What Is Real?

The Unfinished Quest for the Meaning of Quantum Physics

By: Adam Becker

Narrated by: Greg Tremblay

Length: 11 hrs and 45 mins

Publisher's summary

The untold story of the heretical thinkers who dared to question the nature of our quantum universe

Every physicist agrees quantum mechanics is among humanity's finest scientific achievements. But ask what it means, and the result will be a brawl. For a century, most physicists have followed Niels Bohr's Copenhagen interpretation and dismissed questions about the reality underlying quantum physics as meaningless. A mishmash of solipsism and poor reasoning, Copenhagen endured, as Bohr's students vigorously protected his legacy, and the physics community favored practical experiments over philosophical arguments. As a result, questioning the status quo long meant professional ruin.

And yet, from the 1920s to today, physicists like John Bell, David Bohm, and Hugh Everett persisted in seeking the true meaning of quantum mechanics. What Is Real? is the gripping story of this battle of ideas and the courageous scientists who dared to stand up for truth.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

©2018 Adam Becker (P)2018 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Best Science Book This Year!

If this book were a meal, it would be bursting with such flavor that you could not help going back for seconds. Indeed I read it a second time and chose to listen to Sean Carroll's Mysteries of Modern Physics lectures, from The Great Courses series, as the accompanying glass of wine and dessert because it reenforced the ideas presented in Becker's book. Listening to Sean Carroll's lecture series along with reading this book allowed me to think about how all of the discoveries made in the quantum world apply to time. I warn you though, it's a rabbit hole. Since there are no final answers yet, your brain might get caught in an obsessive trap. I have now moved on to re-reading Lisa Ranall's Warped passages, not because I am convinced of other dimensions, but because thinking about pocket dimensions and/or bubble universes seemed extremely important to me after reading Becker and Carroll together. I also can't seem to stop thinking about how all of this relates to gravity, and keep rereading sections of Gravity's Engines by Caleb Scharf. Sometimes I feel so sad when I realize I will die before someone can answer the burning questions in my mind about the way the universe works, but nothing feels better than thinking about what we do know.

While mainly focusing on the measurement problem in quantum physics (does the wave function collapse) , Becker recounts the history of many of the major discoveries and provided an extremely intuitive account of the following aspects of quantum mechanics:

Heisenberg's uncertainty principle
Double slit
Schrödinger's cat
Everett's many worlds
Copenhagen Interpretation (probability / wave function collapse)
The Bohr - Einstein debates
EPR paradox

Becker included in depth and intensely refreshing biographies of John Bell and his inequality and David Bohm's unorthodox ideas. The biography of Bohm was particularly of interest to me because not too long ago I finished a series of books about the discovery of quantum theory and while many of those books covered the other people highlighted in this book, none of them covered Bohm in the manner Becker did.

I really cannot recommend this book highly enough. Rating a book like this always makes me realize how my previous 5 star ratings muddy the waters. I want there to be a 6 star rating you could use once or twice a year, so that you can really set a book apart from others. This book would be worthy of that 6 star rating.
#tagsgiving #sweepstakes #BestScienceBook

Great historical Physics book on Quantum Universe

Great book, lots historical context within the physics community. Surprisingly it’s a very small world in terms of influence and direction of physics. The book is very easy to follow for a non-physics person; but still provides the information needed to really grasp the concepts.

Great Book!

This is one of the best science-focused books I have ever read, marrying science, history, politics philosophy, and human nature into one coherent story. Reading this book is like riding a pilot wave.

A good book, expertly narrated

This was a book about the history of quantum physics, including an attempt to explain it to the layperson. It mostly succeeded. Underneath, it was an argument about the "Copenhagen interpretation" of Quantum physics and why this is inadequate, highlighting the physicists who have come up with alternate and in Becker's view, interpretations closer to the truth. I enjoyed listening to the book in part because the material was interestingly written through the perspective of the various genius physicists, and in part because of the OUTSTANDING NARRATOR. I have read a lot of nonfiction and a lot of lay-oriented science, and Greg Tremblay is one of the best narrators I've heard.
All in all a good and interesting experience. I recommend the book to anyone who had an interest in this fascinating and still largely unexplained world.

Comprehensive

Outstanding explanations on the complexities of various scientific theories, how we got where we are, and what is yet to be solidified. I will listen again. it's worth reiteration.

Just Great

Good mix of biographies, history and science about Quantum Foundations. Copenhagen vs. the world. Great story, great narration. Highly recommended.

Best book yet on foundations of quantum mechanics

I've read/listened to several books on the implications of quantum mechanics (QM) for the nature of reality. This is the best yet. The author, Adam Becker, is an astrophysicist, and knows his quantum physics. Yet, he is able to make the issues quite understandable to me, and I don't know the math of QM. I am familiar with the concepts. This is not a book for learning the concepts of QM; it's for someone who's already done quite a bit of study. (I'd suggest starting with biographies of quantum physicists and Youtube videos for laypeople).

This is a history of the Copenhagen Interpretation and two alternative interpretations--Bohmian and Many Worlds. Becker sees the issues clearly, more clearly than any other author that I've read. He cleared up for me things that I had found puzzling in the debates about foundational issues. Like that the Copenhagen Interpretation originally held that QM doesn't apply to macroscopic objects. I've read a good deal about the founders of this interpretation and, for some reason, was missing this point. When I fully understood that this view was held by Bohr and Heisenberg, many of their statements made a lot more sense.

I highly recommend this book for those who have already developed an understanding of the basics of QM, even if without knowing the math.

More history than expected but ended up liking that

There was a lot of background on key figures throughout the growth of physics. At first I was annoyed by this and wanted more physics. As the book progressed, however, I found it fascinating and essential to understanding he progression of physics.

Great review of history of quantum mechanics

Reviews the history and central concept controversies of quantum mechanics and its development. The author appears well qualified to tackle this difficult subject in many spheres. However the controversies surrounding the connection and relationship of consciousness to quantum mechanics are given cursory review and demonstrate a superficial understanding of theories of consciousness. There is also a contradiction in credibility. The many worlds theory of which there’s almost no evidence empirically of other universes is giving great credence while issues of the connection between consciousness and quantum mechanics or dismissed out of hand as New Age nonsense. While there may in fact be
misappropriations of the science of quantum mechanics by the New Age movement this does not mean that a deeper understanding of consciousness would not apply to quantum mechanics. At the very least such as subject needs a much more in-depth assessment and questioning.

Great Story, Great Science, Great Read!

There story is great where you really feel that you know the scientists. The science is explained very well. The reader's voice and tempo is perfect.