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A review by robthereader
When Einstein Walked with Gödel: Excursions to the Edge of Thought by Jim Holt
4.0
When Einstein Walked With Gödel is an anthology that is what it is, anthology. In taking this position opposite of Aristotelian thinking, I may rile some philosophers but it is no “bullshit” that the strength and weakness of this book is in the variety of stories. Holt proves an apt writer in simplifying complex physical and philosophical theories for the layman while also boosting everyone’s vocabulary with his extensive descriptors.
The collection’s best works are those that strip physics and mathematical theories down to their short and eloquent stories of discovery and philosophy down to problems of logic. The theory of relativity is made clear through an origin story of Einstein’s rise to be the face of theoretical physics. In it, time is removed from its track as a continuous vector and reframed as a discretized measurement much like space and force. The sinister origins of possible future of statistics are laud bare with its father’s foils in eugenics. The infinitesimal is linked to the infinite, proving both exist and have pull on numbers. Finally, the extent that one should be moral is set at the minimum that has one donate a reasonable amount of earnings to charity and time to a cause a few times a year. There is no need and rather a detriment to living the life of Mother Theresa if that completely sacrifices one’s own appreciation of the small and finer things in life (besides a Loving Saint is too often portrayed without their undesirable qualities while the Rational Saint can enjoy their good doings and life while being aware of their frustrations and misgivings).
Holt’s familiarity with his subject matter does not prove evident through all 24 essays and the multiple smaller pieces as one could predict with an anthology. For example on truth and reference, Holt throws the reader into a philosophical rep battle between one of the most hailed and eminent philosophers of our time and two philosophers who question his eminence and precociousness. The writing is roundabout and leads the reader through a gossip trail of he said she said. Other essays that left the reader yearning for more or added for filler included his writings on his takes on Gödel‘s take on the US Constitution and the roundabout logic of the four color map problem. Ironically, Holt falls victim to the phenomenon he eloquently puts forth that overconfidence is most rampant in those deemed experts such as with science writers reporting on science. This is the harshest criticism I can grant but this book served more than my original intention of introducing me to metaphysics and origins and current interpretations of science.
The collection’s best works are those that strip physics and mathematical theories down to their short and eloquent stories of discovery and philosophy down to problems of logic. The theory of relativity is made clear through an origin story of Einstein’s rise to be the face of theoretical physics. In it, time is removed from its track as a continuous vector and reframed as a discretized measurement much like space and force. The sinister origins of possible future of statistics are laud bare with its father’s foils in eugenics. The infinitesimal is linked to the infinite, proving both exist and have pull on numbers. Finally, the extent that one should be moral is set at the minimum that has one donate a reasonable amount of earnings to charity and time to a cause a few times a year. There is no need and rather a detriment to living the life of Mother Theresa if that completely sacrifices one’s own appreciation of the small and finer things in life (besides a Loving Saint is too often portrayed without their undesirable qualities while the Rational Saint can enjoy their good doings and life while being aware of their frustrations and misgivings).
Holt’s familiarity with his subject matter does not prove evident through all 24 essays and the multiple smaller pieces as one could predict with an anthology. For example on truth and reference, Holt throws the reader into a philosophical rep battle between one of the most hailed and eminent philosophers of our time and two philosophers who question his eminence and precociousness. The writing is roundabout and leads the reader through a gossip trail of he said she said. Other essays that left the reader yearning for more or added for filler included his writings on his takes on Gödel‘s take on the US Constitution and the roundabout logic of the four color map problem. Ironically, Holt falls victim to the phenomenon he eloquently puts forth that overconfidence is most rampant in those deemed experts such as with science writers reporting on science. This is the harshest criticism I can grant but this book served more than my original intention of introducing me to metaphysics and origins and current interpretations of science.