Alice and Bob Meet the Wall of Fire: The Biggest Ideas in Science from Quanta by Thomas Lin (PDF)

Description

Accessible, essential coverage of the latest findings in challenging, speculative, and cutting-edge science, from the Pulitzer Prize–winning leaders in scientific journalism at Quanta Magazine“If you’re a science and data nerd like me, you may be interested in Alice and Bob Meet the Wall of Fire . . . from Quanta Magazine and Thomas Lin.” —Bill Gates These stories reveal the latest efforts to untangle the mysteries of the universe. Bringing together the best and most interesting science stories appearing in Quanta Magazine over the past five years, Alice and Bob Meet the Wall of Fire reports on some of the greatest scientific minds as they test the limits of human knowledge. Quanta, under editor-in-chief Thomas Lin, is the only popular publication that offers in-depth coverage of today’s challenging, speculative, cutting-edge science. It communicates science by taking it seriously, wrestling with difficult concepts and clearly explaining them in a way that speaks to our innate curiosity about our world and ourselves. In the title story, Alice and Bob—beloved characters of various thought experiments in physics—grapple with gravitational forces, possible spaghettification, and a massive wall of fire as Alice jumps into a black hole. Another story considers whether the universe is impossible, in light of experimental results at the Large Hadron Collider. We learn about quantum reality and the mystery of quantum entanglement; explore the source of time’s arrow; and witness a eureka moment when a quantum physicist exclaims: “Finally, we can understand why a cup of coffee equilibrates in a room.” We reflect on humans’ enormous skulls and the Brain Boom; consider the evolutionary benefits of loneliness; peel back the layers of the newest artificial-intelligence algorithms; follow the “battle for the heart and soul of physics”; and mourn the disappearance of the “diphoton bump,” revealed to be a statistical fluctuation rather than a revolutionary new particle. Winner of the 2022 Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Reporting, Quanta once again gives us a front-row seat to scientific discovery.ContributorsPhilip Ball, K. C. Cole, Robbert Dijkgraaf, Dan Falk, Courtney Humphries, Ferris Jabr, Katia Moskvitch, George Musser, Michael Nielsen, Jennifer Ouellette, John Pavlus, Emily Singer, Andreas von Bubnoff, Frank Wilczek, Natalie Wolchover, Carl Zimmer

User’s Reviews

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

⭐I look back fondly at those few occasions in my childhood when my father and I were walking home under a moonlit and star-studded night sky. Instead of telling me the story about the moon fairy, my father encouraged me to wonder about the vastness of the universe and to admire its magnificence. Thus the seed of an interest in science was planted. I often think about the current finding that our universe does not appear to have a boundary. I’m also curious about what causes some vines to spiral clockwise around their support, while others twine counterclockwise. Ultimately, I want to know what turns a cell, which is fundamentally a collection of molecules and atoms, into a living organism. The infinite wisdom packed into the complex workings of the human body is beyond fascinating.As the articles in this book show, great efforts on the part of the finest minds have been applied toward the research on such topics in science, much of which is supported by government funds. Anyone could come up with any hypothesis about how certain things work, but the predictions of the hypothesis must pass rigorous scientific testing to establish the hypothesis as a valid theory or law of nature. Without having to skim through complicated mathematical formulas and equations, I can sit back and review the triumphs and failures in scientific studies that parade across the pages of this book. From time to time I encounter an unfamiliar term or concept. When I look up that particular subject on the Internet, I often find much interesting information that I normally would not have come across.Having previously read a few of the articles in the Quanta Magazine, I am already aware of the excellent writing skills and reporting styles of the individual science journalists. What’s special in this well organized collection is that it presents a coherent tale that has taken me along the scientists’ quest for knowledge about our universe from the infinitesimally small all the way to the infinitely large. I think, if you are a student of science, reading this book could help you see more clearly how your study fits into the larger picture. Reading this book will also enable you to realize that much remains to be done to further our understanding of ourselves and the world we live in. May you endeavor to become the one to help break through the current bottleneck in fundamental science.

⭐There are many science and technology sources that are worth reading. The ones I read on a regular basis are Wired, Quora, Medium, NY Times Science and Quanta. Quanta and the Times are the most professional, with the best writers. This book is a collection of some of the best recent articles on quantamagazine.org. Highly recommended.

⭐Quanta is among my fave online science mags, but due to the amount of screen time at work n such I try to read on paper whenevs I can. The essays in here don’t go crazy deep or mathematical, and no how-tos. But…the authors interview the researchers very often, include quotes and explanations from lectures, and give very good qualitative background.I dug this book from beginning to end, it fired my imagination and had good enough references that I could get to the math when I had time. The only thing thatcould be better imho is that there could be more images and illustrations.Great book. Would def buy again!

⭐I am an armchair,wannabe scientist. I found this book/series of articles to be a good update on the current research and thought. The book was broken down well and very well organized. For the most part the writing and language was very approachable. I would recommend this to anyone with interest in the roads that scientific development is traveling.

⭐It is so refreshing to read books emphasizing the importance of empiricism and empirically based theory rather than on mysticism and faith based theories proclaiming to be scientific. Both “Beyond Weird” and “Alice and Bob meet the Wall of Fire” are two such books.These are both books recommended by the publications “Science” and “Quanta Magazine” respectively. I fully concur with their recommendations and personally find these two books very informative and well written.

⭐This book falls under a unique area where a science content is not compromised but it is appealing to a curious person. I’ll admit some time or a lot of time I did not understand terms, details or puns but it does not stop me from appreciating the beauty of the content. Science people will have a greater appreciation for it but I believe everyone should read it. You should gift this book right and left.

⭐Quanta has a great thing going: get real journalists to write about real science in a not-dumbed-down way. This is a great book; lots of interesting stuff I didn’t know, and much more readable than journal articles. Check out their free newsletter after you decide you love the book, like I did.

⭐At the extreme edge of science lies the untestable, like string theory or the multiverse. Are these scientific principles? This is just one of the many questions tackled in this book. An anthology of the latest work in science; from the delightful to the disturbing, it’s all delightful.

⭐I liked the professional approach. However, as a layperson I was unable to follow most of the arguments.However, it was an interesting read.

⭐Exceptional book, full of insights particularly related to theoretical physics. I absolutely suggest Quanta Magazine and this book to everyone annoyed to general popular science level. Only caveat, some background is required to fully appreciate

⭐Immensely satisfying, a veritable smorgasbord of the most important ideas in science today (as the title gives away, duh!) served up in a easy to digest format. A joy to read.

⭐Everything is perfect

⭐Best!

Keywords

Free Download Alice and Bob Meet the Wall of Fire: The Biggest Ideas in Science from Quanta in PDF format
Alice and Bob Meet the Wall of Fire: The Biggest Ideas in Science from Quanta PDF Free Download
Download Alice and Bob Meet the Wall of Fire: The Biggest Ideas in Science from Quanta 2018 PDF Free
Alice and Bob Meet the Wall of Fire: The Biggest Ideas in Science from Quanta 2018 PDF Free Download
Download Alice and Bob Meet the Wall of Fire: The Biggest Ideas in Science from Quanta PDF
Free Download Ebook Alice and Bob Meet the Wall of Fire: The Biggest Ideas in Science from Quanta