creativelifeofliz's review against another edition
challenging
informative
lighthearted
slow-paced
4.0
This book was an interesting overview of our physics/mathematics understanding of space, at least from the western perspective. There are chapters dedicated to the men who influenced western thought (the only woman was the librarian of Alexander, never named, who was brutally murdered and the only non-western perspective was to note that the Islamic nations collected the ancient Greek texts, but stated they made no progress in the fields). Of course, given it's publication over 10 years ago, it's definitely a bit out of date.
leonardolombardi's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
informative
inspiring
slow-paced
4.0
aramsamsam's review against another edition
4.0
Ich kann nicht behaupten, alles in diesem Buch verstanden zu haben. Gerade die letzten 100 Seiten über Relativitäts- und Stringtheorie wurden zusehends unverständlich, teils auch, weil die Forschung auf letzterem Gebiet in vollem Gange ist und die Experten selbst noch nicht wissen, was Sache ist.
Aber allein die ersten 150 Seiten waren für mich ein ganz neuer Blick auf ein Feld, das mich nie interessiert hat. Mlodinow schreibt äußerst unterhaltsam und liefert viele Einblicke in kulturelle und gesellschaftliche Entwicklungen und wie sie mitverantwortlich für mathematische Entdeckungen oder einen Stillstand in der Forschung sind.
Das Buch ist aufgeteilt in Kapitel über Euklid, Descartes, Gauß, Einstien und Witten und erzählt so von den zunehmend komplexen Theorien über Raum und später auch Zeit.
Faszinierend und unterhaltsam. Würde ich auch jedem Schüler empfehlen. Die Lehrer erzählen nämlich nur den langweiligen Kram: Warum kann Schule nicht ein wenig mehr wie dieses Buch sein?
Die deutsche Übersetzung "Das Fenster zum Universum" ist übrigens sehr frei übersetzt. Da wurde umgestellt, gestrichen und hinzu erfunden. Und weniger pointiert ist es auch noch. Also empfehle ich jedem, der flüssig Englisch versteht, das Original.
Aber allein die ersten 150 Seiten waren für mich ein ganz neuer Blick auf ein Feld, das mich nie interessiert hat. Mlodinow schreibt äußerst unterhaltsam und liefert viele Einblicke in kulturelle und gesellschaftliche Entwicklungen und wie sie mitverantwortlich für mathematische Entdeckungen oder einen Stillstand in der Forschung sind.
Das Buch ist aufgeteilt in Kapitel über Euklid, Descartes, Gauß, Einstien und Witten und erzählt so von den zunehmend komplexen Theorien über Raum und später auch Zeit.
Faszinierend und unterhaltsam. Würde ich auch jedem Schüler empfehlen. Die Lehrer erzählen nämlich nur den langweiligen Kram: Warum kann Schule nicht ein wenig mehr wie dieses Buch sein?
Die deutsche Übersetzung "Das Fenster zum Universum" ist übrigens sehr frei übersetzt. Da wurde umgestellt, gestrichen und hinzu erfunden. Und weniger pointiert ist es auch noch. Also empfehle ich jedem, der flüssig Englisch versteht, das Original.
lourens's review against another edition
4.0
Liked it a lot, but the book is not perfect. As many students, I spent a lot of time with the details of mathematics, and this story was a great way to zoom out and enjoy the overview of, in this case, geometry. Combined with the historical context it beautifully showcases what makes mathematics unique: Ingenuity and creativity, but with a strong sense of inevitability.
That being said, I feel like a big part of the subtleties of the explanations in the latter part (on physics) were hindered by the writing style. Don't get me wrong, the writing style is hilarious: it does a great job at making math accessible and not scary. But this accessibility comes at a cost, as Mlodinow does not mention a single equation in the whole book. I think it was Stephen Hawking's publisher who said: "For every equation you include in the book, the number of readers is halved". Still, Hawking chose to include some. Mlodinow does not, sadly. I can imagine that a reader who is not familiar with the equation of the uncertainty principle, would have a significantly harder time following this part in the book.
