Audiobook9 hours
The Amazing Story of Quantum Mechanics: A Math-Free Exploration of the Science That Made Our World
Written by James Kakalios
Narrated by Peter Berkrot
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
3.5/5
()
About this audiobook
In the pulp magazines and comics of the 1950s, it was predicted that the future would be one of gleaming utopias, with flying cars, jetpacks, and robotic personal assistants. Obviously, things didn't turn out that way. But the world we do have is actually more fantastic than the most outlandish predictions of the science fiction of the mid-twentieth century. The World Wide Web, pocket-sized computers, mobile phones, and MRI machines have changed the world in unimagined ways. In The Amazing Story of Quantum Mechanics, James Kakalios uses examples from comics and magazines to explain how breakthroughs in quantum mechanics led to such technologies.
The book begins with an overview of speculative science fiction, beginning with Jules Verne and progressing through the space adventure comic books of the 1950s. Using the example of Dr. Manhattan from the graphic novel and film Watchmen, Kakalios explains the fundamentals of quantum mechanics and describes nuclear energy via the hilarious portrayals of radioactivity and its effects in the movies and comic books of the 1950s. Finally, he shows how future breakthroughs will make possible ever more advanced medical diagnostic devices-and perhaps even power stations on the moon that can beam their power to Earth.
The book begins with an overview of speculative science fiction, beginning with Jules Verne and progressing through the space adventure comic books of the 1950s. Using the example of Dr. Manhattan from the graphic novel and film Watchmen, Kakalios explains the fundamentals of quantum mechanics and describes nuclear energy via the hilarious portrayals of radioactivity and its effects in the movies and comic books of the 1950s. Finally, he shows how future breakthroughs will make possible ever more advanced medical diagnostic devices-and perhaps even power stations on the moon that can beam their power to Earth.
More audiobooks from James Kakalios
Becoming Batman: The Possibility of a Superhero Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Physics of Superheroes: More Heroes! More Villains! More Science! Spectacular Second Edition Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related to The Amazing Story of Quantum Mechanics
Related audiobooks
Breakfast with Einstein: The Exotic Physics of Everyday Objects Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Beyond Weird Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Brief History of Timekeeping: The Science of Marking Time, from Stonehenge to Atomic Clocks Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Six Impossible Things: The Mystery of the Quantum World Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Infinity Puzzle: Quantum Field Theory and the Hunt for an Orderly Universe Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5In Search of Schrödinger’s Cat: Quantum Physics and Reality Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Quantum Steampunk: The Physics of Yesterday's Tomorrow Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Lightness Being: Mass, Ether, and the Unification of Forces Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5About Time: Cosmology, Time and Culture at the Twilight of the Big Bang Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Spark: The Life of Electricity and the Electricity of Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Physics for Future Presidents: The Science Behind the Headlines Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Why Does E=MC² and Why Should We Care? Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Light in the Darkness: Black Holes, the Universe, and Us Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Ten Days in Physics that Shook the World: How Physicists Transformed Everyday Life Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Quantum Space: Loop Quantum Gravity and the Search for the Structure of Space, Time, and the Universe Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Big Data: How the Information Revolution Is Transforming Our Lives Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAbsolutely Small: How Quantum Theory Explains Our Everyday World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Age of Radiance: The Epic Rise and Dramatic Fall of the Atomic Era Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Models of the Mind: How Physics, Engineering and Mathematics Have Shaped Our Understanding of the Brain Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Quantum Computing: The Transformative Technology of the Qubit Revolution Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Knowledge: How to Rebuild Our World from Scratch Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Quantum Physics: What Everyone Needs to Know Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Hot Science Bundle: The Future of Computer Science Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMachines of Loving Grace: The Quest for Common Ground Between Humans and Robots Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Second Age of Computer Science: From Algol Genes to Neural Nets Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5How the Laser Happened: Adventures of a Scientist Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Nuclear Fusion: The Race to Build a Mini-Sun on Earth Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Story of Earth: The First 4.5 Billion Years, from Stardust to Living Planet Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Black Hole: How an Idea Abandoned by Newtonians, Hated by Einstein, and Gambled on by Hawking Became Loved Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Physics For You
The Holographic Universe: The Revolutionary Theory of Reality Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Tao of Physics: An Exploration of the Parallels between Modern Physics and Eastern Mysticism Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Quantum Entanglement Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Theory of Everything: The Origin and Fate of the Universe Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Layman's Guide To Quantum Reality Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Magick of Physics: Uncovering the Fantastical Phenomena in Everyday Life Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Brief History of Time: From the Big Bang to Black Holes Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Starry Messenger: Cosmic Perspectives on Civilization Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Quantum Physics: What Everyone Needs to Know Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations That Transform the World Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5In Search of Schrödinger’s Cat: Quantum Physics and Reality Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Travels in Time: Star Talk Radio Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Perfectly Reasonable Deviations From the Beaten Track: The Letters of Richard P. Feynman Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Black Holes: The Key to Understanding the Universe Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Relativity of Einstein Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The World According to Physics Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Field Updated Ed: The Quest for the Secret Force of the Universe Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Science of Interstellar Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Little Book of Aliens Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Lost in Math: How Beauty Leads Physics Astray Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Emperor's New Mind: Concerning Computers, Minds, and the Laws of Physics Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5From Eternity to Here: The Quest for the Ultimate Theory of Time Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Strange Angel: The Otherworldly Life of Rocket Scientist John Whiteside Parsons Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Brief History of Black Holes: And why nearly everything you know about them is wrong Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Quantum Revelation: A Radical Synthesis of Science and Spirituality Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Quantum Spirituality: Science, Gnostic Mysticism, and Connecting with Source Consciousness Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Midnight in Chernobyl: The Story of the World's Greatest Nuclear Disaster Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5
Reviews for The Amazing Story of Quantum Mechanics
Rating: 3.25 out of 5 stars
3.5/5
4 ratings3 reviews
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5It's no secret what drew me to this book: the subtitle is A Math-Free Exploration of the Science That Made Our World. Math-free? That's for me. Sadly, as Kakalios admits in his introduction, it's not really math-free, merely math-simple (as defined by a physicist). Still and all, it's an enjoyable read. Kakalios is a self-admitted nerd and geek, and he draws his examples and illustrations from comic books. He's got a very accessible, conversational style, and he's not above a bad pun or two. Do I understand quantum mechanics now? No. Am I closer to understanding quantum mechanics? Definitely.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5I had a lot of trouble understanding many concepts in this book, but I'm sure to someone who has more of a desire to understand them, it would not be as challenging.Quantum mechanics is, of course, a very complicated subject, and this book attempts to explain the concepts of it in the most approachable way possible. If it doesn't help you understand (as was the case with me), it will at least show you that you can be content not knowing it.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5My son, who is very keen on physics, keeps asking me questions about quantum mechanics that I can't answer. Before I get to the stage where I can't even understand the questions, I thought I'd give this backgrounder on quantum mechanics a try.I enjoyed the early chapters, but found the later chapters on the applications of quantum mechanics in technology less interesting - I would have preferred more on the fundamental scientific and philosophical issues raised by quantum mechanics. But that wasn't this book's brief, and it did what it does do very well.