"[Greene] develops one fresh new insight after another...In the great tradition of physicists writing for the masses, The Elegant Universe<...
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Sep 08, 2011
Manny
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[Original review, written December 2008]
When I read this book, I remember thinking it was pretty interesting, but I am surprised how few insights I have retained... to be honest, hardly any. Smolin's The Trouble with Physics, which I read much more recently, suggests that string theory is in big trouble, and right now I am more tempted to side with Smolin.
There's this old Nasrudin story, where he's somehow ended up as judge in a court case. The D.A. really makes a good ca More...
When I read this book, I remember thinking it was pretty interesting, but I am surprised how few insights I have retained... to be honest, hardly any. Smolin's The Trouble with Physics, which I read much more recently, suggests that string theory is in big trouble, and right now I am more tempted to side with Smolin.
There's this old Nasrudin story, where he's somehow ended up as judge in a court case. The D.A. really makes a good ca More...
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Jun 27, 2011
Chris
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Greene's eminently readable attempt to explain the possibilities for string/superstrings to provide the linchpin for the long-awaited-and-desired merger of gravity with the two nuclear and electromagnetic forces into a Grand United Theory. Frankly, the entire idea of rolled up dimensions—of a universe containing perhaps ten, twelve, eighteen dimensions, of which we are only capable of perceiving four—is suitably mind-blowing and humbling at the same time; and although Greene's low-culture themed
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Dec 16, 2009
Robin
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This book presents the latest breakdown of empirical existance with string theory- it's really well written and it sugguest how the fundimentals of all existing things come together in a very similar way as our understanding of music (little vibrations). I love this subject because, where the goal of civilization is to appreciate life in some form of organized chaos, some well spoken theorists have the ability to put things into perspective in such a way that the world seems to teem with p More...
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Dec 16, 2009
Alisha
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I left Christianity a few years ago and swore off religion altogether; however, after reading this book, string theory has become tantamount to religion in my life. Brian Greene writes beautifully about particles, planets, and the origins of our universe as we know it today. It is a heavy book- I don't recommend it for anyone who wants a quick, easy read. It took me almost two months to get through, but I learned a tremendous amount and came away in complete awe of the world and the forces at wo
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Jun 05, 2011
Marvin
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Do I understand string theory? Not sure.
Do I understand M theory? A little bit but don't ask for any algebraic reasoning.
Do I know exactly what a Calabi-Yau is? Not really but I think they look a little like the hair balls from my cat.
This is the second time I've equated quantum physics and all its detours to a hair-ball. That's because I can study a hair ball and still have no idea what it is for and why they exist. String Theory and the elusive TOE is in the More...
Do I understand M theory? A little bit but don't ask for any algebraic reasoning.
Do I know exactly what a Calabi-Yau is? Not really but I think they look a little like the hair balls from my cat.
This is the second time I've equated quantum physics and all its detours to a hair-ball. That's because I can study a hair ball and still have no idea what it is for and why they exist. String Theory and the elusive TOE is in the More...
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Jun 13, 2008
Jack
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This book blew my mind countless times as I read through it, so much so that I could usually only read 10-20 pages in one sitting. I had physics in high school, watched Cosmos and tons of other programs on the universe/relativity/quantum physics etc. so I have always had an interest but not enough to have that be my profession - nor am I smart enough in that way. Books like this let you visit that world for a while and this author does a fantastic job explaining general and advanced physics, Ein
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Mar 23, 2008
ayden
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I read this book while taking a course (for non-physics students) called Modern Physics in Perspective, which centered on string theory. I learned so, so, so much in this class & the book helped a lot. If you're reading this book unassisted, be aware that there are some very confusing sections that you'll need to read a few times. Sometimes his analogies are a bit too inane. Also, I've discovered that many physicists have an unhealthy obsession with their research pet projects- I'd advise that y
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Jan 18, 2012
W.H.
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While I love reading science books, I can't claim to understand all of what I'm reading. Probably 70% on average. But that's enough to enjoy them and challenge myself to stretch to understand more. That is, after all, how we learn.
This book could have been a real brain buster, but Brian Greene explains the most complicated ideas so the layman can understand them. For instance I'd read about string theory before and thought the universe was full of million mile long invisible strings li More...
This book could have been a real brain buster, but Brian Greene explains the most complicated ideas so the layman can understand them. For instance I'd read about string theory before and thought the universe was full of million mile long invisible strings li More...
Jul 29, 2011
Greene took an almost ungraspable concept and delivered it to the lay person with relative panache. Giving practical, macroscopic examples of relativity and spacetime; breaking down the concepts within quantum theory; taking the various forms of string theory and mentioning the compilation of those theories to M-theory, makes Greene gifted.
Unfortunately, there are digressions and obvious gaps that most readers are trying to come to terms with, which Greene doesn't even mention. Oftentimes, many More...
Unfortunately, there are digressions and obvious gaps that most readers are trying to come to terms with, which Greene doesn't even mention. Oftentimes, many More...
