The Elegant Universe: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest for the Ultimate Theory

The Elegant Universe: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest for the Ultimate Theory
By Brian Greene

Product Description
"[Greene] develops one fresh new insight after another...In the great tradition of physicists writing for the masses, The Elegant Universe sets a standard that will be hard to beat." --George Johnson, The New York Times Book Review

In a rare blend of scientific insight and writing as elegant as the theories it explains, Brian Greene, one of the world's leading string theorists, peels away the layers of mystery surrounding string theory to reveal a universe that consists of 11 dimensions where the fabric of space tears and repairs itself, and all matter-from the smallest quarks to the most gargantuan supernovas-is generated by the vibrations of microscopically tiny loops of energy.

Green uses everything from an amusement park ride to ants on a garden hose to illustrate the beautiful yet bizarre realities that modern physics is unveiling. Dazzling in its brilliance, unprecedented in its ability to both illuminate and entertain, The Elegant Universe is a tour de force of science writing-a delightful, lucid voyage through modern physics that brings us closer than ever to understanding how the universe works.


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Product Details
Amazon Sales Rank: #2275 in Books
Published on: 2000-02-29
Released on: 2000-02-29
Number of items: 1
Binding: Paperback
464 pages

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Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
There is an ill-concealed skeleton in the closet of physics: "As they are currently formulated, general relativity and quantum mechanics cannot both be right." Each is exceedingly accurate in its field: general relativity explains the behavior of the universe at large scales, while quantum mechanics describes the behavior of subatomic particles. Yet the theories collide horribly under extreme conditions such as black holes or times close to the big bang. Brian Greene, a specialist in quantum field theory, believes that the two pillars of physics can be reconciled in superstring theory, a theory of everything.

Superstring theory has been called "a part of 21st-century physics that fell by chance into the 20th century." In other words, it isn't all worked out yet. Despite the uncertainties--"string theorists work to find approximate solutions to approximate equations"--Greene gives a tour of string theory solid enough to satisfy the scientifically literate.

Though Ed Witten of the Institute for Advanced Study is in many ways the human hero of The Elegant Universe, it is not a human-side-of-physics story. Greene's focus throughout is the science, and he gives the nonspecialist at least an illusion of understanding--or the sense of knowing what it is that you don't know. And that is traditionally the first step on the road to knowledge. --Mary Ellen Curtin

From Publishers Weekly
One of the more compelling scientific (cum-theological) questions in the Middle Ages was: "How many angels can dance on the head of a pin?" Today's version in cutting-edge science is, "How many strings... ?" As posited by s tring theory physics, strings are furiously vibrating loops of stuff. The concept of strings was devised to help scientists describe simultaneously both energy and matter. The frequency and resonance of strings' vibration, just like those of strings on an instrument, determine charge, spin and other familiar properties of energy?and eventually the structure of the universe: a true music of the spheres. There's a chance that strings are themselves made up of something still smaller. But scientists can prove their existence only on the blackboard and computer, because they are much too tiny?a hundred billion billion times smaller than the nucleus of an atom?to be observed experimentally. Brian Greene, professor of physics and mathematics at Cornell and Columbia universities, makes the terribly complex theory of strings accessible to all. He possesses a remarkable gift for using the everyday to illustrate what may be going on in dimensions beyond our feeble human perception. Just when we might be tempted to dismiss strings as grist for the publish-or-perish mill, Greene explains how they have demonstrated connections between mathematics and physics that have helped solve age-old conundrums in each field. This book will appeal to astronomy as well as math and physics fans because it probes the important insights string theory gives into hotly debated issues in cosmology. Later chapters require careful attention to Greene's explications, but the effort will prepare readers to follow the scientific advances likely to be made in the next millennium through application of string theory. Author tour.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

New York Times Book Review, 21 February 1999, George Johnson
Green goes beyond Kaku's book ["Beyond Einstein"], exploring the ideas and recent developments with a depth and clarity I wouldn't have thought possible. Like Simon Singh in "Fermat's Enigma," he has a rare ability to explain even the most evanescent ideas in a way that gives at least the illusion of understanding....Rather than recycling the tired old set pieces science writers too often fall back upon, he develops one fresh new insight after another....In the great tradition of physicists writing for the masses, "The Elegant Universe" sets a standard that will be hard to beat.


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Customer Reviews
A Wonderful Introduction to String Theory
this book is a wonderful introduction to modern theories about calibi-yau manifolds, extra dimentions, etc. for the general layman, and shows how exiting modern string theory is, and is my favorite book.

Useful but Quite Limited
This book has drawn a great deal of praise, but I think that praise tends to mainly come from two audiences: (a) knowledgable physicists who are already sold on string theory and don't really need to read the book, and (b) lay readers who are excited about getting a lengthy introduction to string theory, and feel they've considerably advanced their understanding in the process.

In actuality, string theory is very complex and the mathematics involved are way beyond the capacity of lay readers, and probably even a large percentage of physicists (look at a real string theory book or paper to see what I mean). True to the popular physics genre, Greene pretty much totally sidesteps the mathematics, instead relying on simplified explanations and analogies which leave out many important details. As a result, in my opinion, the book fails to give lay readers a meaningful understanding of string theory, even at an introductory level -- you will get the illusion of understanding, but not real understanding. I think that some math, additional technical details, and a lot more graphics would have really helped.

Considering these serious limitations, the main value of the book is that it gives readers a general feel for the types of problems string theorists are trying to solve, the general (and wild) character of the potential solutions they're coming up with, and how they're going about all of this.

Summing up, even though the book may fail to provide an adequate introduction to string theory, a general feeling for the subject is still useful and interesting, so the book still warrants three stars.



Average writing style and terrible analogies
The book has the merit of being one of the first books to explore and to try to explain superstring theory to the layman. In this regard it is a fair try. Otherwise, 1/3 of the book is wasted trying to explain what special relativity, general relativity and quantum mechanics are all about, and here the author is only mediocre in his enterprise. Anyone who has already read popular level books on these subjects, like the classics by Gamow or Feynman or Joseph Silk or Weinberg, will feel uncomfortable. The analogies the author uses are also terrible, almost nonsense, like when he compares the input of parameters in the Standard Model with the input of the value of an initial investment in the stock market. Geeez... Finaly, I do not like Greene's writing style: the reading simply does not flow. Compared to, e.g., Alan Guth on the equally aethereal subject of inflationary universe, Greene's writing style sucks. Wellllll, at least Guth is talking about something that bears a possible connection with reality...