To be read - Quantum

 
   Let it not be said that I don't venture out of my reading comfort zone to bring you news of noteworthy books of one kind or another!
   Regular readers will know that I am not a scientist by any means. At school, biology was sort of all right because it had to do with plants. Chemistry was fine at times because it was a bit like cooking, and copper sulphate made things a pretty shade of blue. Physics was another matter: wires, hard edges, currents, equations; no, the physics lab was never going to be my natural habitat - it lacked the Laura Ashley touch....
    However, I now have a book about an aspect of physics (not that old mis-named textbook Physics is Fun) which sets out to "demystify a complex subject for general readers", so it should be within my grasp. It is Manjit Kumar's Quantum: Einstein, Bohr and the Great Debate About the Nature of Reality, and it comes very highly recommended.

    It is "a dramatic and superbly-written history of the fundamental scientific revolution and the divisive debate at its core".
     It looks at the nebulous-sounding "uncertainty principle" and the "dead-and alive cat", (whatever that poor thing might be) and it follows the great men of the field, and I must say that a few pages of the Prologue alone have me quite gripped!
    The mixture of history and accessible science appeals to me - as does the idea of filling a large gap in my general knowledge - but so far the writing is very fresh, clear and exciting and though the book has to take its place in my queue, I expect to pick it up with enthusiasm when its time comes.

Comments

[Dark Puss]

Dark Puss is very happy to assist you in understanding his poor friend Schrodingers Cat! I now have a copy of this book (on loan) too, so I'll be looking forward to reading it along side you.

[Lindsay]

The cat belongs to Mr Schrodinger, but you may be assurred it didn't suffer in the making of this or any other book because it is purely a "thought experiment"! When you see it, it is either dead or alive - but it may have been both (its uncertainty had not been resolved) before you see it. You will have fun!

Schrodinger, by the way, is one of those physicists who has an equation on his tombstone, like Boltzmann. When you've read the book, I look forward to you explaining it to us all on the newly established Cornflower Science blog!!