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Beyond Weird
- Narrated by: Jonathan Cowley
- Length: 9 hrs and 20 mins
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Publisher's summary
"Anyone who is not shocked by quantum theory has not understood it."
Since Niels Bohr said this many years ago, quantum mechanics has only been getting more shocking. We now realize that it's not really telling us that "weird" things happen out of sight, on the tiniest level, in the atomic world: Rather, everything is quantum. But if quantum mechanics is correct, what seems obvious and right in our everyday world is built on foundations that don't seem obvious or right at all - or even possible.
An exhilarating tour of the contemporary quantum landscape, Beyond Weird is a book about what quantum physics really means - and what it doesn't. Science writer Philip Ball offers an up-to-date, accessible account of the quest to come to grips with the most fundamental theory of physical reality, and to explain how its counterintuitive principles underpin the world we experience.
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Shining a light on the most profound insights revealed by modern physics, Jim Al-Khalili invites us all to understand what this crucially important science tells us about the universe and the nature of reality itself. Al-Khalili begins by introducing the fundamental concepts of space, time, energy, and matter, and then describes the three pillars of modern physics - quantum theory, relativity, and thermodynamics - showing how all three must come together if we are ever to have a full understanding of reality.
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excellent book
- By Anonymous User on 05-10-21
By: Jim Al-Khalili
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Warped Passages
- Unraveling the Mysteries of the Universe's Hidden Dimensions
- By: Lisa Randall
- Narrated by: Donna Postel
- Length: 17 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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Warped Passages is an altogether exhilarating journey that tracks the arc of discovery from early 20th-century physics to the razor's edge of modern scientific theory. One of the world's leading theoretical physicists, Lisa Randall provides astonishing scientific possibilities that, until recently, were restricted to the realm of science fiction. Unraveling the twisted threads of the most current debates on relativity, quantum mechanics, and gravity, she explores some of the most fundamental questions posed by Nature.
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Physics textbook without the math
- By Victor on 05-13-18
By: Lisa Randall
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Beyond Biocentrism
- Rethinking Time, Space, Consciousness, and the Illusion of Death
- By: Robert Lanza, Bob Berman
- Narrated by: Peter Ganim
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In Beyond Biocentrism, acclaimed biologist Robert Lanza and astronomer Bob Berman take the listener on an intellectual thrill ride as they reexamine everything we thought we knew about life, death, the universe, and the nature of reality itself. The first step is acknowledging that our existing model of reality is looking increasingly creaky in the face of recent scientific discoveries.
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Here's the thing
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By: Robert Lanza, and others
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A Beginner’s Guide to Reality
- Exploring Our Everyday Adventures in Wonderland
- By: Jim Baggott
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A unique fusion of philosophy and metaphysics set against the backdrop of contemporary culture. Have you ever wondered if the world is really there when you're not looking? We tend to take the reality of our world very much for granted. This book will lead you down the rabbit hole in search of something we can point to, hang our hats on, and say this is real.
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A real great listen on the nature of reality
- By Patrick Mabry, Jr. on 07-30-14
By: Jim Baggott
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Dance of the Photons
- From Einstein to Quantum Teleportation
- By: Anton Zeilinger
- Narrated by: L. J. Ganser
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Einstein's steadfast refusal to accept certain aspects of quantum theory was rooted in his insistence that physics has to be about reality. Accordingly, he once derided as spooky action at a distance the notion that two elementary particles far removed from each other could nonetheless influence each others propertiesa hypothetical phenomenon his fellow theorist Erwin Schrdinger termed quantum entanglement.
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Brilliant author tries hard, but comes up short...
- By Michael on 07-27-12
By: Anton Zeilinger
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Paradox
- The Nine Greatest Enigmas in Physics
- By: Jim Al-Khalili
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Throughout history, scientists have come up with theories and ideas that just don't seem to make sense. These we call paradoxes. The paradoxes Al-Khalili offers are drawn chiefly from physics and astronomy and represent those that have stumped some of the finest minds. With elegant explanations that bring the listener inside the mind of those who've developed them, Al-Khalili helps us to see that, in fact, paradoxes can be solved if seen from the right angle.
