San Antonio College Library

"String theory is currently the best candidate for a unified theory of all forces and all forms of matter in nature. As such, it has become a focal point for physical and philosophical discussions. This unique book explores the history of the theory's early stages of development, as told by its main protagonists. The book journeys from the first version of the theory (the so-called dual resonance model) in the late sixties, as an attempt to describe...

In the 20th century, twin breakthroughs-quantum mechanics and general relativity-provided fresh insight into phenomena at the sub-atomic and cosmological scales, respectively. Yet physicists are still struggling to develop a consistent theory that bridges quantum mechanics and gravity. One approach to "quantum gravity" is string theory: a mathematical description of particles and forces at scales 1031 times smaller than a proton. String theory attempts...

"This book attempts to explain why 'string theory' may provide the comprehensive underlying theory that describes and explains our world. It is an enthusiastic view of how compactified string/M-theories (plus data that may be reachable) seem to have the possibilities of leading to a comprehensive underlying theory of particle physics and cosmology, perhaps soon. We are living in a hugely exciting era for science, one during which it may be possible...

The beginning of the 21st century is a watershed in modern science, a time that will forever change our understanding of the universe, Susskind contends. Several decades ago, he introduced the revolutionary concept of string theory to the world of physical science. In doing so, he inspired a generation of physicists who believed that the theory would uniquely predict the properties of our universe. Now, in his first book, Susskind argues that the...

"What happens when scientific theory departs the realm of testable hypothesis and comes to resemble something like aesthetic speculation, or even theology? The legendary physicist Wolfgang Pauli had a phrase for such ideas: He would describe them as "not even wrong," meaning that they were so incomplete that they could not even be used to make predictions to compare with observations to see whether they were wrong or not." "In Peter Woit's view, superstring...

A theoretical physicist describes the evolution of modern-day string theory, the flaws in the attempt to formulate a "theory of everything" to explain all the forces and particles of nature and the origins of the universe, and their repercussions for physics.