Customer Reviews

From Atoms to Quarks

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I love the way this book brings you [mostly] up to speed on the world of particle physics with a ground level perspective. That is they don't look back dismissing things that we know now to be false or inaccurate. They take each discovery and show how it leads to the next - good, bad, or ugly. It's a very refreshing style, one that doesn't rewrite history and that gives you a great sense of _how_ we made discoveries one after the other (or a convoluted path of errors to correct understanding).

The book is a bit dated, and a lot has been learned since. I would love an even more updated version. And it's not even too terribly deep. Anyone vaguely interested should be able to follow along. There are a few numbers in the pages, but they can be safely skipped.

The original 1980 edition of "From Atoms to Quarks: An Introduction to the Strange World of Particle Physics," is a fine exposition of the state-of-the-art in particle physics at the end of the 1970's. It is written at a level that a keen layperson can understand, but also provides technical detail that may quickly provide insight for an advanced undergrad or early grad student intending to major in particle physics or physics in general. Although advances in theoretical physics have moved beyond the content in this book, I believe the majority of what is presented remains an important part of accepted practice in theoretical particle physics. (An edited, updated version of this book, published in the mid-1980's, is also available).