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Almost Useless
- By Michael on 06-19-19
By: Jim Al-Khalili
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What Is Real?
- The Unfinished Quest for the Meaning of Quantum Physics
- By: Adam Becker
- Narrated by: Greg Tremblay
- Length: 11 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
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Every physicist agrees quantum mechanics is among humanity's finest scientific achievements. But ask what it means, and the result will be a brawl. For a century, most physicists have followed Niels Bohr's Copenhagen interpretation and dismissed questions about the reality underlying quantum physics as meaningless. A mishmash of solipsism and poor reasoning, Copenhagen endured, as Bohr's students vigorously protected his legacy, and the physics community favored practical experiments over philosophical arguments.
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Good, "light" "read"... potential caveat below...
- By James S. on 03-31-18
By: Adam Becker
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Six Not-So-Easy Pieces
- Einstein's Relativity, Symmetry, and Space-Time
- By: Richard P. Feynman
- Narrated by: Richard P. Feynman
- Length: 5 hrs and 24 mins
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No 20th-century American scientist is better known to a wider spectrum of people than Richard P. Feynman (1918-1988), physicist, teacher, author, and cultural icon. His autobiographies and biographies have been read and enjoyed by millions of readers around the world, while his wit and eccentricities have made him the subject of TV specials and even a theatrical film.
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Very Interesting, but ...
- By Doug on 01-01-06
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Uncertainty
- Einstein, Heisenberg, Bohr, and the Struggle for the Soul of Science
- By: David Lindley
- Narrated by: Robert Blumenfeld
- Length: 7 hrs and 2 mins
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Werner Heisenberg's "uncertainty principle" challenged centuries of scientific understanding, placed him in direct opposition to Albert Einstein, and put Niels Bohr in the middle of one of the most heated debates in scientific history. Heisenberg's theorem stated that there were physical limits to what we could know about sub-atomic particles; this "uncertainty" would have shocking implications.
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fascinating insight into the real drama of physics
- By Ryan on 09-07-10
By: David Lindley
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A Brief History of Infinity: The Quest to Think the Unthinkable
- Brief Histories
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Space is big. Really big. You just won't believe how vastly, hugely, mind-bogglingly big it is. I mean, you may think it's a long way down the street to the chemist, but that's just peanuts to space.' Douglas Adams, Hitch-hiker's Guide to the Galaxy.We human beings have trouble with infinity - yet infinity is a surprisingly human subject. Philosophers and mathematicians have gone mad contemplating its nature and complexity - yet it is a concept routinely used by schoolchildren. Exploring the infinite is a
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Really not great in Audio, not great otherwise
- By Michael on 03-29-13
By: Brian Clegg
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What listeners say about Beyond Weird
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Ray
- 03-17-19
A difficult listen
This is the fifth book I have listened to on the topic of quantum physics. This book is largely a poorly organized conversation that discusses many sides of the story in a verbose and conversational manner leaving the listener with no greater understanding than they started with. The narrator reads with pressured speech and the inflections in his voice leave the listener confused as to when each idea ends. This reading style, combined with the lack of a succinct writing style leave the listener fatigued, asking for the end.
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17 people found this helpful
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- Stephen H.
- 03-26-19
Interesting Insights, Poor Narration At First
I found Ball's take insightful and interesting. I have some formal education on the subject, as well as experience with many popular texts, so I am always on the lookout for a new perspective. The treatment seemed rather apologetic of the Bohr/Copenhagen interpretation at the start, but the approach eventually paid off as he began to delve deeper and explore alternative interpretations. I found the discussion thought-provoking, and the discussion of decoherence was one of the best I've seen in a popular science account. I thought the arguments against Many Worlds were weak, amounting to an aesthetic choice, albeit a complex philosophical one, even as he complained of others rejecting the argument on more base aesthetic grounds. That said, prior to this book, I had gotten the impression both that I and the professional physics community were coming close to an understanding of quantum physics. Ball's treatment shows that there really is much more mystery to be uncovered, and I found that exhilarating.
