halfway through that I wouldn't make it to the end。 But I did--ish。 If I'm understanding his projections for what the future holds， I would agree， but what he views as gains， I view as losses in the overall scope of the human agenda。 I was excited to read this while finishing the upteenth draft of my novel。Sincerely，The coherent pattern formerly named Nan 。。。more
Roy Kenagy
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DMPL FRANKLIN 530 AUDIBLE？
Joni
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Mediocre。 Although the author's column in the WSJ is very good， this book did not have a well-defined audience。 I would NOT recommend this book to anyone Mediocre。 Although the author's column in the WSJ is very good， this book did not have a well-defined audience。 I would NOT recommend this book to anyone 。。。more
Eric
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The "Goodreads" blurb tells you most of what you may need to know on what the books is about。 If you are science-minded but have not given up your wonder at the amazing things about God's creation you will likely enjoy several of Wilczek's essays。 The "Goodreads" blurb tells you most of what you may need to know on what the books is about。 If you are science-minded but have not given up your wonder at the amazing things about God's creation you will likely enjoy several of Wilczek's essays。 。。。more
Gary
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Frank Wilczek， this time， writes generally about science but also talks about religion， history， the future。 He is urbane and modern in is writing。 Compared to most science writers， he seems modern and up to date。 He is also very knowledgeable across vast areas， with an obviously strong base in the sciences， but also open-minded and aware of being in the thick of things。
John
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This is one of those books that will require rereading overtime to fully come to grips with what he puts forth and discusses。
Allisonperkel
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A wonderful overview of the modern world as seen through the lens of physics。 It's clear Dr Wilczek love of physics and his ability to view complementarity （as defined in the last chapter） enabled him to share this passion with everyone。 The book's steel thread is present， how we understand the world and how that view's shifted over time， and expanded upon in every chapter。 The afterword does feel tacked on and chapter 10 truly should be the end of the book。 That's a small quibble for such a won A wonderful overview of the modern world as seen through the lens of physics。 It's clear Dr Wilczek love of physics and his ability to view complementarity （as defined in the last chapter） enabled him to share this passion with everyone。 The book's steel thread is present， how we understand the world and how that view's shifted over time， and expanded upon in every chapter。 The afterword does feel tacked on and chapter 10 truly should be the end of the book。 That's a small quibble for such a wonderful read。 。。。more
David C Ward
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I try to read at least some literature on physics but admit， as an empiricist and scientific nit wit， to have trouble in envisaging the atomic let alone the subatomic world。 What I’m struck by is the sense of complexity that things （eg light） can be two things at once: Newtonian physics exists alongside quantum physics。 In his argument Wikczek uses this paradox as a basis not just for the complexity （and harmony） of the universe but as a secular， almost Deistic， argument for the purpose of human I try to read at least some literature on physics but admit， as an empiricist and scientific nit wit， to have trouble in envisaging the atomic let alone the subatomic world。 What I’m struck by is the sense of complexity that things （eg light） can be two things at once: Newtonian physics exists alongside quantum physics。 In his argument Wikczek uses this paradox as a basis not just for the complexity （and harmony） of the universe but as a secular， almost Deistic， argument for the purpose of human life。Also: there’s a good joke using “galvanized” in the discussion of Faraday’s work on fields。 。。。more
Michael Berens
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Just the facts， ma'am。 This is a 30，000 foot journey through the essentials of modern physics: space-time， the nature of matter， gravity， quantum mechanics， complementarity， etc。 The author doesn't delve into any one topic too deeply， but chooses instead to dole out basic concepts in bit-sized chunks that make up each of the chapters。 There is an extensive appendix that goes into some of the concepts more fully for the lay reader。 Clearly written， thoughtful and humane， it serves as a good intro Just the facts， ma'am。 This is a 30，000 foot journey through the essentials of modern physics: space-time， the nature of matter， gravity， quantum mechanics， complementarity， etc。 The author doesn't delve into any one topic too deeply， but chooses instead to dole out basic concepts in bit-sized chunks that make up each of the chapters。 There is an extensive appendix that goes into some of the concepts more fully for the lay reader。 Clearly written， thoughtful and humane， it serves as a good introduction for someone not familiar with these fundamentals。 And there are plenty of other books out there that examine these in greater depth for those who want to learn more。 What I liked most about the book is that author is still amazed and fascinated by the mystery that is the universe， even after spending a lifetime in the weeds of particle physics。 It boggles my mind to think of what he has the capacity to understand that is not articulated in this book because it would be way over the heads of most of us to comprehend， and yet he has retained his initial enthusiasm and awe for his subject。 。。。more
Ron
