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josiahrichardson's review against another edition
5.0
A really fascinating journey through the Theory of Everything. Einstein dreamed of it and we are on the cusp of finding it now. The implications are of course many, one being the ability to travel via hyperspace - in and out of different dimensions. This will of course begin on a molecular level, but when will one day include clusters of molecules, which is all of us. Kaku is brilliant but he doesn't make you feel like you aren't. Really accessible material.
rkaufman13's review against another edition
4.0
Ahem.
If this is what physicists work on all day, I got ripped off in high school.
Okay, so half of this book is dedicated to "things we might be able to do in a million years IF we don't blow ourselves up before then and IF our math is correct" (that million, by the way? not an exaggeration). But before this book I didn't understand how a theory can become a theory just "because the math works." Frankly, I still don't--entirely--but my understanding is closer. I would have liked to see a few of the equations that go into string theory, in an appendix perhaps or just scattered through the text. (I say this, but this is coming from a woman who found "Six Easy Pieces" too daunting. Maybe I should be careful what I wish for.) What I'm saying, I guess, is that Michio Kaku does a wonderful job explaining the theoretical components of the, er, theory, but when he gets to the point of explaining why the math works out or, his favorite device, showing how string theory encompasses relativity and the Standard Model like a jigsaw puzzle, he lost me. I can't figure out how mathematical equations become spatially linked (read the book, look at the diagrams, and you'll see what I mean).
It helps if you've read Flatland before this, and if you have a basic idea of physics--though Kaku does patiently explain the Big Bang, etc, for those who need a refresher.
All in all, a fascinating look at one possible way our universe is constructed. Now, my personal opinion--and I'm no mathematician, but I hope I'm getting this right--is that Kaku is right: Nature likes simplicity. And any theory that has as many kinds of subatomic particles as string theory (which encompasses the Standard Model, which predicts the existence of many strangely-named bits of matter) is still lacking something, so perhaps the theory still needs refining.
Get rid of the squarks and winos and we'll talk.
(P.S. I read a passage from here to Chris and he just looked at me, horrified. "I would NOT read that for fun." So sue me, it's definitely not the most fun book. you've been warned.)
If this is what physicists work on all day, I got ripped off in high school.
Okay, so half of this book is dedicated to "things we might be able to do in a million years IF we don't blow ourselves up before then and IF our math is correct" (that million, by the way? not an exaggeration). But before this book I didn't understand how a theory can become a theory just "because the math works." Frankly, I still don't--entirely--but my understanding is closer. I would have liked to see a few of the equations that go into string theory, in an appendix perhaps or just scattered through the text. (I say this, but this is coming from a woman who found "Six Easy Pieces" too daunting. Maybe I should be careful what I wish for.) What I'm saying, I guess, is that Michio Kaku does a wonderful job explaining the theoretical components of the, er, theory, but when he gets to the point of explaining why the math works out or, his favorite device, showing how string theory encompasses relativity and the Standard Model like a jigsaw puzzle, he lost me. I can't figure out how mathematical equations become spatially linked (read the book, look at the diagrams, and you'll see what I mean).
It helps if you've read Flatland before this, and if you have a basic idea of physics--though Kaku does patiently explain the Big Bang, etc, for those who need a refresher.
All in all, a fascinating look at one possible way our universe is constructed. Now, my personal opinion--and I'm no mathematician, but I hope I'm getting this right--is that Kaku is right: Nature likes simplicity. And any theory that has as many kinds of subatomic particles as string theory (which encompasses the Standard Model, which predicts the existence of many strangely-named bits of matter) is still lacking something, so perhaps the theory still needs refining.
Get rid of the squarks and winos and we'll talk.
(P.S. I read a passage from here to Chris and he just looked at me, horrified. "I would NOT read that for fun." So sue me, it's definitely not the most fun book. you've been warned.)
pendar's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
savaging's review against another edition
3.0
Yeah pop physics books! This was one of the first books written on superstring theory for a lay audience. Though it was written in the 90s, if you add one more dimension to make it eleven, the fundamentals still hold (as far as I can tell, but my brain's only three dimensions after all).
Two quibbles:
1) The author could have cut out some sections, which seemed redundant and served more to increase book length than to explain.
2) Physicists, who are careful to allow incredible complexity and nuance in the physical world, write about the human social world like it's obvious, simple, and heading toward some clear goal. When Kaku writes about our likely future, I find his ideas both naive and unimaginative.
Two quibbles:
1) The author could have cut out some sections, which seemed redundant and served more to increase book length than to explain.
2) Physicists, who are careful to allow incredible complexity and nuance in the physical world, write about the human social world like it's obvious, simple, and heading toward some clear goal. When Kaku writes about our likely future, I find his ideas both naive and unimaginative.
awwcripes's review against another edition
5.0
This book, along with Surely You're Joking Mr Feynman are the reason I majored in a physical science and spent ten years working in laboratories.
kateapatton's review against another edition
challenging
hopeful
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.25
hrishivish23's review against another edition
4.0
Amazing read. Provides a good introduction to Relativity, Quantum Physics, hyperspace, String theory, grand unified theory, supersymmetry, relativity, Black holes and time travel.
camilagaribi's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
Loved it