Sabine Hossenfelder is presently a research fellow at the Frankfurt Institute for Advanced Studies, Germany, and has published more than eighty research articles about the foundations of physics, including quantum gravity, physics beyond the standard model, dark matter, and quantum foundations. She has written about physics for a broad audience for fifteen years and is the creator of the popular YouTube channel “Science without the Gobbledygook.” Her writing has been published in New Scientist, Scientific American, The New York Times, and The Guardian (London). Her first book, Lost in Math: How Beauty Leads Physics Astray, appeared in 2018.
“The most surprising and interesting feature of the book is the
claim that many of her physicist peers are as guilty of bringing
speculation and belief into their scientific thinking as
theologians and New Age mystics . . . Existential Physics is an
informed and entertaining guide to what science can and cannot tell
us. If Ms. Hossenfelder is sometimes a little too opinionated, the
reader will quickly forgive her. Anyone capable of bridging the
concerns of the human world and the baffling complexities of
physics has earned the right to be indulged a little.”
—The Wall Street Journal
“You may not have expected this month’s most entertaining book to
be about science. Hossenfelder, an acclaimed physicist, not only
explains her subject well; she also engages general readers in
connecting science with spirituality . . . Read Hossenfelder along
with a basic guide to physics and keep an open mind about her
conclusions, but most importantly, enjoy the ride."
—Los Angeles Times
“Stimulating . . . encourage[s] readers to push past well-trod
assumptions […] and have fun doing so . . . By demarking
ascientific views from scientific ones, she helps delineate
science’s limits in answering life’s big questions.”
—Science Magazine
“Hossenfelder elegantly illustrates complex ideas in
straightforward, layfriendly language . . . [She] takes
readers on a riveting cerebral journey through surprisingly
confounding differences between scientific method and storytelling
. . . In addition to her own powerful voice, Hossenfelder
includes enlightening interviews with [...] luminaries in the field
. . . Existential Physics is spectacular, and a must-read for
all who ponder the purpose of existence.”
—Booklist
“Unlike many other science writers, Hossenfelder is less interested
in denouncing pseudoscience than revealing that many spiritual
ideas are compatible with modern physics . . . Casting her net
widely, she investigates God and spirituality, free will, universal
consciousness, dualism (whether the mind is separate from the
body), the Big Bang theory about the origin of the cosmos, the
possible existence of parallel universes, and whether we live in a
computer simulation . . . readers who wonder how to tell a
good from a bad explanation can now consult [Existential Physics] .
. . An intriguing book fully of highly opinionated and
convincing arguments.”
—Kirkus Reviews
“[An] excellent book on physics for general readers . . .
Hossenfelder uses current and historical research to show the deep
connections between philosophy and the scientific method . . .
Recommended for readers interested in philosophy of science
and the sorts of questions that current science can and can’t
answer.”
—Library Journal
“Smart . . . [Hossenfelder] explores fascinating questions . . .
though she asserts that 'physicists are really good at answering
questions, but really bad at explaining why anyone should care,'
her curiosity and clever prose prove that doesn’t have to be the
case. Budding physics buffs, take note.”
—Publishers Weekly
“Part gonzo journalist, part curious child, part teacher, and part
accomplished researcher, Sabine Hossenfelder is a unique writing
talent and a unique science popularizer. One cannot help being
provoked reading her prose, as she knows how to push your buttons.
But she also abhors bullshit, which makes her take on the deepest
human questions and what physics has to say about them worth
looking at, and also ensures that it will be different than those
other physics books of grand verbosity about frontier physics. You
might agree with her. You might not. But you will come away from
the experience enriched, and will think about the world differently
than you did before.”
—Lawrence Krauss, bestselling author of The Physics of Star Trek, A
Universe from Nothing, and The Physics of Climate Change
“Sabine Hossenfelder is a rare gem. There are other theoretical
physicists out there who can write for a popular audience, but very
few of them are able to do so in such a no-nonsense way. There's no
puffery or posturing, but a direct and potent takedown of some of
the fashionable ideas lounging at the edges of modern science. The
result is not just illuminating, but enjoyable.”
—Charles Seife, author of Decoding the Universe
“Sabine Hossenfelder offers a radical and brand-new
exploration of the limits and power of scientific explanation to
address the most pressing existential questions that strike to
the core of the essential curiosity that makes us human in the
first place. Her book offers a riveting and
remarkably original take that makes room for hope, belief
and faith within the house of reason and rationality. A must-read
to better navigate this chaotic and complex current moment.”
—Priyamvada Natarajan, author of Mapping the Heavens: The Radical
Scientific Ideas That Reveal the Cosmos
"I don't always agree with Sabine Hossenfelder, but I'm always
eager to hear what she has to say. She is one of our boldest young
thinkers, and not just in physics. Her new book provides a splendid
showcase for her iconoclastic outlook."
—John Horgan, author of The End of Science and director of the
Center for Science Writings at Stevens Institute of Technology
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