Quanta and Fields, Sean Carroll
Quanta and Fields, Sean Carroll
1 Rating(s)
List: $20.00 | Sale: $13.20
Club: $10.00

Quanta and Fields
The Biggest Ideas in the Universe

Bestseller

Author: Sean Carroll

Narrator: Sean Carroll

Unabridged: 9 hr 49 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Penguin Audio

Published: 05/14/2024

Includes: Bonus Material Bonus Material Included


Synopsis

Quanta and Fields, the second book of Sean Carroll’s already internationally acclaimed series The Biggest Ideas in the Universe, is an adventure into the bare stuff of reality.
 
Sean Carroll is creating a profoundly new approach to sharing physics with a broad audience, one that goes beyond analogies to show how physicists really think. He cuts to the bare mathematical essence of our most profound theories, explaining every step in a uniquely accessible way.  

Quantum field theory is how modern physics describes nature at its most profound level. Starting with the basics of quantum mechanics itself, Sean Carroll explains measurement and entanglement before explaining how the world is really made of fields. You will finally understand why matter is solid, why there is antimatter, where the sizes of atoms come from, and why the predictions of quantum field theory are so spectacularly successful. Fundamental ideas like spin, symmetry, Feynman diagrams, and the Higgs mechanism are explained for real, not just through amusing stories. Beyond Newton, beyond Einstein, and all the intuitive notions that have guided homo sapiens for millennia, this book is a journey to a once unimaginable truth about what our universe is.

* This audiobook edition includes a downloadable PDF of graphs, equations, and images.

About The Author

Sean Carroll is Homewood Professor of Natural Philosophy at Johns Hopkins University, and Fractal Faculty at the Santa Fe Institute. He is host of the Mindscape podcast, and author of From Eternity to Here, The Particle at the End of the Universe, The Big Picture, and Something Deeply Hidden. He has been awarded prizes and fellowships by the National Science Foundation, NASA, the American Institute of Physics, the Royal Society of London, and many others. He lives in Baltimore with his wife, writer Jennifer Ouellette.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Brok3n on May 14, 2024

The First Law of Quantum Communication The First Law of Quantum Communication is that all explanations of Quantum Mechanics for general audiences are really, really bad*. Sean Carroll's Quanta and Fields: The Biggest Ideas in the Universe is very different from every previous pop quantum mechanics ex......more

Goodreads review by Cheenu on October 15, 2024

Ok I'll admit it - in contrast to the previous book in this series which was on classical mechanics and relativity, I struggled with it from literally chapter 1. I think I kinda got it. Or maybe not. I guess we won't know until we do a test to measure my underst- Wait a minute! Seriously, probably try......more

Goodreads review by Deepak Raja on July 21, 2024

This is the second book of what's supposed to be a trilogy of books trying to explain the mathematical side of the most important ideas in the history of physics to laymen like me. The first book dealt with classical physics while this one focuses on Quantum mechanics. The third book is yet to be pu......more

Goodreads review by Gary on May 16, 2024

Carroll does for physics what Carl Sagan did for astronomy and planetary science in the early ‘80s and he certainly shares the enthusiasm that so defined Sagan. He bridges the gap between the professional scientist and lay person who is looking for a peek under the tent rather than a PhD. In this vo......more

Goodreads review by Gary on June 07, 2024

Half-way through & may not finish. I have a PhD in computer science, but this book requires one in physics, even quantum physics. The author claims the material is accessible to non-quantum theorists, but I disagree. So much is just pulled out if a hat with no explanation. I had hoped for more.......more


Quotes

Praise for Quanta and Fields:

“Readers will be electrified by his discussion of wave functions, entanglement, fields, and so much more. From the most infinitesimal of subatomic particles to the seemingly vast infinities of the universe’s great expanse, Carroll’s latest inquiry illuminates, well, everything.” Booklist

"In that void between hand-wavy popular science and academic textbook, this modern, informative and engaging account of quantum physics ticks all the boxes. Carroll the Explainer at his very best." Jim Al-Khalili