The Reality Frame: Relativity and our place in the universe by Brian Clegg (PDF)

Description

Weaving together the great ideas of science, The Reality Frame takes us on a thrilling journey from empty space all the way to the human mind.Acclaimed science writer Brian Clegg builds up reality piece by piece, from space, to time, to matter, movement, the fundamental forces, life, and the massive transformation that life itself has wrought on the natural world. He reveals that underlying it all is not, as we might believe, a system of immovable absolutes, but the ever-shifting, amorphous world of relativity.From religion to philosophy, humanity has traditionally sought out absolutes to explain the world around us, but as science has developed, relativity has swept away many of these certainties, leaving only a handful of unchangeable essentials – such as absolute zero, nothingness, light – leading to better science and a new understanding of the essence of being human.This is an Ascent of Man for the 21st century, the gripping story of modern science that will fill you with wonder and give you a new insight into our place in the universe.

User’s Reviews

Reviews from Amazon users which were colected at the time this book was published on the website:

⭐Of the many books that I have read by this author, this one was more “grounding” by far.Thank you, Dr Clegg.

⭐A wonderfully readable book

⭐I very much enjoyed this reflection on the idea of “frames of reference” as a theme throughout science, and finally as a theme throughout human culture generally. Clegg makes the point that science is constructed, and only makes sense, by looking at how things in nature relate to each other, and changing reference frames can change what those relationships look like; hence the importance of the idea of “models” in science, the central themes that are really collections of ideas that provide the reference frame for describing phenomena a certain way. He ends with an interesting jump, arguing against the idea that humans are merely one life form among equals on Earth, and rather that humans truly are exceptional in their ability to be conscious of, and choose between competing, reference frames. He makes the case that this is an important element of creativity, which gives humans the power to both alter, and adapt to changes in, the environment. This is a very interesting idea, but remains only vaguely sketched out – I’d like to see him develop it more thoroughly. Despite the author’s folksy story-telling tone, having at least a little school physics would be important background to enjoying the tale.

⭐A fascinating read for the layman with an interest in physics, cosmology and relativity. Clegg guides us through the construction of a fully functional universe, while informing us of the many important theories and laws that have helped us understand these concepts through the ages, We get bits from the ancient Greeks philosophers, contributions from Newton, Galileo, Einstein and Feynmann, along with bits from Minkowski, Lisa Randall, David Bohm and more, all woven into a journey that covers the most important aspects of existence. Without doubt this is Clegg’s finest work to date. Highly recommended!

⭐Thanks to Brian Clegg I am the fifth person who understand Einstein Theory of relativity. funny! Good book! Great read!

⭐Explains Special and General Relativity from the beginning. I made it about three quarters of the way through this book before it got too difficult for me (I have an A level in Physics). Wittily written and very interesting.

⭐Fascinating and thought provoking.

⭐I enjoyed the first half, plenty to muse over, but the second half seemed to lose its way, or perhaps I wasn’t getting it! A quarter of the book is in the appendix, with the maths and whatnot, but still a good thought provoking read. I think that this will be one to keep popping back to.

⭐A great book

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