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Jul 28, 2011
Matt
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The first section of the book boasts an outstanding, lucid introduction to the underlying "pillars" of Modern Physics: Classical Mechanics, Special & General Relativity, and Quantum Mechanics. These chapters involve a great number of thoughtful, clever analogies. If this is your maiden venture into popular physics literature (as it was mine), the first 135 pages or so are really worthy of sufficiently focused study. My whole worldview has been changed as a result!
The rem More...
The rem More...
Jul 28, 2011
Michael
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For those interested in "simply" understanding our universe this book offers an interesting tour of modern physics included a review of relativity, quantum mechanics and the search for TOE (the Theory Of Everything). However it is not for the faint of heart or those with limited imaginations. Here is what I love about physics - at some point the field left the realm of perceptibly plausible human reality and entered the realm of imaginative fantasy. How can light and matter be both w
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Jun 22, 2011
Rico
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The Elegant Universe: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest for the Ultimate Theory
After reading Faster Than the Speed of Light this book was a natural follow up - Magueijo does a lot of "elegant bashing".
This book was very good but definitely not for as casual of an audience as A Brief History of Time. The ideas presented here can be appreciated by anyone - but Greene provides details that are fairly advanced. I have degrees in electrical engineering More...
After reading Faster Than the Speed of Light this book was a natural follow up - Magueijo does a lot of "elegant bashing".
This book was very good but definitely not for as casual of an audience as A Brief History of Time. The ideas presented here can be appreciated by anyone - but Greene provides details that are fairly advanced. I have degrees in electrical engineering More...
May 23, 2011
Dylan
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When I started this book it was honestly more for the cover and to learn something. Quantum physics was never really my thing. I enjoyed reading more biology kind of books. The Selfish Gene, The Greatest Show on Earth, and so on. But upon reading this book I instantly feel in love with string theory and physics all together. Brian Greene writes with such perfection that a dumb teen like me could understand all the material. It was a little hard to read just because the information is so in depth
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May 11, 2011
This book may have taken me longer to read than any I've read in my entire life. It was immensely complicated, and I had to reread many passages more than once or twice. I found myself enjoying a lot of pieces of the book even without understanding some of the more detailed ideas. The book does an okay job of explaining the theories themselves, though they still are difficult to grasp (despite the authors best efforts). However,even without fully understanding the individual concepts, the bo
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Mar 19, 2011
Alex
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It’s been over a decade since the publication of the popular and bestselling The Elegant Universe by Brian Greene. In the original introduction, Greene talks about not knowing how a book on superstrings, quantum theory, and the theory of everything would be popular; and now ten years later, with another new edition, along with the release of his new book, The Hidden Reality; it seems like many readers continue to be fascinated by the mysteries of our world and the cosmos.
Greene covers More...
Greene covers More...
Feb 09, 2011
JenniferRuth
rated it:
Write a review...Brian Greene has written and excellent popular science book that really displays his passion for the subject of string theory. He does a brilliant job of explaining difficult concepts for the layperson and manages to make most of the book engaging and understandable.
The book starts out by explaining the well-known concepts of special and general relativity before moving on to quantum mechanics and then to the greater intricacies of string theory. It finishes by giving More...
The book starts out by explaining the well-known concepts of special and general relativity before moving on to quantum mechanics and then to the greater intricacies of string theory. It finishes by giving More...
Nov 05, 2010
For me, "The Elegant Universe" is the book that started it all. Greene has such a smooth way of easing the novice into the complexities of string theory, the reader feels almost acquainted by the time the science is introduced. Never boring or tedious, Greene deftly guides us through the basics of relativity, explains the importance of frames of reference, and eases us into the almost magical world of gravity and timespace.
Like Einstein, Greene presents the science through simple More...
Like Einstein, Greene presents the science through simple More...
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Sep 18, 2010
Dad
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This is a very good book on a very complex subject. String theory is the latest way physicists are trying to connect relativity theory with quantum mechanics. Most people are familiar with relativity theory. Greene gives the best description of it I have ever read. Quantum mechanics is the other side of physics. Where relativity theory tries to explain the workings of the greater universe, quantum mechanics tries to explain the working of atoms. The two views of the universe - the very l
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Jul 27, 2010
Keith
rated it:
Gave it four stars because the book gave me a glimpse into the truly amazing world of string theory. Brian Greene has a gift for explaining these incredibly complex things in a way that makes sense to readers.
The first quarter of the book covers special and general relativity. I have a degree in Physics along with some graduate studies in the field, and while I know this subject well, I felt the author's descriptions are apt and approachable. He tells stories to get the main conce More...
The first quarter of the book covers special and general relativity. I have a degree in Physics along with some graduate studies in the field, and while I know this subject well, I felt the author's descriptions are apt and approachable. He tells stories to get the main conce More...
Apr 17, 2010
Dennis
rated it:
Greene, Brian. The Elegant Universe: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest for the Ultimate Theory (1999)
Is string theory a social construction?
Physicist and mathematician Brian Greene's ambitious project here is to make intelligible to the lay reader just what string theory is all about. He begins by explaining the ideas of relativity and quantum mechanics and why a new theory is needed. This part of the book, 131 pages worth, is intelligible and makes for an engag More...
