The Road to Reality: A Complete Guide to the Laws of the Universe
by Roger Penrose
List Price:
Our Price: $13.48
You Save: $12.52 (48%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $8.99 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions
Book Summary Information
Author: Roger PenroseEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2007-01-09
ISBN: 0679776311
Number of pages: 1136
Publisher: Vintage
Book Reviews of The Road to Reality: A Complete Guide to the Laws of the Universe
Book Review: Deciphering the laws of physics to create universal reality
Summary: 5 Stars
This is an exhaustive review of the laws of physics as related to physical reality with significant emphasis on the mathematical component. The author is an outstanding mathematical physicist of our times, and in this book of 1100 pages, he describes the concept of space, time, and matter (energy) in terms of classical physics, quantum physics, string theory and its derivatives.
In physics, the behavior of objects is understood in terms of the action of a force; a vector quantity, which has both magnitude and direction. The force acts on a matter and produces a causative action that results in an effect. The cause - effect is one of the fundamental aspects of classical reality, but it gets fuzzy and uncertain at submicroscopic levels (quantum physical reality.) The main object of physical law is to describe the reality we observe. Our observation includes this universe that is made of space, time, matter, and energy. All objects are made of matter, which exists as complex structures composed of molecules, atoms and fundamental particles. Matter is also a form of energy and the two forms can interconvert as described by the Einstein's famous equation. The fundamental particles has certain physical properties and the manner in which energy (and force) is expressed is though their association with the so called force particles that are responsible for four fundamental forces that operate in nature, they are; electromagnetism, gravity, strong and weak nuclear forces. The four forces mediate matter-matter interaction and facilitate matter-energy conversions in spacetime and thus explain physical reality. The key to the understanding of nature and physical reality is to discover a theory that satisfactorily explains all the four forces and this theory must be experimentally verifiable. Unfortunately, this has not been achieved so far, but we have theories that can be verified but explains only three forces. One single physical theory that explains both quantum and classical realities have not been successful mainly because the nature of gravitational force (curved spacetime) is difficult to describe in a unified situation, since space and time at the most fundamental level are also quantized (exist in discrete quanta) and are they dynamic (not static background).
To understand this book the reader is required to have undergraduate level physics and mathematics; the author explains in the introductory part of the book why he chose to include mathematics despite its negative impact on the book's marketing potential. It would suffice to say that the interplay between mathematical ideas and physical behavior played an important aesthetic role in the minds of great physicists, and Albert Einstein is one of the most important figures in being attracted aesthetically to a particular idea. You can skip chapters 1-16, and from chapters 17-30, general discussion about geometry of spacetime, quantum physics, quantum field theory, quantum cosmology and the standard model of particle physics is presented. I found the last four chapters to be most interesting.
A brief summary is as follows: The unification of special relativity and quantum theory led to quantum field theory (QFT) which produced a minefield of infinities, but with some ingenuity, the infinity problem was circumvented leading to standard model of particle physics which is in good agreement with nature. The controversy between the quantum relativity group and the QFT side is that the latter group tries renormalizability or finiteness as the primary goal, but the former group likes to solve the conceptual difficulties between the two theories. The combination of two theories of particles physics into one framework to describe all interactions of subatomic particles, except due to gravity, is called standard model. These two theories are electroweak theory and quantum chromodynamics. They describe force interactions between particles in terms of exchange of intermediary particles. The author also engages the reader in an insightful discussion of many other theories.