Of course, as the book goes over the cutting edge 2o years ago (string theory with all its optimism), this is too complicated to be condensed into simple, intuitive explanations. If string theory and supersymmetry would have since become the revolution it promised, this would have been forgiven. But it did not, thus this was by far the weakest chapter of the book. (Side note: this is a fun chapter to read if you have also read "Lost In Math" by Sabine Hossenfelder. This chapter suffers from just about every problem she describes).
I would recommend the first 3 parts (on Euclid, Descartes, Gauss) to anyone who has taken high school geometry for granted. It shows the progression of western mathematical thinking in a captivating way. The 4th part (on Einstein) is fascinating on its own. The 5th part (on Witten), you should really only read to throw around a few cool words at parties.
That being said, I feel like a big part of the subtleties of the explanations in the latter part (on physics) were hindered by the writing style. Don't get me wrong, the writing style is hilarious: it does a great job at making math accessible and not scary. But this accessibility comes at a cost, as Mlodinow does not mention a single equation in the whole book. I think it was Stephen Hawking's publisher who said: "For every equation you include in the book, the number of readers is halved". Still, Hawking chose to include some. Mlodinow does not, sadly. I can imagine that a reader who is not familiar with the equation of the uncertainty principle, would have a significantly harder time following this part in the book.
Of course, as the book goes over the cutting edge 2o years ago (string theory with all its optimism), this is too complicated to be condensed into simple, intuitive explanations. If string theory and supersymmetry would have since become the revolution it promised, this would have been forgiven. But it did not, thus this was by far the weakest chapter of the book. (Side note: this is a fun chapter to read if you have also read "Lost In Math" by Sabine Hossenfelder. This chapter suffers from just about every problem she describes).
I would recommend the first 3 parts (on Euclid, Descartes, Gauss) to anyone who has taken high school geometry for granted. It shows the progression of western mathematical thinking in a captivating way. The 4th part (on Einstein) is fascinating on its own. The 5th part (on Witten), you should really only read to throw around a few cool words at parties.
mveldeivendran's review against another edition
4.0
Enjoyed with the way of author's writing style and his sons Alexei and Nicolai. Wonderfully illustrated ideas of various mathematicians and their rich exquisite legacies. Lot of resemblance in some topics with the other book, "The Grand Design" though. (as he's one of the co author with Hawking)
Loved it totally ❤
Loved it totally ❤
speakyourfears's review against another edition
4.0
This was an interesting read, though in the end I did not understand much anymore, physics continues to amaze me. But I really liked learning some more about it, especially since modern physics seems to be so closely connected to mathematics (which is what I do). I also liked that the writing was sometimes humorous. I would recommend this book to people who'd like to no more about physics and mathematics!
paulogonzalez's review against another edition
3.0
I have read [b:The Drunkard's Walk: How Randomness Rules Our Lives|2272880|The Drunkard's Walk How Randomness Rules Our Lives|Leonard Mlodinow|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1320392907s/2272880.jpg|2278900] before, and so I encourage myself reading this book. I kind of like this one a little bit less than the other one.
The subject of this book is the revolutions that forced us to reexamine and reimagine our place in the cosmos, and the scientists and stories behind them. Scientists as Euclid, Pythagoras, Newton, Gauss, Riemann, Einstein or Witten. Stories as euclidean and non euclidean geometry, axiomatical fundaments, relativity, gravitation, string theory or M-theory.
And above all, the concept of space we have. It's a good book about the history of geometry in the search of the truth concerning space. It is ordered chronologically, advancing through the great minds who made progress geometry. We can read not only their great scientific achievements, but also the background of their lives. Mlodinow tries to give a personal vision through these outstanding scientifics.
This is not only a history of geometry, but rather a history of our understanding of space. There is here a lot of maths, but a lot of physics too. And very very few formulas or figures, Mlodinow prefers to explain with words. He is pretty direct and clear.
At the beginning it seems another popular science book, but later is not that easy. It not deserves a quick read if you want to achieve a clear understanding of what it explains, although it does not deepen too much.
On the other hand, as others are saying here in their reviews, this seems a european history, for there is almost no mention of Chinese, Arabic or others mathematics.
The subject of this book is the revolutions that forced us to reexamine and reimagine our place in the cosmos, and the scientists and stories behind them. Scientists as Euclid, Pythagoras, Newton, Gauss, Riemann, Einstein or Witten. Stories as euclidean and non euclidean geometry, axiomatical fundaments, relativity, gravitation, string theory or M-theory.
