|  | Author: Frank Wilczek
Publisher: Basic Books
List Price: $26.95
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Rating:  28 reviews
Sales Rank: 44577
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Unknown), English (Published)
Media: Hardcover
Pages: 292
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.1
Dimensions (in): 9.3 x 6.5 x 1.1
ISBN: 0465003214
Dewey Decimal Number: 531
EAN: 9780465003211
ASIN: 0465003214
Publication Date: August 25, 2008
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 6-10 of 28
 Best physics book I've read....... June 29, 2009
Gordon Large (About 20 miles N. of Philly, PA, US)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
...and I've read a lot. This is the first review I've written and, very simply, I want to tell folks who share my fascination with physics that this book is a "must read". To put my comments in perspective, however, I am not a physicist or a scientist.
At its core this book is about what the universe is made of - everything from "empty" space to the ordinary "matter" that makes up our everyday world. As Wilczek explains, space isn't empty (ether - the Grid in his terminology - lives!) and matter doesn't really exist (particles of matter are really energy fields). The book actually covers considerably more ground than my summary would indicate, including the unification of the forces and progress reports on both the latest theoretical and experimental developments. All this involves quantum physics, special and general relativity, even some cosmology - heavy stuff to explain.
Frank Wilczek handles the challenge beautifully - clearly explaining very obscure topics with a very easy-to-read, informal style and an occasional dash of humor. His presentation is very well organized: he tells you when he defers discussing an obvious topic until later in the book; he tells you where in an earlier chapter he explained ideas you may have already forgotten; and he even includes s very helpful Glossary of terms used in the book. The subject matter involves math of the highest order, but Wilczek generally substitutes clear writing for obscure math. (One exception: He could have done a much better job explaining the math of symetries.)
I consider myself pretty knowledgeable about physics, but despite Wilczek's best efforts this was still a hard read. I averaged about one brain cramp every few pages. But by rereading problem sections two or three times I always "got it". And after reading this book I feel like I have a much deeper understanding of the true nature of the universe. Highly recommended!
 I am very disappointed June 25, 2009
Akula Venkatram (Yorba Linda, Ca)
5 out of 8 found this review helpful
I bought this book because I enjoyed reading "Longing for the Harmonies" by Frank Wilczek and Betsy Devine published in 1988. The "Harmonies" is a work of art: it explains developments in physics in austere, beautiful language. In my opinion, it is one of the best popularizations of "new" physics.
Anyone who has read "Harmonies" is likely to be very disappointed with "The Lightness of Being". This new book appears to be a collection of transcripts of conversations between Wilczek and physicist friends. Like a conversation, every chapter has no structure, assumes familiarity with the subject being discussed, uses language that is better spoken than written, uses phrases ('When I was wee lad..") than only a friend would forgive, and is unintelligible to eavesdroppers. I wish Frank Wilczek had asked Betsy Devine to edit the book.
Not for physicists June 20, 2009
dkf (Lebanon, Ohio)
4 out of 8 found this review helpful
I am not sure if I should review this book because I am not among the intended audience. This book is very much dumbed down for a general audience. Readers who have no training in elementary particle physics might get something out of it, but for me it was a complete waste of time. The author kept promising "more on that later" but at the end I was very disappointed. Also, the style seemed rather silly to me, with rambling analogies and weak attempts at humor.
A primer on modern understanding of matter June 7, 2009
Bojan Tunguz (Greencastle, IN USA)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
One of the most important scientific stories of 2008 has been the calculation of the heavy particle masses ("hadrons") using some of the most elaborate computational methods yet. This has been yet another vindication of Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD), a strange theory that governs the interactions of particles that make up atomic nuclei. This theory is a cousin of electromagnetism, and like the theory of electromagnetism it is deceptively easy to formulate (at least with the aid of some higher mathematics), but the real-world predictions have been devilishly hard to extract. One of the earliest people to show that QCD does in fact correspond to physical reality was Frank Wilczek, who remarkably did this important work while still in his early twenties. Since then he has gone onto an illustrious career in theoretical Physics that culminated in his winning a Noble Prize for his work. To people in the Physics community he has been known for many years for his lucid expository articles, and we are all fortunate that he has written a book about some of the topics that he is the foremost authority on. The basic premise of this book, as suggested by the title itself, is that most of the stuff that we are surrounded with is in fact trapped energy. Wilckek turns the famous Einstein's equation E =m c^2 around, and in the form m = E/c^2 shows the rationale for why we can have mass as a form of energy. His writing is clear and accessible, and the book is not burdened with the technical details. Even so, many places could potentially be obscure to people who are not familiar with the basic ideas of modern Physics. Overall, however, this is one enjoyable and interesting book and a worthwhile read for anyone who is interested in the latest developments in advanced Physics.
Lightness of Being June 4, 2009
Richard Runser
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Excellent book. The dust jacket says pretty much all I could say, except to add my second to it. Well written, informative, challenging enough to comprehend to be interesting.
It's a pleasure to be brought more up to date on this realm of theoretical physics. Or is it "Metaphysics?" Or science fiction. No, it's Higher Reality. The unobservable processes that produce observable ones is well covered. Was it Kip Thorne who said something like, paraphrase: If it's not forbidden, it's mandatory. This fits.
Showing reviews 6-10 of 28
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