Is string theory a social construction?
Physicist and mathematician Brian Greene's ambitious project here is to make intelligible to the lay reader just what string theory is all about. He begins by explaining the ideas of relativity and quantum mechanics and why a new theory is needed. This part of the book, 131 pages worth, is intelligible and makes for an engag More...
Apr 11, 2010
Juliet
rated it:
This is an excellent book. Having recently read two other books about astronomy which I had found totally incomprehensible this was a great find. It is brilliant, engaging and accessible. Those who are serious physicists, mathematicians or astronomers may find the light hearted and surreal explanations of things sometimes a little frivolous. However, I'm a biologist, who during my degree, took an extra class in astronomy and walked out after two weeks of incomprehensible lectures, though I retai
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Feb 13, 2010
Neil
rated it:
My belief is based on the fact that string theory is the first science in hundreds of years to be pursued in pre-Baconian fashion, without any adequate experimental guidance.
Philip Warren Anderson
Since the middle of the 20th century, the fundamental problem of physics has been finding the Theory of Everything: A theory that would reconcile Relativity, Einstein's theory of the very large; to live alongside of Quantum Mechanics, the paradoxical theory of probabi More...
Philip Warren Anderson
Since the middle of the 20th century, the fundamental problem of physics has been finding the Theory of Everything: A theory that would reconcile Relativity, Einstein's theory of the very large; to live alongside of Quantum Mechanics, the paradoxical theory of probabi More...
Mar 11, 2009
Lindsay
rated it:
I'm an English major and I can't do simple multiplication without a calculator, so needless to say, this is not my subject. I found this book to be really cool, though.
First, Greene does an astounding job breaking down these incredibly complex concepts so that anyone can understand them (and when I say that, I mean it, because I still don't understand gravity, let along super string theory). So anyone looking for a basic break-down of these super interesting ideas, this is the book More...
First, Greene does an astounding job breaking down these incredibly complex concepts so that anyone can understand them (and when I say that, I mean it, because I still don't understand gravity, let along super string theory). So anyone looking for a basic break-down of these super interesting ideas, this is the book More...
Oct 06, 2011
chi
rated it:
The first few chapters were incredibly engaging--Brian Greene does a great job of explaining relativity to a simple-minded boor like myself. The best part were the vivid visuals he provided. When he got into quantum physics, it became more difficult to follow his ideas but the examples he gave again proved to erect lucid images of the subject matter--another fantastic boon of this book. The bits about what you came here to read about were rather confusing though; I didn't find his explanation of
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Jul 29, 2011
About the best book on the subject and by a mile. As almost all the other reviewers claim, the initial parts on Newtonian, Relativistic and Quantum science are so beautifully and novelly explained that they should be made mandatory in any study books on the topic.
The approach continues as the author jumps to explaining a far more complex super-string theory. And here, the simplistic explanations make the theory look highly speculative, fantastic and without much ground/proof. This is certainly More...
The approach continues as the author jumps to explaining a far more complex super-string theory. And here, the simplistic explanations make the theory look highly speculative, fantastic and without much ground/proof. This is certainly More...
Jan 17, 2012
John
rated it:
The first few chapters serve as a fairly adequate primer for a layman. But as Greene got more and more involved with mentioning his own, somewhat biographical contributions to string theory, my interest waned.
The last three chapters returned to what I considered the more interesting part of the book. I'll probably have to re-read the sections that I didn't enjoy, because I admittedly had a really hard time following what was going on later in the book.
The last three chapters returned to what I considered the more interesting part of the book. I'll probably have to re-read the sections that I didn't enjoy, because I admittedly had a really hard time following what was going on later in the book.
Nov 20, 2011
Sara
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Overall, the author did a really great job of explaining a huge portion of theoretical physics without using any math, only visual analogies and metaphors. Not having any prior formal exposure to physics (somehow, I missed out on ever taking a physics class, in all my years of schooling), I can't really comprehend how hard the task was, nor am I really in a position to evaluate the accuracy of his descriptions. I imagine this book would be really frustrating to actual theoretical physicists ---
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Jun 01, 2011
Lon
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Awe-inspiring, mind-boggling, paradigm-shattering, head-scratching. Like other theoretical physics writers for the general public, Greene assiduously (and mercifully) leaves out any whiff of the formulas and calculations underpinning the theories; still, tracking the explanations can be breathtakingly difficult, and I confess to being unpleasantly lost more often than I'd care to admit. Greene's gift is his ability to find the right metaphor, or the right thought experiment, to elucidate the sub
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Mar 20, 2011
Anderson
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That book opened a new whole world for me. I always tried to understand physics, cosmology, etc, Ive tried "The Universe on a Shell Nut" and "A brief history of time" both from Stephen Hawking, but these books only served me to make me fell stupid, cause er'body regards these books as easy to grasp (I by myself dont share this opnion). ELEGANT UNIVERSE is different I kinda "eat" this book in one week (about 500 pages) I understand a lot of the ideias the author expl
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