Customer Reviews

Everyone's Guide to Atoms, Einstein, and the Universe

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There are a lot of books attempting to explain physics and cosmology to the layman. This one stands head and shoulders above the rest, in my opinion. There are three reasons for that. First, you should understand that in this area of writing, there is traditionally a taboo, nay, a strict prohibition, on the use of equations. You may not realize that Scientific American's editors forbid its authors to use even a single equation. Piccioni breaks this taboo and uses a few well-chosen equations. Face it, you can't come close to understanding physics and cosmology with zero equations. Second, Piccioni has a natural gift for explaining things well. That gift leads him to use very few equations, and use them well, and it also leads him to tell a story well, and punctuate it with entertaining anecdotes. The third reason why Piccioni's book is excellent is that he himself understands these things very deeply. Here a disclaimer is in order: I have known Piccioni since we were students together at Caltech and Stanford. He always could explain things well, and he always understood things deeply. You will understand the things you read in this book, even the equations, except possibly for a page or two in the chapter on Dark Energy, where unfortunately even the best scientists in the world do not understand what is going on.

Piccioni's book contains a clear exposition of physics and cosmology that is accessible to an individual who did not study physics in school, and it contains enough detail so that those who did can update their knowledge of the subject. The author's prose style is refreshing. The book is well worth the effort whether for an airplane trip, for an afternoon when the weather keeps one from other matters or for an occasion when one's spirit would be lifted by considering new matters. Gray Jennings

Einstein was a genius, but true genius is not something only understandable by other genius. "Everyone's Guide to Atoms, Einstein, and the Universe: Real Science for Real People" is the layman's guide to the complicated mathematics and theories behind twentieth and twenty-first century science. Anyone can understand quantum physics, says author Robert L. Piccioni, who then strives to make his point with straightforward, comprehensible explanations. "Everyone's Guide to Atoms, Einstein, and the Universe" is enthusiastically recommended to readers of all backgrounds, as well as to public library collections.

Length:: 0:50 Mins

If you want to understand how modern physics, cosmology and astronomy have drastically reshaped our view of the world in the past hundred years, read this book. As the title implies, any intelligent reader, with or without knowledge of mathematics, could understand this book. Very few physicists have succeeded in explaining modern physics without the use of complex mathematics, the native language of physicists. The notable exceptions on my list are Steven Weinstein (The First Three Minutes), Stephen Hawking (A Brief History of Time), Roger Penrose (Emperor's New Mind), Brian Green (The Elegant Universe), and Lee Smolin (The Trouble with Physics). After I finished reading this wonderful book, I have added Robert Piccioni to the list.

Einstein published three seminal papers in 1905. The first paper established the quantum nature of light, an essential element in the development of Quantum Mechanics. The second paper proposed the Special Theory of Relativity, a now firmly established theory that links time and space to form a four-dimensional space-time continuum. Einstein later extended this theory to the Theory of General Relativity, a theory that explains how the curvature of space-time creates our illusion of Newtonian gravity. The third paper utilized Brownian motion to provide clear evidence for molecules in motion, thus firmly established the existence of atoms. These three papers played a crucial role in launching modern physics in a totally different direction from that of nineteenth century physics.

The book "Everyone's Guide to Atoms, Einstein, and the Universe" starts with Einstein's early contributions, and ends with the most recent discoveries that form our current understand of the universe. This book surveys a broad range of topics, including Quantum Mechanics, elementary particles, four forces of nature, Special Relativity, General Relativity, Hubble expansion, the Big Bang, cosmic microwave background radiation (CMB), neutron stars, black holes, dark matter, and dark energy. Using these essential elements, Dr. Piccioni tells a fascinating story of modern physics and how we arrived at our modern view of the universe, starting with the Big Bang over 13 billion years ago and ending with how our universe may end in the distant future.

This book was an entertaining read. The thing I liked the most about it was the way you don't have to read it cover to cover. If you're interested in Einstein, you can read the chapters about him. If you're curious about dark matter, then skip to the end. Each of the chapters is cross referenced so that if there is a concept you may have missed by skipping around, you can go to that. I mostly read it cover to cover, but since I have a nonfiction ADD, I didn't finish the whole thing. I will go back at some point soon and read the chapters I didn't finish, though. I also loved the pictures in the middle (I'm a simple man). The language is very common man, but it doesn't treat you like you're an idiot, which is good. If you already have an interest in science (and if you don't why would you even be looking at this review, or even contemplating this book?) this is a good book to read. It is one you will come back to again and again, and is well worth the price.

First, I need to preface this review by saying that I never liked physics. I had to take physics in high school and college as prerequisite classes, but I never enjoyed learning about physics. As an adult, I'm trying to broaden my horizons. In that spirit, I decided to give physics another try and I'm very glad that I did! Dr. Piccioni makes even complex concepts easy to understand and interesting. Who knew that a physics book could be a page-turner?! I wish I had this book back in high school. I highly recommend it to everyone, from students taking a physics class to anyone who is interested in learning more about how our universe works.

The following review is written by my 10 year old daughter who is studying in 5th grade.
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I love physics a lot and I wanted to know a lot more about it. So, I bought this book. Now, I know all about things like antimatter, Einstein's theories, stars, black holes, and a lot more. This book is easy to understand and has a lot of pictures for examples of the concept. Anyone can learn a lot from this book. I am really happy I got Everyone's Guide to Atoms, Einstein, and the Universe!
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I have finally finished reading both books by Robert L. Piccioni, Everyone's guide to Atoms, Einstein and the Universe and Can Life Merely and Accident? I must admit, few books have had as much impact on me as these two books.

Robert's books time and time again, literally left me with my jaw dropped in amazement by the knowledge presented. Robert made complex laws of physics easy for me to understand. His tour through micro world of Quantum Mechanics showed me just how bizarre physics can get. After reading his explanation of our awesome universe I look up at the sky more. His humor, which he uses quite a bit, keeps both books entertaining and interesting.

I am going to send some friends copies of Robert's books. They will make nice gifts.

I have read much about physics and science in general over the past few years as I have researched material for my own writing. This was the best book and material that I found as it answered many questions that I still had and did it in a very readable and understandable fashion. I would highly recommend it to anyone who wants to know more about basic physics. Dr. Piccioni wants to help you understand the physical universe and that desire reveals itself through clarity and obvious expertise.