Through the first half of the book or so, the narration was very poor. I think there is a tendency to dislike a narrator until one gets used to the voice and style. In this case, however, the narrator seemed to me to have little more than 2 inflections he used for each sentence. While I don't expect a narrator to understand topics such as quantum physics, I expect them to sound like they do. A mispronunciation here and there is understandable. However, while the narration was not monotone, the lack of appropriate inflections and flow between sentences led me to believe the narrator was reading words from the page while making no connection to their meaning. Fortunately, the narrator either began making this connection or became more engaged over the course of the book, and the narration improved. This is why I gave the performance 3 stars instead of 1.
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- Michael
- 07-07-19
Does not practice what is preached
The author starts by explaining the title is not to imply quantum physics is more than weird, but instead we should see beyond the apparent weirdness to an underlying simplicity. Great! He also points out quantum theory demands that we do not apply it to trajectories or paths and even discussing particles except in relation to a measurement should be avoided. Great again! Unfortunately, the author then proceeds to discuss paths and particle pointing out again and again the weirdness this discussion leads to. He even seems to equate the word “quantum” with “weirdness”. The author continues this until the last few pages, when he returns to the point of the title, that we really do need to see and speak beyond weirdness. It seems the author does not practice what he preaches.
Ball also makes other common blunders that muddy the water. For example, he talks of the chunking of energy instead of action. Energy, in general, is not quantized, but action always is. He claims interference only occurs with waves (continuous) – while interference also happens with many discrete repeating patters like window-screens, spider-webs, or nylon stocking. Artificial limitations like this do not help us see beyond the weirdness.
I had hoped this would be a text that talked beyond the weirdness but that is not the case. Other than the prolog and epilog it is just yet another discussion of quantum weirdness without clear direction.
See instead Einstein’s Unfinished Revolution (especially the last chapters).
The narration was understandable, but tone seemed stilted at times, and other times passages seemed rushed without inflection.
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- Amazon Customer
- 02-22-19
better questions for quantum mechanics
fascinating perspectives from which to view quantum mechanics - from more understandable and logically consistent viewpoints - than I have ever come across
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- gihayes
- 02-05-20
Great Book! Listened Straight Through
Covered many unresolved questions I had about Quantum Physics. it covered Its origins, its puzzles, its personalities, and its possible future. it presented a truer and most comprehensive view of what Quantum Physics is , and what it isn't better than any book, paper, or article I have read in the past. it did so with humor and without being condescending.
it flowed quickly, and smoothly with no dead spots. it stayed on topic, and held me interested throughout. Every explanation or description was clear and measured. And every paragraph was informative. It did not need any filler. The book covers the pro's and cons from every thing from Relativity to The Many Worlds Interpretation. This is my ne Goto book for physics!
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- Amazon Customer
- 07-16-22
Every sentence sounds like a title
I found the information of the book well explained but the reading style of the narrator made it difficult to finish. Each sentence sounds of absolute importance and that threw me off, making it difficult to distinguish the central point of the argument from a one-off comment.
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- Max
- 10-27-20
great book, bad narration
the narrator is bad, weird, retarded, robotic, worse than a computer voice. the book es exceptionaly good.
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- plantarFasciitis
- 06-18-19
Great
Once you get used to the distinctly British verbal convolution, the book is exceptional, deep, clear, candid, and eye opening.
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- Powernoodle
- 03-01-24
Buy it.
Beyond Weird is truly one of the greatest resources for anyone who cares about quantum mechanics. Listen to it over and over. Take notes. And then listen some more. It really is that good. While no resource can help you understand quantum mechanics, at least you'll be at peace with your ignorance.
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- DudsDad2
- 01-11-23
Beyond Weird is a great read.
A lucid explanation of the elusive truths of quantum physics for the lay person to understand. It is well written with understandable explanations as well as being entertaining and holds one’s interest.
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