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Title: In Search of Schrödinger's Cat: Quantum Physics and Reality
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Manufacturer: Bantam Books
List Price: $17.00
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| In Search of Schrödinger's Cat: Quantum Physics and Reality by Bantam Books Good Book on Physics | This is a good book on Physics. Specially good for people with Physics background who want to learn more about Quantum world, or for people who just want to refresh their knowledge about Quantum Physics. Gives good insight into the development of Physics overall.
Some background or knowledge in Physics would help understand this book better.
| | In Search of Schrödinger's Cat: Quantum Physics and Reality by Bantam Books Engaging, very clear introduction to quantum physics, but at times painfully opinionated | Gribbin's style of writing is pleasant to read. The first half of the book is an ideal introduction to any lay person wishing to delve into quantum physics. Engaging with his biographical details, while in my opinion still being concise and clearly communicates the essential scientific foundations of quantum theory.
Cons: some info presented is outdated. In the "many worlds" chapter, to support his argument that the many worlds interpretation only allows a finite set of possibilities, he claims that "there is no observational justification for rejecting...that the universe is closed and finite," but the latest results from WMAP satellite conclusively suggests that the universe is infinite.
As another reviewer pointed out concerning Gribbin's attempt to convince the reader that "nothing is real", the book seems heavily opinionated. Gribbin dedicated a whole chapter discusing why the many worlds interpretation (MWI) is superior to the Copenhagen interpretation, and I found it disappointing that he fails to discuss a significant weakness of MWI - it only vaguely specifies what triggers the splitting of reality into different branches. It is suggested that an observer's measurement triggers the split, but if that's the case, the observer's capacity to "split reality" is, in my opinion, just as equally paradoxical as the observer's capacity to collapse the wavefunction in the Copenhagen interpretation. Even if Gribbin thinks otherwise, like any good writers he ought to always present both sides of the debate and let the reader choose.
Otherwise, even if one may disagree with Gribbin at times, it is guaranteed that the book will be found thought provoking. He is easy to understand, negligible mathematics used while still managing to present the essence of quantum theory, and his passion for the subject is contagious. | | In Search of Schrödinger's Cat: Quantum Physics and Reality by Bantam Books Through the rabbit hole with John Gribbin. | I wrote this review before reading the sequel to this book (Schrodinger's Kittens and the Search for Reality). After reading the sequel I have an additional comment, which is included at the end of the review.
This book rests somewhere between being a history book and a popular science physics text that focuses on the underlying implications of quantum theory. It introduces the history of the development of quantum mechanics and develops this physics in a general, non-mathematical, manner. In my opinion, Gribbin does a fine job in both areas. The book is very readable and very informative. It begins with the particle/wave nature of light and how attempts to explain this paradox formed the basis of modern scientific thought. From this, Gribbin introduces the notion that matter (initially electrons) also exhibit wave as well as particle characteristics. This is then used to describe Bohr's initial attempts at describing the nature of the atom. Gribbin shows how the Heisenberg uncertainty principle grew naturally out of attempts to explain the nature of an atom, as depicted by the splitting of spectral lines. The uncertainty principle is often incorrectly depicted as just an adjunct to quantum theory, not as its central idea. Gribbin shows that it is intimately tied up with the particle/wave paradox and that it is not (as it is often portrayed) just an experimental limitation. (He also shows that Heisenberg himself is responsible for this misconception because he used this analogy to try to explain the concept.)
The hardcover version of this book was published in 1984, so one could justly question reading a book that is over 20 years old. This is, however, not a reason skip this book, as the first half is concerned with the development of quantum theory up to the late 1920's. By this time, many of the basic ideas had been developed into a cohesive theory and since this is a history of this development, the fact that the book is over 20 years old is not a problem. Gribbin does a good job of introducing the many strange paradoxes and irrational (at least in terms of classical physics and human expectations) experimental results upon which the theory is based. Gribbin is, however, on much less firm ground in the second half of the book, which is concerned with the strange concepts of reality (or really un-reality) that the theory implies. As strange as they are (especially to elimination of causality at a quantum level and its replacement with probabilities) they are based upon experimental facts, not philosophical ramblings. Much of the theories presented in this part of the book were in their formative stages at the time the book was written and much has changed since 1983, but from a historical perspective this portion of the book is also useful. Likewise, the interpretations of quantum mechanics developed in the 1920's should be viewed from a historical context, having been modified before and after 1984.
Most importantly, this book delves into the strange implications of quantum theory. Strange is not an adequate word to explain these implications. When Alice went down the rabbit hole she encountered a world that was ordinary and rational compared to the shocking world depicted (and verified by experimental observations) by quantum theory. In the last part of the book Gribbin delves into a universe of ghost particles, collapsing quantum wave functions, "spooky action at a distance" (Einstein's criticism of where quantum theory was leading) and multi-universe interpretations. These theories question our very notion of reality.
Gribbin has given me a feel for how much I never dreamt of when I was studying quantum mechanics (or at least the simplified version that was taught to engineers like myself). I now see that I was never very shocked by quantum mechanics because I never understood its true ramifications. I was taught what Gribbin calls quantum cooking, in other words how to follow a recipe in order solve an exam problem and hopefully, eventually, make something useful, without knowing the true implications of quantum theory. This book aims to remedy this in a general, non-mathematical manner.
I highly recommend this book not only to anyone studying quantum mechanics (especially if they read it before they start the course), but also to those who are better versed in this field. It should help a little bit to turn one from a quantum cook, into a quantum chef (i.e. one who knows more than just how to follow a recipe). At least it should get the reader thinking about the strange universe described by quantum theory.
