Helgoland

The Sunday Times bestseller

By: Carlo Rovelli, Erica Segre - translator, Simon Carnell - translator

Narrated by: David Rintoul

Brought to you by Penguin.

The Number One bestselling author of The Order of Time is back with a stunning book about the enigma of quantum physics

In June 1925, twenty-three-year-old Werner Heisenberg, suffering from hay fever, retreated to a small, treeless island in the North Sea called Helgoland. It was there that he came up with one of the most transformative scientific concepts: quantum theory.

Almost a century later, quantum physics has given us many startling ideas: ghost waves, distant objects that seem magically connected to each other, cats that are both dead and alive. Countless experiments have led to practical applications that shape our daily lives. Today our understanding of the world around us is based on this theory. And yet it is still profoundly mysterious.

In this enchanting book, Carlo Rovelli, one of our most celebrated scientists, tells the extraordinary story of quantum physics and reveals its deep meaning: a world made of substances is replaced by a world made of relations, each particle responding to another in a never ending game of mirrors.

Shifting our perspective once again, Rovelli takes us on a riveting journey through the universe so we can better understand our place in it.

© Carlo Rovelli 2021 (P) Penguin Audio 2021

Critic reviews

With the publication of his million-selling book Seven Brief Lessons on Physics, Rovelli took his place with Stephen Hawking and Richard Feynman as one of the great popularisers of modern theoretical physics (Sam Leith)

Modern physics has found its poet. . . Rovelli is a wonderfully humane, gentle and witty guide for he is as much philosopher and poet as he is a scientist (John Banville)

A global superstar. . . Rovelli is making the grammar of the universe accessible to a new generation

The most fun physicist to be with -- as well as the greatest explainer of physics (Bryan Appleyard)

The man who makes physics sexy. . . the new Hawking. . . His writing is luminous. By the time I had finished reading Seven Brief Lessons on Physics I was in serious awe of the author (David Aaronovitch)

A story with substance or at least relation

Light hearted and at the same time sufficiently detailed to kindle curiosity and interest for furter reading on the subject.

The cat made accessible

One of the most fascinating books of the last years. Having some background in physics and philosophy the book offers many new perspectives on the the never ending question:
What is reality and how are we able to grasp it at all. The relational model for me was the first really accessible way of describing Schrödinger’s cat thought experiment other than collapsing wave functions etc.
Thanks Carlo.

Extraordinary!

Easy to follow.
Challenging ideas, understandable for non scientists, excellent interconexion between Physics and Philosophy.

Inspiring

Rovelli's common sense, and easy-to-understand discussions of the most complex topics are amazing, as is the breadth of his culture. Who else would paint a compelling picture of the quantum worldview from a combination of physics history, Russian politics and Buddhist philosophy. Oh, yes, and Dante and Shakespeare.

Quantum mechanics demystified

Carlo Rovelli has the ability to turn a physics discussion into art. His explanations of quantum phenomenon makes more sense than any of the absurd ideas that have been put forward by some others. This book is a must read for anybody wanting to understand the fabric of reality.