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I love to read books like this: very smart scientist author explains the science in a way that I can nearly understand it。 I will read another and I will understand it a little better。 What stands out about "Fundamentals" is that Wilczek describes a spiritual experience of "being born" again that has nothing to do with religion and everything to do with being open to the mysteries of the Universe， the mysteries of God。 He is a very good writer， a Nobel prize winner who grew up Catholic and can s I love to read books like this: very smart scientist author explains the science in a way that I can nearly understand it。 I will read another and I will understand it a little better。 What stands out about "Fundamentals" is that Wilczek describes a spiritual experience of "being born" again that has nothing to do with religion and everything to do with being open to the mysteries of the Universe， the mysteries of God。 He is a very good writer， a Nobel prize winner who grew up Catholic and can still quote Augustine and the bible。 But his world has expanded the way the world of the mystics expands when they have their experience of God。 Don't get me wrong， Wilczek is all about the science。 He is not equating his work as a physicist with the work of the mystic。 And yet， as I read Fundamentals， I recognize the same movement of Spirit within the author。 As a bonus I begin to understand the physics that underlies the dynamics of the Universe。 I recommend it - even if the science just make you scratch your head。 Wilczek does a good job of making it nearly intelligible even to people like me。 。。。more
SJ Loria
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You = the observer and the observedtSome books you love almost every page， other ones you slug through but are glad you did。 This book is the ladder， whereas A Beautiful Question （another book by him that I loved） was the former。 Fundamentals lays out 10 main principles that the universe follows。 The first part of the book laid the groundwork for the last 2 chapters， which featured more of the mind-blowing aspects of physics that I find most fascinating。 tFor example， chapters 1-3 talk about mat You = the observer and the observedtSome books you love almost every page， other ones you slug through but are glad you did。 This book is the ladder， whereas A Beautiful Question （another book by him that I loved） was the former。 Fundamentals lays out 10 main principles that the universe follows。 The first part of the book laid the groundwork for the last 2 chapters， which featured more of the mind-blowing aspects of physics that I find most fascinating。 tFor example， chapters 1-3 talk about matter， laws， and space。 While important and necessary， none of the revelations are in particular “wowifying。” It’s when you get to the later stuff that things really start to become interesting。 Perhaps that’s by design or necessity。 There are the fundamental part of a theory， then the more mysterious。tThe final chapter on Complementarity is brilliant。 Complementarity is the idea that you can hold two truths at once。 Particles have speed and position， even though you can only measure one。 Light is a particle and a wave。 Apply this idea to knowledge and the view of the world。 Humans are awesome and horribly violent。 Science is incredible and religions are insightful。 Such choices are sometimes presented as an either/or， yet “and” is a way to look at the world。 To me， that was the most interesting and intellectually satisfying chapter。tIt’s funny that as you get into the quest of knowledge， as you continue to open the doors of perception through science and art， the less certain and hard-headed you become。 This is one of those books that reminds you the universe is infinitely beautiful and beautifully organized under a small list of fundamental truths。 Plenty of familiar quotes ideas simmer below the surface （the doors of perception， the cave， Augustine on time， thou art that）。 The more you know， the less cemented to your own view you become。 Cheers， to the quest。QuotesIn studying how the world works， we are studying how God works， and thereby learning what God is。 In that spirit， we can interpret the search for knowledge as a form of worship， and our discoveries as revelations。 xiiiIt is a great， continuing adventure to widen the doors of perception。 xvThe number of stars visible to unaided human vision， in clear air on a moonless night， is at best a few thousand。 Ten octillion， on the other hand， the number of atoms within us， is about a million times the number of stars in the entire visible universe。 In that very concrete sense， a universe dwells within us。 15We can recognize both that there’s plenty of “out there” and that there’s plenty “in here。” Neither fact contradicts the others， and we do not have to choose between them。 Form different perspectives， we are both small and large。 Both perspectives capture important truths about our place in the scheme of things。 To get a full and realistic understanding of reality， we must embrace them both。 43Substance and force are two aspects of a common underlying reality。 102William Blake’s poetic description of an “infinity in the palm of your hand” has a sound scientific basis。 132The world is simple and complex， logical and weird， lawful and chaotic。 Fundamental understanding does not resolve those dualities。 Indeed， as we have seen， it highlights and deepens them…Humans， too， are wrapped in dualities。 We are tiny and enormous， ephemeral and long-lasting， knowledgeable and ignorant。 You can’t do justice to the human condition without taking complementarity to heart。 207The two principles we mentioned above – that observation is an active process and that observation is invasive – were bedrock foundations of Heisenberg’s analysis。 Without them， we cannot use the mathematics of quantum theory to describe physical reality。 They undermine， however， the world-model we build up as children， according to which there’s a strict separation between an external world， which is “out there” and has properties that our observations reveal， and ourselves。 Accepting the lessons of Heisenberg and Bohr， we come to realize that there is no such strict separation。 By observing the world， we participate in making it。 211Facts can’t falsify other facts。 Rather， they reflect different ways of processing reality。 218“A human being is part of a whole， called the Universe， a part limited in time and space。 He experiences himself， his thoughts and feelings， as something separated from the rest， a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness。 This delusion is a kind of prison for us， restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest us。 Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circles of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty。” -Albert Einstein [note the “kind of prison” Plato allusion， fuck yeah man] 227 。。。more
