The Quantum Story

A history in 40 moments

Jim Baggott (Freelance science writer)

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English

Oxford University Press
04 April 2016

Mathematics & Sciences; History of science; Popular science; Quantum physics (quantum mechanics & quantum field theory)

Series: Oxford Landmark Science

The twentieth century was defined by physics. From the minds of the world's leading physicists there flowed a river of ideas that would transport mankind to the pinnacle of wonderment and to the very depths of human despair. This was a century that began with the certainties of absolute knowledge and ended with the knowledge of absolute uncertainty. It was a century in which physicists developed weapons with the capacity to destroy our reality, whilst at the same time denying us the possibility that we can ever properly comprehend it. Almost everything we think we know about the nature of our world comes from one theory of physics. This theory was discovered and refined in the first thirty years of the twentieth century and went on to become quite simply the most successful theory of physics ever devised. Its concepts underpin much of the twenty-first century technology that we have learned to take for granted. But its success has come at a price, for it has at the same time completely undermined our ability to make sense of the world at the level of its most fundamental constituents. Rejecting the fundamental elements of uncertainty and chance implied by quantum theory, Albert Einstein once famously declared that 'God does not play dice'. Niels Bohr claimed that anybody who is not shocked by the theory has not understood it. The charismatic American physicist Richard Feynman went further: he claimed that nobody understands it. This is quantum theory, and this book tells its story. Jim Baggott presents a celebration of this wonderful yet wholly disconcerting theory, with a history told in forty episodes -- significant moments of truth or turning points in the theory's development. From its birth in the porcelain furnaces used to study black body radiation in 1900, to the promise of stimulating new quantum phenomena to be revealed by CERN's Large Hadron Collider over a hundred years later, this is the extraordinary story of the quantum world.

Oxford Landmark Science books are 'must-read' classics of modern science writing which have crystallised big ideas, and shaped the way we think.

By: Jim Baggott (Freelance science writer)
Imprint: Oxford University Press
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 233mm, Width: 160mm, Spine: 38mm
Weight: 1g
ISBN: 9780198784777
ISBN 10: 0198784775
Series: Oxford Landmark Science
Publication Date: 04 April 2016
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Part I: Quantum in Action 1: An Act of Desperation: Berlin 1900 2: Independent Energy Quanta: Bern 1905 3: Quantum Numbers and Quantum Jumps: Manchester 1913 4: Wave-particle Duality: Paris 1923 5: Strangely Beautiful Interior: Helgoland 1925 6: A Late Erotic Outburst: Swiss Alps 1925 7: The Self-rotating Electron: Leiden 1925Part II: Quantum Probability and Quantum Uncertainty 8: Quantum Probability: Göttingen 1926 9: The Whole Idea of Quantum Jumps Necessarily Leads to Nonsense: Copenhagen 1926 10: Uncertainty Principle: Copenhagen 1927 11: The Copenhagen Interpretation: Copenhagen 1927 12: Complementarity: Lake Como 1927Part III: Quantum Interpretation 13: Gedankenexperiment: Brussels 1927 14: An Absolute Wonder: Cambridge 1927 15: A Certain Unreasonableness: Brussels 1930 16: A Bolt from the Blue: Copenhagen 1935 17: The Paradox of Schrödinger's Cat: Oxford 1935Part IV: Quantum Fields 18: Crisis: Shelter Island 1947 19: Quantum Electrodynamics: Oldstone 1949 20: Gauge Symmetry and Gauge Theories: Princeton 1954 21: Three Quarks for Muster Mark: Pasadena 1963 22: The Higgs Mechanism: Edinburgh 1965Part V: Quantum Particles 23: Electro-weak Unification: Harvard 1967 24: Deep Inelastic Scattering: Stanford Linear Accelerator Center 1967 25: Asymptotic Freedom and Quantum Chromodynamics: Harvard 1973 26: The November Revolution: Brookhaven and SLAC 1974 27: The W and Z Bosons: CERN 1983 28: Completing the Picture: Fermilab 1994Part VI: Quantum Reality 29: Hidden Variables: Princeton 1951 30: Bell's Theorem: Geneva 1964 31: The Aspect Experiments: Paris 1982 32: Beating the Uncertainty Principle: Albuquerque 1991 33: Three-photon GHZ States: Vienna 2000 34: Reality, Whether Local or Not: Vienna 2007Part VII: Quantum Gravity 35: That Damned Equation: Princeton 1967 36: The First Superstring Revolution: Aspen 1984 37: The Quantum Structure of Space: Santa Barbara 1986 38: No Consistency Without Contingency: Durham 1995 39: The Second Superstring Revolution: Los Angeles 1995 40: Resolving the Impasse: CERN 2008 Epilogue Quantum Timeline Name Index Subject Index

Reviews for The Quantum Story: A history in 40 moments

Review from previous edition: 'A highly original and engaging account of the most important theory in science.' - Jim Al-Khalili`Jim Baggott's survey of the history of the emergence of the twentieth century's most enigmatic but successful theory is a delight to read. It is clear, accessible, engaging, informative, and thorough. It illuminates an important, revolutionary era of modern science and the varied personalities behind it.' - Peter Atkins`[A] wonderful histiry of the scientists and ideas behind quantum mechanics... The basic history behind the quantum revolution is well known, but no one has told it in quite such a compellingly human and thematically seamless way.' - Publishers Weekly`Jim Baggott's inspired -- and inspiring -- idea of presenting the history of quantum physics in terms of 40 key moments works both an an introduction for the uninitiated and as a refresher for anyone who thinks they know the story. Even familiar stories come up fresh in these juxtapositions. Great to dip in to!' - John Gribbin`an enjoyable addition to the overall quantum story' - Chemistry World`A truly exceptional book' - CERN Courier`An accessible and informative history' - Science magazine`gripping story' - Flipside Magazine