Cox B., Forshaw J. The Quantum Universe: (And Why Anything That Can Happen, Does)

DaCapo Press, 2011. — 272 p. — ISBN 978-0-306-81964-3.International bestselling authors Brian Cox and Jeff Forshaw's fascinating, entertaining, and clear introduction to quantum mechanics.In The Quantum Universe, Brian Cox and Jeff Forshaw approach the world of quantum mechanics in the same way they did in Why Does E=mc2? and make fundamental scientific principles accessible-and fascinating-to everyone.The subatomic realm has a reputation for weirdness, spawning any number of profound misunderstandings, journeys into Eastern mysticism, and woolly pronouncements on the interconnectedness of all things. Cox and Forshaw's contention? There is no need for quantum mechanics to be viewed this way. There is a lot of mileage in the "weirdness" of the quantum world, and it often leads to confusion and, frankly, bad science. The Quantum Universe cuts through the Wu Li and asks what observations of the natural world made it necessary, how it was constructed, and why we are confident that, for all its apparent strangeness, it is a good theory.The quantum mechanics of The Quantum Universe provide a concrete model of nature that is comparable in its essence to Newton's laws of motion, Maxwell's theory of electricity and magnetism, and Einstein's theory of relativity.Something Strange Is Afoot
Being in Two Places at Once
What Is a Particle?
Everything That Can Happen Does Happen
Movement as an Illusion
The Music of the Atoms
The Universe in a Pin-head (and Why We Don’t Fall Through the Floor)
Interconnected
The Modern World
Interaction
Empty Space Isn’t Empty
Epilogue: the Death of Stars
Further Reading