E=mc²: A Biography Of The World's Most Famous Equation (2000) - Plot & Excerpts
In popular culture, Einstein’s name is synonymous with the word genius. His famous equation of E=mc2 is likewise equally known but admittedly little understood other than in a very fundamental sense. This book offers a chance for the layman to grasp the components of this famous theorem of Albert’s in a very novel and thoroughly entertaining manner.Each component of this equation is broken down into individual histories, starting with an explanation of the concepts behind the symbol E, representing “energy,” this is then explored throughout its first origins to the latter day expansions upon the idea with short brief bios on the people behind each leap of understanding. Subsequently, each symbol is likewise explored in exacting detail. In this way the reader could possibly arrive at a clearer understanding of this brilliantly deceptive short equation. Then again, maybe not, as it is often said that the more we know, the less we really understand, especially so when it comes to the field of science. Regardless, the journey of discovery here is amazingly entertaining, as well as surprisingly funny at times, all of which makes this an absolute must read for anyone with an interest in science from the universities to streets.Here, we learn that a great many mathematicians and scientists were essentially borderline lunatics and their stories are about as intriguing as reading about the inhabitants of an overrun insane asylum. However, aside from this more sensational aspect, the book is genuinely fascinating even when not detailing the crazies and is written in a very accessible manner.Sir Isaac Newton is attributed to have once said that we are nothing more than “dwarfs standing on the shoulders of giants.” The dominant interpretation of this metaphor is that he was essentially belittling the accomplishments of his day, including his own, in comparison to those that went before him. Basically, we all build upon the successes and failures of other peoples work and owe them a debt of gratitude. This book pays tribute to some of these individuals, many of which are little known by the general public due to Einstein’s enormous shadow.However, rather than a glorified “Great Men” version of history, this books tends to show that more often than not, a great many of the most important discoveries were actually done by mere hobbyist with a serious streak of curiosity or otherwise completely uneducated laymen whose field of study could not have been more outside of the specific field of study of science.I find this encouraging, as well as very telling in another way. First of all, those giants that Newton referred to were sometimes very small and humble in their day to day life and were no different than you and I. They were simple everyday people, whose only real claim to fame was that they dared to ask why and tried to answer a question that aroused their interests. This is what I find encouraging, if not actually inspiring in this book, for if more of us did our own thinking in the same way without differing to people supposedly more knowledgeable than us then just maybe even more discoveries can be made in a variety of fields, not just in science.Lastly, what I get out of this book is that sometimes when you look too hard at a problem by studying it from every conceivable angle the answer only gets farther away. We sometimes just need to relax and take a simple bath like Archimedes was made to by his wife in the oft told famous story in order to think of less important things. Then, the answer may miraculously come of its own accord in the process. Furthermore, not to oversimplify a truth that I’m straining to arrive at here, but sometimes an education hinders the thought process into complete blindness to the heart of the matter one is seeking. Figuratively, it sometimes may take a curious janitor looking over the shoulder of the great man who is slaving away tirelessly over a particular problem to find the solution that is staring him right in the face. A simple illustration showing very clearly that one should always respect everyone’s viewpoint and opinion regardless of their background or profession. It is quite conceivable that they may actually have something to teach you no matter what you think you may know already.
I'm not quite sure why I keep going back to these history of science books, but I enjoy them. E=mc2: A Biography of the World's Most Famous Equation is pretty much what it says. But if you're looking for just another Albert Einstein biography, author David Bodanis is mostly going to disappoint you here. It's more like a biography of the eponymous equation, examining each term (heck, even the equal sign) in great detail and giving a thorough accounts of the history of each piece and the impact it has had on modern living.The book strikes just the right balance between physics lessons (don't worry, there's no math) and explaining the scientific achievements leading up to and following in the wake of the equation's discovery. I'm hard pressed to think of a subject that would include French aristocrats getting beheaded over the construction of a wall, Madam Curie's radioactive cookbooks, high-brow academic bickering, and detailed discussions of how make uranium atoms asplode real good. My favorite part was something that actually sounds more like the final level in some World War II video game than a physics textbook: a small group of Norwegian commandos (actually mostly former plumbers and machinists) creeping into a heavy water factory in order to sabotage it and derail the Nazis' 1942 atomic weapon program.It's all very thorough and very readable and I had no idea that there was so much that went into and came out of the fact that mass and energy are the same thing in two different forms. The end of the book even looks forward billions of years to show how the equation predicts the Earth will end (in flames as the Sun gives one final cosmic belch) and how the universe itself will eventually sputter to a stop. But don't worry, you'll be long dead.
What do You think about E=mc²: A Biography Of The World's Most Famous Equation (2000)?
This is one of the better explorations of Einstein's work on mass-energy equivalence, especially if you're less interested in the maths and more interested in what E=mc2 actually means. It's very readable, assumes little prior knowledge and does a great job of exploring the meaning of each element of the equation - what are E, m and c? He even explains where = came from.Bodanis writes well and does as good a job of visualising and explaining some pretty abstract concepts. He wanders a little at times, and perhaps judges Werner Heisenberg a little more harshly than necessary, but it's still an outstanding book in a very crowded genre.
—Damien Walker
It looks like I cannot get enough of Historical Science books. This is yet another book that surprised me. In this book, the Author presents History and the impact of Einstein's famous equation. He initially tries to give a decent historical account of how the equation came about. The book has its downsides. I really felt the equation could have been explained in much more exciting way than the Author did. But, I did like the fact that the Author focused in great detail about making of the Atomic Bomb (The Manhattan Project) and its destructive force that led to the surrender of Japan. Even though I was aware of most of the things described in this book from some of the other books I have read before, I still enjoyed going over them again thoroughly. Definitely a good read.
—Rohan
Looking at other reviews of this book it's apparent that it allowed many of its readers to finally understand the famous equation. Apparently I'm either too stupid or too inquisitive, but my experience was quite different. In my opinion this is mostly a history book, just like one could expect from its subtitle "A Biography of the World's Most Famous Equation". It provides comprehensive historical background, spiced up with a lot of little known facts about people, whose work eventually contributed to the formulation of the special relativity theory. It also broadly discusses the consequences of this development, with particular attention given to the race between the Nazis and the US to create the first nuclear bomb.However, when it comes to the actual equation, the book only skims the surface and mostly wanders around vague borders between physics, cosmology and philosophy. It does not offer any math beyond this deceptively simple equation nor does it explain how the equation relates to the formulas describing the relationship between energy, mass and velocity we learned at school. The book is a well written biography, and if you are interested in the history of science you will probably enjoy it. However, how anyone could learn any physics from this book remains beyond my comprehension.
—Jarek
