Books by David Kaiser
“He takes something that you don’t think would have anything to do with physics—the 60s, hippies and all these fringe movements in California—and shows how, by the 1960s, physics had become hidebound. It was stuck intellectually in some ways. They would just say, ‘Don’t worry about why this works, don’t ask any questions, just shut up and calculate.’ But there was this group of physicists, mostly in California, who had these unconventional ways of looking at things, especially quantum physics. This unconventional approach really led to some breakthroughs in theoretical physics that we’re still exploring.” Read more...
The best books on The History of Physics
Mark Wolverton, Science Writer
Interviews where books by David Kaiser were recommended
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1
The Day We Found the Universe
by Marcia Bartusiak -
2
The Physicists: The History of a Scientific Community in Modern America
by Daniel Kevles -
3
The Making of the Atomic Bomb
by Richard Rhodes -
4
How the Hippies Saved Physics: Science, Counterculture, and the Quantum Revival
by David Kaiser -
5
The Quantum Labyrinth: How Richard Feynman and John Wheeler Revolutionized Time and Reality
by Paul Halpern
The best books on The History of Physics, recommended by Mark Wolverton
The best books on The History of Physics, recommended by Mark Wolverton
In the 20th century, the United States emerged as a leading centre of experimental physics, with a lot more going on than just the Manhattan project and the use of atomic energy in warfare. Science writer Mark Wolverton, author of Splinters of Infinity, recommends some of his favourite books about the history of physics, with a focus on the 20th century and the United States. (For books about classical physics, browse all our physics book recommendations).