This book relies heavily on the "Copenhagen" interpretation of quantum theory developed by Niels Bohr in the 1920's. While other interpretations are discussed, this book gives the impression that this is still a favored interpretation of the meaning behind quantum theory. It certainly was a very popular view at the time that the book was written, in spite of the fact that it implies that nothing actually exists until a higher intelligence looks at it. Einstein never accepted this and while this view is questioned in this book, these questions are not given center stage. In contrast, the sequel to this book (Schrodinger's Kittens and the Search for Reality) spends more time focusing on these other interpretations. That these other interpretations are only made more prominent in the sequel is a bit surprising since most were well formulated before this initial book was written. I believe that it is thus necessary to also read the sequel in order to get a better feeling for the strange implications of quantum theory. Another book which sheds more light on this subject is Feynman's QED, which provides general information about the path integral method, which avoids the paradoxes because it avoids assuming that light (and electrons) are waves as well as particles. The lack of any significant discussion of these other interpretations made me reduce the rating to 4 stars.
| | In Search of Schrödinger's Cat: Quantum Physics and Reality by Bantam Books The cat, the box, and the forest | Reality is a stranger, more bewildering thing than we human beings realised before the advent of the late 19th century and the determined peeking we did into things very much smaller than visible matter. And the 20th and 21st centuries have uncovered even worse (or better, depending upon your perspective). Not only that, but our explanations for what we see have become increasingly bizarre...
One of the things physicists, or those who are interested in physics, come to understand very quickly is that we understand very little. We use terms to describe events, qualities, values, objects, disturbances, energies, forces and physical tendencies that DO NOT DESCRIBE ANYTHING AT ALL. I do not mean to say that the events do not occur or the particles/waves/energies do not exist - although there's considerable debate about what events occur when and how, not to mention the sticky questions of matter and form and movement. I DO, however, mean to say that we hardly understand any of it.
Gribbin is in many respects an excellent writer. He does extremely well in presenting a nice simplified overview of the quantum world and those whose work has contributed towards its... well, let's call it "understanding". But he (naturally enough) skips most of the detail, which is frustrating to anyone who's studied reasonably advanced physics, but reassuring to those who haven't.
The truth is, some of the paths taken in physics today are fantastical, the theories proposed not only being unproven but being intrinsically unprovable. John Gribbin touched lightly upon a couple of them, but for the most part, the book dealt with more accessible issues - and quite delightfully so. I felt that the book lost its focus in the last third or so, but it was almost inevitable it would do so, given Gribbin's clear glee at shoving into the famous Schroedinger box not only a contentious cat, but also long-distance particles dependent upon each other (that vexed question - no clear answer yet), an occasional falling tree, ghostly worlds, and much much more.
Any discussion of matter, reality and the fabric or fabrics that might be its determinants is going to be fascinating unless it ends up in the hands of a very turgid writer. Gribbin is far from turgid - the only real complaint I have is that he drifted into somewhat aerial form without signifying how tenuous it is. And let's be frank: the quantum world is weird enough without postulating some of the bizarrities that have indeed been postulated.
The book does a nice job of presenting some of the truly odd behaviour of matter when it gets beyond a certain size. The very small has always fascinated me, and clearly it fascinates Gribbin as well. That certainly is conveyed in this book.
In summary, I can recommend the book as light reading for those interested in the weird things that happen to matter when it becomes very, very small, although I add a caveat: advanced students won't find anything new here, and there's still an insistence on the "many worlds" or "ghostly quantum possibilities" theory that I find intellectually unsatisfying, however appealing it is to the imagination. | | In Search of Schrödinger's Cat: Quantum Physics and Reality by Bantam Books an interesting read | In this book John Gribbin sets out to demystify the world of quantum physics. He starts with the nature of light and the start of atomic structure, and then moves deeper into the makeup of the atom and into quantum theory. Gribbin gives brief histories of each scientist involved in the development of quantum physics. This is both a good and a bad thing. It helps give the progress made in quantum phsics a historical context and shows how it affected previous schools of thought, but at the same time it is distracting and almost gives too much information. Gribbin explores the strangeness of quantum physics without overwhelming the reader. He doesn't push the math or the concepts in your face but builds it all up, bit by bit. He tries to explain the experiments conducted to prove the theories presented in the book in a way that someone who doesn't have a complete grasp of physics or math can understand.
This book is an interesting read that really makes you think as you read. It's really hard to fully understand what this book is about unless you are an active reader. Sometimes the concepts are a little hard to grasp, but this is a great introduction to quantum physics explained in an easy language. | | In Search of Schrödinger's Cat: Quantum Physics and Reality by Bantam Books Amazon.com | | Part history book and part remedial physics text for those who lost interest when the equations started getting unintuitive, In Search of Schrödinger's Cat explains quantum physics in a way that's not only clear, but also enjoyable. Gribbin opens with the subjects that most physics professors have just started to examine at the end of the semester: The mysterious character of light, the valence concept in Nils Bohr's atomic model, radioactive decay, and the physics of life-defining DNA all get clear, comprehensive, and witty coverage. This book reveals the beauty and mystery that underlies everything in the universe. Does this book claim to explain quantum physics without math? No. Math is too central to physics to be bypassed. But if you can do basic algebra, you can understand the equations in In Search of Schrödinger's Cat. Gribbin is the physics teacher everyone should have in high school or college: kind without being a pushover, knowledgeable without being condescending, and clearly expressive without being boring. Gribbin's book belongs on the shelf of every pre-calculus student. It also deserves a place in the library of everyone who was scared away from advanced physics prematurely. |
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