The year in reviews: Books that stood out in 2017
It’s time for Physics Today‘s annual list of holiday book picks—five books reviewed in the magazine this year that will appeal to a broad range of readers. Put these volumes on your own wish list, or buy them for the science lovers in your life. And we encourage you to share your own favorite nonfiction science books in a comment.
Storm in a Teacup: The Physics of Everyday Life by Helen Czerski (W. W. Norton, 2016; $26.95; 288 pp. Buy at Amazon ). In this refreshing book, University College London physicist Helen Czerski looks at the physics we encounter in our daily lives, from the movement of fat globules in milk to the combustion of a candle’s wick. In a Q&A with Physics Today , Czerski said she wanted to show that physics is relatable and even fun. Physics, in her view, “isn’t this distant or serious thing where you think philosophical great thoughts about the universe. It’s right here.” Brad Halfpap called Storm in a Teacup‘s prose “poetic” and said the book “will entertain and educate any person with a healthy curiosity about the natural world.”
Ripples in Spacetime: Einstein, Gravitational Waves, and the Future of Astronomy by Govert Schilling (Harvard U. Press, 2017; $29.95; 340 pp. Buy at Amazon ). Few observers were surprised when LIGO’s Rainer Weiss, Barry Barish, and Kip Thorne got calls from Sweden in early October. But the story of gravitational waves doesn’t begin with LIGO. Science writer Govert Schilling’s book takes the reader on a tour through the history of gravitational waves, including Albert Einstein’s 1916 prediction and nearly half a century’s worth of contentious efforts to detect the ripples in spacetime. Schilling concludes with a tantalizing glimpse at current and upcoming astronomical projects, suggesting that the latest gravitational-wave discoveries are likely only the beginning of an exciting century for astronomy. Richard O’Shaughnessy wrote that Ripples in Spacetime‘s “remarkable breadth and accessibility should make it the first piece of reading material for anyone—from high school students to policymakers—with an interest in gravitational waves.”
Now: The Physics of Time by Richard Muller (W. W. Norton, 2016; $27.95; 368 pp. Buy at Amazon ). Those looking for a provocative theory in their holiday reading should look no further than Richard Muller’s entertaining book on the physics of time. The University of California, Berkeley, physicist sets out to explore why most cosmological theories are not able to account for the flow of time; it continuously moves, even when everything else is standing still. Now begins with a primer on the basic physics of spacetime and concludes with Muller’s bold theory: that the flow of time is not an illusion but rather a real physical phenomenon. Martin Bojowald wrote that Now is “original and intriguing” and that Muller’s theory “deserves a serious look.”
John Stewart Bell and Twentieth-Century Physics: Vision and Integrity by Andrew Whitaker (Oxford U. Press, 2016; $44.95; 460 pp. Buy at Amazon ). CERN theorist John Stewart Bell is most widely remembered for Bell’s theorem, the mind-bending proof that showed the assumptions of locality and realism are not consistent with the predictions of quantum mechanics. In this thoughtful biography, physicist Andrew Whitaker explores Bell’s life and career, covering not only his famous theorem but the particle-physics work he was best known for during his lifetime. Olival Freire Jr praised Whitaker’s meticulous detail and said the book “fills a lacuna felt by many historians, philosophers, and physicists.” John Stewart Bell and Twentieth-Century Physics will make the perfect gift for anyone passionate about the history of quantum theory, particle physics, and CERN.
Void: The Strange Physics of Nothing by James Owen Weatherall (Yale U. Press, 2016; $26.00; 196 pp. Buy at Amazon ). Why do physicists care so much about nothing? In Void, physicist and philosopher James Owen Weatherall shows that debates over the absence of matter have shaped centuries of physics, going back to the days of Isaac Newton and Gottfried Leibniz. “We need to understand nothing to fully understand the structure of our physical theories,” Weatherall argued in a Q&A with Physics Today . “The meaning of nothing is deeply intertwined with what we mean by something.” Like Weatherall’s previous book, The Physics of Wall Street (2013), Void is engagingly written and makes even the densest philosophical concepts and physical theories accessible. Thomas Ryckman called the book “a readable tour of how the physics of nothing has developed.” He said readers will particularly enjoy Weatherall’s account of debates about the quantum vacuum state between Paul Dirac and Pascual Jordan as well as Richard Feynman and Julian Schwinger.
The new year will bring some exciting changes to the Physics Today books section. Our “New Books & Media” column, which launches in January, will feature short reviews of books, films, television shows, graphic novels, software, and more. Watch for the new column in print and online. We look forward to covering even more great science titles.