Hidden Unity in Nature's Laws

A wide-ranging and illuminating account of how our understanding of the world has developed by uncovering 'hidden unities' in nature.

John C. Taylor (Author)

9780521650649, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 16 April 2001

506 pages, 109 b/w illus.
22.9 x 15.2 x 3.2 cm, 0.77 kg

'This book covers a vast expanse of physics and is a genuine tour de force for its insights and intellectual honesty. This is an exceptional book by an exceptional physicist.' The Times Higher Education Supplement

As physics has progressed through the ages it has succeeded in explaining more and more diverse phenomena with fewer and fewer underlying principles. This lucid and wide-ranging book explains how this understanding has developed by periodically uncovering unexpected 'hidden unities' in nature. The author deftly steers the reader on a fascinating path which goes to the heart of physics - the search and discovery of elegant laws which unify and simplify our understanding of the intricate Universe in which we live. Starting with the Ancient Greeks, the author traces the development of major concepts in physics right up to the present day. Throughout, the presentation is crisp and informative and only a minimum of mathematics is used. Any reader with a background in mathematics or physics will find this book a fascinating insight into the development of our fundamental understanding of the world, and the apparent simplicity underlying it.

Preface
1. Motion on earth and in the heavens
2. Energy, heat, and chance
3. Electricity and magnetism
4. Light
5. Space and time
6. Least action
7. Gravitation and curved spacetime
8. The quantum revolution
9. Quantum theory with special relativity
10. Order breaks symmetry
11. Quarks and what hold them together
12. Unifying weak forces with QED
13. Gravitation plus quantum theory - stars and black holes
14. Particles, symmetries and the universe
15. Queries
16. Appendices
Glossary
Bibliography.

Subject Areas: Physics [PH], Popular science [PDZ], History of science [PDX], Impact of science & technology on society [PDR], Philosophy of science [PDA], History of mathematics [PBX]