Quantum: Einstein, Bohr and the Great Debate About the Nature of Reality

I'm half way through and i can't wait to finally get to the end.... so I can start reading all over again immediately!Possibly 'not enough physics' (as another reviewer about to start their 1st year as a Physics undergrad) may think, but there's plenty to amaze and inspire within these covers - and definitely with wa-hay more insight than a more mathematical treatment would inspire - unless you're wed to the principle of causality like poor old Schrodinger 😁 (and who would have thought Physicist's were such a randy bunch - you wouldn't find those sorts of fascinating vignettes in a more theoretical tome!)Some fantastic pictures of all the greats - Curie, Einstein, Heisenberg, Bohr, Schroedinger, Pauli, Rutherford to name only a few - absolutely the best book I've read since I left Uni many moons ago.If you also overlay the economic/political and jingoistic overtones of the times it is amazing to think this scientific revolution all took place less than 100 years ago, especially as without which there would be no smartphone from which to read insightful reviews and order great books 🤔👍

I have spent twenty years reading countless books on quantum physics. Unlike most of the rest which introduce the reader to a new concept and then leave them dangling, this introduced each new area gradually, did not baffle me with pointless facts, and left me feeling more informed than with most of the others combined.I highly recommend this books to those interested in a subject that few people (even the scientists) know to its fullest extent.

For those who have read 'In Search of Schrödinger's Cat', this is essentially a replica of the first few chapters of that book with a lot less physics, and a lot more unnecessary biographies hailing what really were just lucky individuals. As a student of A Level Physics and going on to study physics at university, this seemed like a decent read if you don't know anything about physics, but it will leave you hungry for some real maths.

An excellent book that carefully traces the history of Quantum mechanics from it's beginnings. Manjit Kumar has a talent for being able to explain not just the events of the time but also the physics in a very straightforward way, while giving readers more detail than I expected to find. I found it fascinating and his style is very easy to read, and very difficult to put down. Only snag I have about the book itself (paperback version 2014 by Icon Books) is that the contents page has a list of illustrations for a plate section that isn't actually included in the book. Such a shame because the titles on the list include the classic fifth Solvay Conference 1927 picture, and many other interesting pictures of the main players from that time (and also Niels Bohr's last blackboard diagram...which I am now really curious to see). Still, this apparent discrepancy is not enough to lose any stars in my review because the book itself is so good. Highly recommend, but look around for the hardback version which may have the illustrations?

I've read many books on quantum theory and can honestly say that this book has enlightened me (I'm no physicist or mathematician!) more than any of the others. It's presented as a history of all those involved and the contributions they made to this fascinating subject. It's a wonderful read for anyone who has an interest in how quantum theory evolved in the 20th Century. Highly recommended.