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Dean Rickles received his PhD from the University of Leeds in 2004, under the supervision of Steven French, with a thesis on conceptual issues in quantum gravity. He took up a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Calgary in 2005 (split between health sciences and philosophy), on the application of complex systems theory to population health. He joined HPS at the University of Sydney in 2007, receiving a five year ARC Australian Research Fellowship in 2008 and then a four year ARC Future Fellowship in 2014. He is now Professor of History and Philosophy of Modern Physics at the University of Sydney, where he also co-directs the Centre for Time.
Since the early years of the twentieth century, leading physicists have struggled to find some way to combine quantum theory with general relativity. In this thought-provoking study, Dean Rickles charts the early decades of this quest, unearthing forgotten gems and clarifying competing efforts. A fascinating historical study of a still-unfolding intellectual adventure. * David Kaiser, Professor of the History of Science and of Physics, MIT * In spite of almost hundred years of work, quantum gravity remains a mystery. Dean Rickles takes you on a journey through the early years of efforts to quantizing gravity. His book may help to eventually remove the deep mist that covers this theory. It is of great value for scientists and philosophers alike. * Claus Kiefer, Institute for Theoretical Physics, University of Cologne *
