The Quantum Labyrinth

How Richard Feynman and John Wheeler Revolutionized Time and Reality

By: Paul Halpern

Narrated by: Brian Troxell

The story of the unlikely friendship between the two physicists who fundamentally recast the notion of time and history

In 1939, Richard Feynman, a brilliant graduate of MIT, arrived in John Wheeler's Princeton office to report for duty as his teaching assistant. A lifelong friendship and enormously productive collaboration was born, despite sharp differences in personality. The soft-spoken Wheeler, though conservative in appearance, was a raging nonconformist full of wild ideas about the universe. The boisterous Feynman was a cautious physicist who believed only what could be tested. Yet they were complementary spirits. Their collaboration led to a complete rethinking of the nature of time and reality. It enabled Feynman to show how quantum reality is a combination of alternative, contradictory possibilities, and inspired Wheeler to develop his landmark concept of wormholes, portals to the future and past. Together, Feynman and Wheeler made sure that quantum physics would never be the same again.

Critic reviews

"[Paul Halpern] is at his best when explaining concepts of physics."—Wall Street Journal

"Feynman was a doer, Wheeler a dreamer. So Paul Halpern aptly describes them in The Quantum Labyrinth, his book about their lives, work and friendship, and the virtues of their complementary styles....Feynman was one of the greatest intuitive problem-solvers in twentieth-century physics, a world-class doer. But I suspect that many readers will take most pleasure from the account of Wheeler's inspired dreaming."—Nature

"Paul Halpern brings the full story of these men to life in a brilliant way...Feynman's contributions to the development of quantum field theory...are not only covered, they're explained in gloriously in-depth and simultaneously comprehensible fashion...Well-researched, well-written, and highly accessible."
—Forbes.com/Starts With a Bang

"[The Quantum Labyrinth] provides a portrait of a rather neglected era in physics. Following the twin revolutions of quantum theory and relativity in the early 1900s, the 1940s to the late 1960s can appear like a time when already challenging ideas became all but incomprehensible beyond the academy. But Halpern shows that it was every bit as significant as the pre-war period that looks now to be an age almost of gods and legends."—Physics World

"Excellent...[Halpern] brings onto the stage two of the key developers of the modern quantum theory."—Nature Physics

"Readers soon see that Feynman achieved his breakthroughs in physics by collaborating with his mentor, John Wheeler...With the same clarity that has attracted readers to Einstein's Dice and Schrödinger's Cat and his other books of popular science, Halpern retraces the way this unlikely pair smashed traditional understandings of time...A compelling reminder that even the most triumphant science comes from vulnerable humans."—Booklist (starred review)

"[Halpern] paints an evocative picture of the tension between cooperation and competition felt by researchers at the cutting edge."—Library Journal

"Go to any physics meeting and ask each person there for their list of the top ten most influential physicists of the 20th century. Lots of different names will appear, but everybody will name Einstein (of course!). Nearly all will mention Feynman and Wheeler, too. After reading Halpern's thought-provoking book, you'll understand why."--- Paul J. Nahin, Professor Emeritus of Electrical Engineering at University of New Hampshire and author of In Praise of Simple Physics

Wonderful ride!

I really enjoyed traveling back in time- the history, the friendship and ground breaking science. The theories were well explained and thus a truly well rounded, wonderful and enlightening voyage. Thank you Dr Halpern

Hugo L.

A wonderful history of the most spectacular aspects of modern physics. An excellent survey for the interested layman, enlivened by anecdotal pictures of Wheeler and Feynman. Very well read - I found it useful to change the recital speech to 0.75 on occasion.

Fantastical journey through space, time. Loved it!

An amazing biographical retelling of two highly influential figures in physics of the last century. True to the subjects, Halpern's book meanders through various possible stories (though, not ALL possibilities!) and settles into the best possible path, bringing the characters to life for those of us not fortunate enough to have met them.

Fun book, but some minor issues.

I have have known well many of the physicists in this book and enjoyed reading a few of the stories I had not heard or just liked rehearing. But, as with some other books I have listened to lately, some of the names are pronounced incorrectly. Narrators or producers need to be more careful. Just for example, Stan Deser's name is said wrong as are a number of others.

good if you're really interested in the topic.

it doesn't go into technical details, but you should at least be familiar with the subject matter at a high level.

Physics through history.

This was a great account of both the development of physics during the 1900's, but also the environment it happened in. The author masterfully described complex phenomena through storytelling and often assisted the listeners understanding by intertwining the struggles the scientists went through. This is by no means a primer on Physics, but a sweet spot for the recreational physicist.

Loved it!

I have so much more of an appreciation for Feynman and Wheeler now, those two are incredible!

Science porn. Openheimer vibes.

Science porn. Openheimer vibes. Another take on 20th century physics and life stories of the physicists.

Worth reading if you like historical physics

I’ve read other works about Feynman, which were perhaps more complete, but this is certainly a good addition. I’ve always respected Wheelers work but never read his bio. I found this to be a good one. Other reviewers have implied that their relationship represented in this book is too contrived. I disagree. They had a lifelong relationship that is worth noting. Overall I recommend it, even if you read other similar works.

reveals the human side of quantum mechanics

it's a real interesting story of two scientist s that made great contributions to quantum mechanics, it reveals also how close to each other were the scientist s that developed this field. Bohr, eistein, Pauli