Brian Clegg
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In keeping with the trend of having seven this or ten that （Carlo Rovelli has a lot to answer for）， physicist Frank Wilzek sets out to give us 'ten keys to reality'。 As Wilczek explains in his introduction， the aim is to explore two themes: abundance and seeing things differently， with a childlike curiosity and lack of preconceptions。 The author also points out that he aims to offer an alternative to religious fundamentalism。 As he notes， many of his scientific heroes were devout Christians， and In keeping with the trend of having seven this or ten that （Carlo Rovelli has a lot to answer for）， physicist Frank Wilzek sets out to give us 'ten keys to reality'。 As Wilczek explains in his introduction， the aim is to explore two themes: abundance and seeing things differently， with a childlike curiosity and lack of preconceptions。 The author also points out that he aims to offer an alternative to religious fundamentalism。 As he notes， many of his scientific heroes were devout Christians， and he 'aims to transcend specific dogmas， whether religious or anti-religious'。In essence there are two things going on in this book。 On the one hand， each of the ten main sections covers a fairly straightforward aspect of physics and cosmology， though not from the viewpoint of a physical theory so much as context such as space， time， natural laws and so on - in this， it will be familiar ground to anyone who has read a popular science physics primer。 But the aspect that lifts Wilczek's book is that in covering the basics he both gives us a more grounded sense of place and adds in details that you rarely see elsewhere。So， for example， we're used to Brian Cox-style popular science that echoes the classic Douglas Adams parody of saying that space is big - really big - so big you are an insignificant little dot。 While Wilczek emphasises the scale of the universe compared to a human being， he also points out that， for example， we have more atoms in our bodies than there are estimated to be stars in the visible universe。 And as such each of us is also impressively large - the scale works in both directions。Another example of strikingly original way of looking at things is that in talking about physical laws， Wilczek imagines being a conscious being in the world of a computer game character such as Super Mario， in a world where the rules are unpredictable， and takes us through the implications of being in such a different universe。 This is brilliant。Some of the ten sections are rather thinner than others。 I was a bit disappointed by a section on complexity and emergence - so important in reality （as opposed the often very constrained world of physical models）， which only runs to eight pages。 Nonetheless， each section is readable and enjoyable。 There were one or two slightly odd aspects。 He tells us that the visible universe is 13。8 billion years old so the 'limiting distance is。。。 13。8 billion light years' - which is misleading as it ignores the expansion of the universe that means that the equivalent distance is closer to 50 billion light years。 He also can over simply - for example by referring to 'u' and 'd' quarks， missing out or where those letters come from and the interesting story behind quark naming， or speaking about quantum spin as if it involves spinning around like a macro object。Inevitably an overview like this will have masses of simplification and in the end it's a matter of taste what goes and what stays。 While I wouldn't agree with all the selections， I found Wilczek's approach genuinely refreshing and this book has so much more going for it that many of these overview titles。 It's interesting to compare it with Jim Al-Khalili's World According to Physics。 In many ways they're complementary （complementarity is another section in this book， funnily）。 Al-Khalili gives a far more insightful picture of the physics itself。 Wilczek gives us a much more impressive philosophical context for that view of the universe。 I think I would recommend reading both - perhaps Wilzeck first to get the context， then Al-Khalili to get the specifics。 Together， they provide an ideal physics primer for the curious mind。 。。。more
Bill Berg
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https://beingbeliefbehavior。blogspot。。。。A physicist assuming a Nobel in physics qualifies him as a philosopher and a theologian。 The physics looks fine to a guy that is definitely NOT qualified to evaluate it！ https://beingbeliefbehavior。blogspot。。。。A physicist assuming a Nobel in physics qualifies him as a philosopher and a theologian。 The physics looks fine to a guy that is definitely NOT qualified to evaluate it！ 。。。more
Bettie
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Book excerpt: Plenty Outside And Plenty WithinWhen we say that the something is big—be it the visible universe or a human brain—we have to ask: Compared with what？ The natural point of reference is the scope of everyday human life。 This is the context of our first world-models， which we construct as children。 The scope of the physical world， as revealed by science， is something we discover when we allow ourselves to be born again。By the standards of everyday life， the world “out there” is truly Book excerpt: Plenty Outside And Plenty WithinWhen we say that the something is big—be it the visible universe or a human brain—we have to ask: Compared with what？ The natural point of reference is the scope of everyday human life。 This is the context of our first world-models， which we construct as children。 The scope of the physical world， as revealed by science， is something we discover when we allow ourselves to be born again。By the standards of everyday life， the world “out there” is truly gigantic。 That outer plenty is what we sense intuitively when， on a clear night， we look up at a starry sky。 We feel， with no need for careful analysis， that the universe has distances vastly larger than our human bodies， and larger than any distance we are ever likely to travel。 Scientific understanding not only supports but greatly expands that sense of vastness。https://www。sciencefriday。com/article。。。 。。。more
Chris Titus
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