Stuart Woodward reviewed Quantum by Manjit Kumar
Review of 'Quantum' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
I listened to this straight through and really enjoyed it. This is a fantastic book in my opinion.
I got emotional at the chapter when it got to 1930s and Hitler’s rise to power. When it told of which scientists fell in with the Nazis and which scientists escaped.
I also think that through listening to the book I understood some concepts for the first time. Many of which I was taught at school without the historical background. I think it should be taught like this with the historical context and I wish I had read this book before I started A-Level physics.
I laughed at Rutherford making Geiger to stay up all night watching the scintillations of alpha particles and counting them… lololol… no wonder he developed an automated counter.
The thing that sets this apart is that for the most part the description of the science is understandable …
I listened to this straight through and really enjoyed it. This is a fantastic book in my opinion.
I got emotional at the chapter when it got to 1930s and Hitler’s rise to power. When it told of which scientists fell in with the Nazis and which scientists escaped.
I also think that through listening to the book I understood some concepts for the first time. Many of which I was taught at school without the historical background. I think it should be taught like this with the historical context and I wish I had read this book before I started A-Level physics.
I laughed at Rutherford making Geiger to stay up all night watching the scintillations of alpha particles and counting them… lololol… no wonder he developed an automated counter.
The thing that sets this apart is that for the most part the description of the science is understandable to the layman except possibly towards the end. You really get a feel for how the model of the atom and the development of quantum mechanics sequentially came about as new discoveries were made.
It also shows a different side of Einstein in that even though he brought about the initial foundations his questioning of Quantum Mechanics far for being disbelief challenged the other scientists to make progress as they tried to make him accept the new model of reality.
Above all it the human story of an amazing period of scientific discovery by brilliant minds set in the backdrop of two world wars.