1. What Is Life?: with "Mind and Matter" and "Autobiographical Sketches"
2. Quantum Physics: Illusion or Reality? (Canto)
3. The Emperor's New Mind: Concerning Computers, Minds, and the Laws of Physics (Popular Science)
Summary of The Road to Reality: A Complete Guide to the Laws of the Universe
Roger Penrose, one of the most accomplished scientists of our time, presents the only comprehensive and comprehensible account of the physics of the universe. From the very first attempts by the Greeks to grapple with the complexities of our known world to the latest application of infinity in physics, The Road to Reality carefully explores the movement of the smallest atomic particles and reaches into the vastness of intergalactic space. Here, Penrose examines the mathematical foundations of the physical universe, exposing the underlying beauty of physics and giving us one the most important works in modern science writing.If Albert Einstein were alive, he would have a copy of The Road to Reality on his bookshelf. So would Isaac Newton. This may be the most complete mathematical explanation of the universe yet published, and Roger Penrose richly deserves the accolades he will receive for it. That said, let us be perfectly clear: this is not an easy book to read. The number of people in the world who can understand everything in it could probably take a taxi together to Penrose's next lecture. Still, math-friendly readers looking for a substantial and possibly even thrillingly difficult intellectual experience should pick up a copy (carefully--it's over a thousand pages long and weighs nearly 4 pounds) and start at the beginning, where Penrose sets out his purpose: to describe "the search for the underlying principles that govern the behavior of our universe." Beginning with the deceptively simple geometry of Pythagoras and the Greeks, Penrose guides readers through the fundamentals--the incontrovertible bricks that hold up the fanciful mathematical structures of later chapters. From such theoretical delights as complex-number calculus, Riemann surfaces, and Clifford bundles, the tour takes us quickly on to the nature of spacetime. The bulk of the book is then devoted to quantum physics, cosmological theories (including Penrose's favored ideas about string theory and universal inflation), and what we know about how the universe is held together. For physicists, mathematicians, and advanced students, The Road to Reality is an essential field guide to the universe. For enthusiastic amateurs, the book is a project to tackle a bit at a time, one with unimaginable intellectual rewards. --Therese Littleton
Astrophysics & Space Science Books
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in Astrophysics & Space Science Books
William H. Pickering: America's Deep Space Pioneer: America's Deep Space Pioneer (Nasa History)by Douglas J. Mudgway
History Office; Published: 2008-12-19; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $18.00
Price in other shops:
Aiming At Targets: The Autobiography Of Robert C. Seamans, Jr.by Jr., Robert C. Seamans
NASA; Published: 1996; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $17.50
Mind Over Matter: Conversations with the Cosmosby K. C. Cole
Mariner Books; Published: 2004-04-17; Paperback; Book
Best price: $1.47
Price in other shops:
Angle of Attack: Harrison Storms and the Race to the Moonby Mike Gray
Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 1994-06-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $39.95
Living and Working in Space: Human Behaviour, Culture and Organization (Ellis Horwood Library of Space Science & Space Technology)by Philip R. Harris
Ellis Horwood Ltd , Publisher; Published: 1992-01-01; Paperback; Book
Introduction to Relativity: For Physicists and Astronomers (Complementary Science)by John B. Kogut
Academic Press; Published: 2001-05-07; Paperback; Book
Best price: $31.18
Price in other shops:
The Universe in a Nutshellby Stephen William Hawking
Baker and Taylor; Bantam; Published: 2001-11-06; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $15.00
Price in other shops:
Flight: My Life in Mission Controlby Christopher Kraft
Dutton Adult; Published: 2001-03-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $43.99
A Beginner's Guide to Constructing the Universe: Mathematical Archetypes of Nature, Art, and Scienceby Michael S. Schneider
HarperPerennial; Published: 1995-09-29; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.00
Price in other shops:
Big Bang: The Origin of the Universe (P.S.)by Simon Singh
Harper Perennial; Published: 2005-11-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.98
Price in other shops:
Similar Books and other products
The Hidden Reality: Parallel Universes and the Deep Laws of the Cosmosby Brian Greene
Knopf; Published: 2011-01-25; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $14.86
Price in other shops:
The Grand Designby Stephen Hawking, Leonard Mlodinow
Bantam; Published: 2010-09-07; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $10.43
Price in other shops:
The Shape of Inner Space: String Theory and the Geometry of the Universe's Hidden Dimensionsby Shing-Tung Yau, Steve Nadis
Basic Books; Published: 2010-09-07; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $10.03
Price in other shops:
The Elegant Universe: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest for the Ultimate Theory (Vintage)by Brian Greene
Vintage Books; Published: 2000-02-29; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.18
Price in other shops:
Quantum Mechanics and Path Integrals: Emended Edition (Dover Books on Physics)by Richard P. Feynman, Albert R. Hibbs
Dover Publications; Published: 2010-07-21; Paperback; Book
Best price: $11.33
Price in other shops:
QED: The Strange Theory of Light and Matter (Princeton Science Library)by Richard P. Feynman
Princeton University Press; Published: 2006-04-04; Paperback; Book
Best price: $10.20
Price in other shops:
The Hidden Reality: Parallel Universes and the Deep Laws of the Cosmos (Vintage)by Brian Greene
Vintage; Published: 2011-11-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $10.34
Price in other shops:
Cycles of Time: An Extraordinary New View of the Universeby Roger Penrose
Knopf; Published: 2011-05-03; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $13.97
Price in other shops:
Shadows of the Mind: A Search for the Missing Science of Consciousnessby Roger Penrose
Oxford University Press, USA; Published: 1996-08-22; Paperback; Book
Best price: $17.29
Price in other shops:
The Emperor's New Mind: Concerning Computers, Minds, and the Laws of Physics (Popular Science)by Roger Penrose, Martin Gardner
Oxford University Press, USA; Published: 2002-12-12; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.32
Price in other shops: