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Lost in Math
- How Beauty Leads Physics Astray
- Narrated by: Laura Jennings
- Length: 8 hrs and 40 mins
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A contrarian argues that modern physicists' obsession with beauty has given us wonderful math but bad science
Whether pondering black holes or predicting discoveries at CERN, physicists believe the best theories are beautiful, natural, and elegant, and this standard separates popular theories from disposable ones. This is why, Sabine Hossenfelder argues, we have not seen a major breakthrough in the foundations of physics for more than four decades. The belief in beauty has become so dogmatic that it now conflicts with scientific objectivity: observation has been unable to confirm mindboggling theories, like supersymmetry or grand unification, invented by physicists based on aesthetic criteria. Worse, these "too good to not be true" theories are actually untestable and they have left the field in a cul-de-sac. To escape, physicists must rethink their methods. Only by embracing reality as it is can science discover the truth.
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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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The Big Picture
- On the Origins of Life, Meaning, and the Universe Itself
- By: Sean Carroll
- Narrated by: Sean Carroll
- Length: 17 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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Already internationally acclaimed for his elegant, lucid writing on the most challenging notions in modern physics, Sean Carroll is emerging as one of the greatest humanist thinkers of his generation as he brings his extraordinary intellect to bear not only on the Higgs boson and extra dimensions but now also on our deepest personal questions. Where are we? Who are we? Are our emotions, our beliefs, and our hopes and dreams ultimately meaningless out there in the void?
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ABSOLUTE MUST READ!
- By serine on 05-12-16
By: Sean Carroll
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Einstein and the Quantum
- The Quest of the Valiant Swabian
- By: A. Douglas Stone
- Narrated by: Gabriel Vaughan
- Length: 11 hrs and 9 mins
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Einstein and the Quantum reveals for the first time the full significance of Albert Einstein's contributions to quantum theory. Einstein famously rejected quantum mechanics, observing that God does not play dice. But, in fact, he thought more about the nature of atoms, molecules, and the emission and absorption of light - the core of what we now know as quantum theory - than he did about relativity.
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educational and fun
- By Amjad on 12-04-13
By: A. Douglas Stone
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The Infinity Puzzle
- Quantum Field Theory and the Hunt for an Orderly Universe
- By: Frank Close
- Narrated by: Jonathan Cowley
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The second half of the 20th century witnessed a scientific gold rush as physicists raced to chart the inner workings of the atom. The stakes were high, the questions were big, and there were Nobel Prizes and everlasting glory to be won. Many mysteries of the atom came unraveled, but one remained intractable-what Frank Close calls the "Infinity Puzzle."
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Succinct exposition
- By Gary on 06-26-12
By: Frank Close
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The World According to Physics
- By: Jim Al-Khalili
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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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Paradox
- The Nine Greatest Enigmas in Physics
- By: Jim Al-Khalili
- Narrated by: Matthew Waterson
- Length: 6 hrs and 54 mins
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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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Uncertainty
- Einstein, Heisenberg, Bohr, and the Struggle for the Soul of Science
- By: David Lindley
- Narrated by: Robert Blumenfeld
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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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The Universe in the Rearview Mirror
- How Hidden Symmetries Shape Reality
- By: Dave Goldberg
- Narrated by: Chris Sorensen
- Length: 10 hrs and 35 mins
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A physicist speeds across space, time, and everything in between showing that our elegant universe from the Higgs boson to antimatter to the most massive group of galaxies is shaped by hidden symmetries that have driven all our recent discoveries about the universe and all the ones to come. Why is the sky dark at night? Is it possible to build a shrink-ray gun? If there is antimatter, can there be antipeople? Why are past, present, and future our only options? Are time and space like a butterfly's wings? No one but Dave Goldberg, the coolest nerd physicist on the planet, could give a hyper-drive tour of the universe like this one.
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Good, but for whom?
- By Michael on 08-31-13
By: Dave Goldberg
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When Einstein Walked with Gödel
- Excursions to the Edge of Thought
- By: Jim Holt
- Narrated by: David Stifel
- Length: 15 hrs and 19 mins
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Does time exist? What is infinity? Why do mirrors reverse left and right but not up and down? In this scintillating collection, Holt explores the human mind, the cosmos, and the thinkers who’ve tried to encompass the latter with the former. With his trademark clarity and humor, Holt probes the mysteries of quantum mechanics, the quest for the foundations of mathematics, and the nature of logic and truth. Along the way, he offers intimate biographical sketches of celebrated and neglected thinkers, from the physicist Emmy Noether to the computing pioneer Alan Turing and the discoverer of fractals, Benoit Mandelbrot.
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A good overview of scientific theory
- By MJ Walters on 09-11-18
By: Jim Holt
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To Explain the World
- The Discovery of Modern Science
- By: Steven Weinberg
- Narrated by: Tom Perkins
- Length: 10 hrs and 43 mins
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In this rich, irreverent, and compelling history, Nobel Prize-winning physicist Steven Weinberg takes us across centuries, from ancient Miletus to medieval Baghdad and Oxford, from Plato's Academy and the Museum of Alexandria to the cathedral school of Chartres and the Royal Society of London. He shows that the scientists of ancient and medieval times not only did not understand what we understand about the world--they did not understand what there is to understand or how to understand it.
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How the world created a Newton
- By Gary on 03-02-15
By: Steven Weinberg
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Can space be divided into smaller and smaller units, ad infinitum? Does space extend to larger and larger regions, on and on to infinity? Is consciousness reducible to the material brain and its neurons? What was the origin of life, and can biologists create life from scratch in the lab? Physicist and novelist Alan Lightman explores these questions and more - from the anatomy of a smile to the capriciousness of memory to the specialness of life in the universe to what came before the Big Bang.
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What listeners say about Lost in Math
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- George Hrabovsky
- 10-14-19
A Theoretical Physicist look at Particle Physics
This is a very nice book that explains how theoretical particle physics has come to be dominated by the speculative theories of supersymmetry and superstrings. Recent experimental results mentioned in the book, and a couple that were not explored, have thrown these edifices into doubt. This has led to a crisis in theoretical physics. This book is an excellent overview of that crisis.
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- Bethany Bruder
- 12-10-19
An interesting take on physics
Let me be clear- math and science are not my strong suits so I cannot speak to the validity of the research on the topic, but I enjoyed it. It was well written, well narrated,and accessible to the listener.
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- Alex D Taylor
- 12-18-21
it gives me better understanding of Sabine
I knew Sabine from YouTube so I liked the book and understand her frustrations with the state of physics better now
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- Amazon Customer
- 10-07-22
Sabine H. is amazing.
Great book/perspective and one can't help but believe that perhaps she is right about the seeming dead end into which physics has been enticed. Difficult as it may be to find perhaps a new perspective (not so "beautiful") is where physics needs to head???
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- J.B.
- 12-24-22
Masterful, If I Could Only Understand
I grasped about 40% of what was written (spoken) and then understood about 25% of that which I comprehended. That measures out to a 10% mastering of the data and examination of the data presented in Lost in Math, How Beauty Leads Physics Astray, written by Sabine Hossenfelder, and delightfully narrated by Laura Jennings. I am not a cosmologist: obviously. Yet, I very much enjoy learning about observational astronomy and particle physics. I love discovering unresolved issues and contemplating answers, or what my ignorance presupposes could be solutions. Just for the right to fantasize. It brings ease to my mental state of being.
Dr. Hossenfelder takes note that cosmology has had very diminished success over the last 80 years in developing answers; particularly if compared to the prior 80 years. She, in this examination of why, is critical of the formalism that has overtaken the academic world of physics. Along the way she turns out to be a very good describer of the science of physics (notwithstanding my 10% understanding of what she is teaching me).
This read (listen) was just true fun. Recommended.
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- ironfrown
- 04-29-23
Questioning the very foundations of Physics
The book reviews the main theories of quantum physics, questioning their fundamental assumptions and methods. The story is critical of the more controversial developments, it is very personal and reflective, yet it reveals the author's rigorous scientific thinking. Excellent line of argument, easy listening, despite the high pace of reading.
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- Oliver
- 01-06-19
A timely critique
In the era of the reproducibility crisis, scientists from diverse disciplines often aspire to the standards of physics, where experimental results are orders of magnitude more reliable than elsewhere. Hossenfelder and Jennings point out that there is another problem eating away at many scientific disciplines, and specifically affecting theoretical particle physics: an overweening reliance on aesthetic judgements such as 'naturalness' and elegance. The authors offer a timely critique of this growing problem with detailed examples and compelling interviews -- while remaining circumspect about making philosophical assertions that generalize out of their area of expertise. I recommend this book to any practicing scientist or philosopher of science.
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- See Reverse
- 03-15-19
An Explanation of How the Physics Community Works
If you were curious about how the science of physics progresses - this is a fascinating read. The interconnection of theoretical physics, experimental physics, and mathematics is currently struggling through a period of difficult, high-cost experiments in order to progress to a better understanding of material reality. In the absence of new experiments, theoretical physics is favoring mathematical theories, like Super-Symmetry and String Theory which have "beautiful" ramifications for physics, but a continued lack of empirical support. In this book, Hossenfelder confronts the current state and bias of physics with an aim toward grounding physics in the physical world - a common-held belief that is now wavering in some pockets of the physics world.
Although this book focuses primarily on the system of people involved in advancing physics in the world today, it does address concerns of modernity: the busy, multi-tasked roles of physicists today is not improving the quality or advancement of the discipline. Where cutting edge physics experiments are expensive, putting a few string theorists on staff to draw attention to your department is cheap. Hossenfelder also provides a strong critique of economics... something like "economists are not advancing mathematics - even though string theory hasn't yet proved itself as a physical theory, at least it advances mathematics."
What a great listen - if you're at all interested in physics!
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20 people found this helpful
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- Anonymous User
- 05-19-23
A message from the trenches
At first I thought the book was too long for the simple thesis it’s presenting, namely that physicists have become obsessed with beauty as a criterion for truth. However, as the author developed and reiterated her point, the book never became boring. As a scientist at that precarious interface between dependence and independence, I appreciate her voice critical of the establishment but also constructive. Appendix C is worthy of becoming a manifesto. There are eloquent gems scattered throughout, for example, “it smelled of science - coffee”.
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- Patrick
- 06-15-21
Bias in Science
This is perhaps the best book I've come across in dealing with the Philosophy of Science and the underlying biases we have in the fields. It doesn't start this way but it's a discovery of why limits and bias in traditional science thinking occurs. Part history of physics and part particle physics intro (though it assumes a pretty good understanding to follow the debate so if you hated high school physics skip this one) - some aspects go very deep. But in the end it's worth it. You look at a field like particle physics with a new sense of questioning - and if they aren't perfect how can other sciences that move towards social variables have any hope if they aren't considering such issues.
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