Table of Contents

Preface; Introduction; 1. A matter of force; 2. Stalking the wild rainbow; 3. Light; 4. Maybe I'm Heisenberg; 5. Catch a falling quantum; 6. Quantum beanbags; 7. Symmetries; 8. Quantum relativity: nothing is relative; 9. Life, the Universe and everything; 10. The physics of a tablecloth; 11. Colour me red, green and blue; 12. Smashing symmetry; 13. How much is infinity minus infinity?; 14. Excelsior! The ascent to SU(∞); 15. A modest reading proposal.

Promotional Information

An elementary introduction to the interplay between quantum mechanics, relativity, and symmetry.

Reviews

'... this book supports the effort to show that a sufficiently motivated novice can appreciate the intricacies at the forefront of physics ... I applaud it.' Lawrence M. Krauss Physics Today 'If physics aims to provide a theory of everything, then this book provides an explanation of everything...Vincent Icke is clearly a master at providing convincing explanatons of esoteric ideas...If ever there were to be a book that persuades nonscientists that physics is understandable, even at its most esoteric outer limits, this is it.' Michael Leask The Times Higher Educational Supplement 'The fun style carries the reader through what in many other books is hard going ... a highly recommended book for all those embarking on a study of physics, and also for those who changed their minds and became the general reader.' A. D. Andrews Irish Astronomical Journal '... refreshingly different from any roughly comparable one that I know.' Ian Aitchinson Physics World