And above all, the concept of space we have. It's a good book about the history of geometry in the search of the truth concerning space. It is ordered chronologically, advancing through the great minds who made progress geometry. We can read not only their great scientific achievements, but also the background of their lives. Mlodinow tries to give a personal vision through these outstanding scientifics.
This is not only a history of geometry, but rather a history of our understanding of space. There is here a lot of maths, but a lot of physics too. And very very few formulas or figures, Mlodinow prefers to explain with words. He is pretty direct and clear.
At the beginning it seems another popular science book, but later is not that easy. It not deserves a quick read if you want to achieve a clear understanding of what it explains, although it does not deepen too much.
On the other hand, as others are saying here in their reviews, this seems a european history, for there is almost no mention of Chinese, Arabic or others mathematics.
cneiman's review against another edition
4.0
Mlodinow is able to spin some fascinating tales out of the history of mathematics, and it's a pity that his grammar skills aren't quite up to his storytelling ones. As someone who found geometry to be incomprehensible, I enjoyed reading about the lives of some of the world's great mathematicians, but the math itself still didn't make any sense. If you're curious about geometry's place in the world and have a high tolerance for passive sentences, check this out--if nothing else, it'll make you smile in ways your high school math teacher couldn't.
eralon's review against another edition
3.0
The beginning is a history of geometry. Then it becomes more of a popular physics and history of physics book. It’s difficult to understand and often boring. (The section on Hypatia was so interesting though. I'd love to read more about her.) It’s interesting in its focus on why geometry is important to physics and to our greater understanding of the world. But it is not a roaring success as a book for laymen. Glad to have a geometry book in my science collection though!
paulogonzalez's review
3.0
I have read [b:The Drunkard's Walk: How Randomness Rules Our Lives|2272880|The Drunkard's Walk How Randomness Rules Our Lives|Leonard Mlodinow|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1320392907s/2272880.jpg|2278900] before, and so I encourage myself reading this book. I kind of like this one a little bit less than the other one.
The subject of this book is the revolutions that forced us to reexamine and reimagine our place in the cosmos, and the scientists and stories behind them. Scientists as Euclid, Pythagoras, Newton, Gauss, Riemann, Einstein or Witten. Stories as euclidean and non euclidean geometry, axiomatical fundaments, relativity, gravitation, string theory or M-theory.
And above all, the concept of space we have. It's a good book about the history of geometry in the search of the truth concerning space. It is ordered chronologically, advancing through the great minds who made progress geometry. We can read not only their great scientific achievements, but also the background of their lives. Mlodinow tries to give a personal vision through these outstanding scientifics.
This is not only a history of geometry, but rather a history of our understanding of space. There is here a lot of maths, but a lot of physics too. And very very few formulas or figures, Mlodinow prefers to explain with words. He is pretty direct and clear.
At the beginning it seems another popular science book, but later is not that easy. It not deserves a quick read if you want to achieve a clear understanding of what it explains, although it does not deepen too much.
On the other hand, as others are saying here in their reviews, this seems a european history, for there is almost no mention of Chinese, Arabic or others mathematics.
The subject of this book is the revolutions that forced us to reexamine and reimagine our place in the cosmos, and the scientists and stories behind them. Scientists as Euclid, Pythagoras, Newton, Gauss, Riemann, Einstein or Witten. Stories as euclidean and non euclidean geometry, axiomatical fundaments, relativity, gravitation, string theory or M-theory.
And above all, the concept of space we have. It's a good book about the history of geometry in the search of the truth concerning space. It is ordered chronologically, advancing through the great minds who made progress geometry. We can read not only their great scientific achievements, but also the background of their lives. Mlodinow tries to give a personal vision through these outstanding scientifics.
This is not only a history of geometry, but rather a history of our understanding of space. There is here a lot of maths, but a lot of physics too. And very very few formulas or figures, Mlodinow prefers to explain with words. He is pretty direct and clear.
At the beginning it seems another popular science book, but later is not that easy. It not deserves a quick read if you want to achieve a clear understanding of what it explains, although it does not deepen too much.
On the other hand, as others are saying here in their reviews, this seems a european history, for there is almost no mention of Chinese, Arabic or others mathematics.