Nothingness: The Science Of Empty Space (Helix Books) [Hardcover]

Henning Genz (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0738200611 | ISBN-13: 978-0738200613 | Publication Date: November 23, 1998 | Edition: First English language edition

This is a wonderful book on one of the most puzzling problems of physics and philosophy: Does empty space have an existence independent of the matter within it? Einstein thought not. In his universe, there can be no space without matter; but quantum physicist Werner Heisenverg’s famous “uncertainty principle” allows for the spontaneous, though fleeting, creation and destruction of fundamental particles from empty space. As physicist Henning Genz shows, “empty space” is really not empty at all; in fact it is an ocean seething with the creation and destruction of subatomic particles. Through the use of crystal-clear prose and over a hundred cleverly rendered and exceptionally instructive illustrations, Genz takes the reader from the metaphysical speculations of the ancient Greek philosophers, through the theories of Newton and the early experiments of his contemporaries, right up to the latest theories of quantum physics and cosmology.Some of the most delightful episodes of the book consist of early experiments on the vacuum, from teams of horses trying in vain to pull apart two iron hemispheres joined only by a vacuum, to more sophisticated ones involving water and air. These and many other fascinating investigations of the deep and exciting new physics of quantum mechanics and cosmology reveal incredible properties of the interplanetary and interstellar vacuum.While some of man’s ideas about the vacuum of outer space have been treated sporadically in other books, this is the first book for the nonscientist on a much neglected yet incredibly interesting segment of modern physics and timeless philosophy. It will delight and inform everyone interested in the latest concepts in physics, as well as the philosophical implications of scientific discoveries.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

What can you say about nothing? Paradoxically, it turns out we know quite a lot about emptiness, and physicist Henning Genz fills us in with Nothingness: The Science of Empty Space, a heady and delightful romp through the cold void of space. From Aristotle's horror vacui to modern quantum-mechanical confirmation that nature does indeed abhor a vacuum, Genz rockets us through the inky blackness with clarity and playfulness. The concept of the absolute void is one of the few that touches both the farthest reaches of philosophy and the most intimate corners of experimental physics, and the push and pull between these two fields has never been more plain. Torricelli's demonstration of the vacuum in Renaissance times turned his world inside out; it took hundreds of years for scientists to conclude that the seeming emptiness actually froths with "virtual particles" and the just barely real Higgs field. The stories are uniformly engrossing and enlightening, and while the science can get a bit abstruse from time to time, the narrative thread runs independently of the hard stuff. If you want the dirt on the most ephemeral of scientific subjects, look to Genz; he's done the impossible and created something out of Nothingness. --Rob Lightner

From Publishers Weekly

Can we conceive of such a concept as "nothingness"? In this tour de force, Genz, professor of theoretical physics at the University of Karlsruhe, Germany, explains that the answer depends on where we draw the line between "something" and "nothing." On a simpler conceptual level, we might wonder if space that is totally devoid of any matter exists: what would space travelers find in the millions of light years between galaxies? Genz demonstrates that even if a cubic meter of this "empty space" were totally free of dust, gas or the occasionally stray atom, it would still be illuminated by radiation. And if we tried to lower the temperature close enough to absolute zero to eliminate all energy, an energy field?what scientists call a Higgs field?would suddenly materialize to spite our efforts. As the ancient philosophers wrote, nature does seem to abhor a vacuum. Genz intricately constructs his case so that just when the reader questions the point of an apparent digression or yet another discussion of ancient Greek theories of matter, he nudges it expertly into the edifice of his argument. Questions about being and nothingness are shown to relate to today's most important questions in physics and cosmology?for instance, whether the large-scale structures in the universe, and the emergence of life itself, can be traced to transitions between various vacuum states. Genz is well served by his translator, who has deftly transformed the original into idiomatic English. This book is not an easy read, but it will repay careful study and is recommended for dedicated science buffs. 140 drawings.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: Basic Books; First English language edition edition (November 23, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0738200611
• ISBN-13: 978-0738200613
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.7 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,949,362 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Stimulating but disorganized, December 1, 1998

By 

George Musser (New York) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Nothingness: The Science Of Empty Space (Helix Books) (Hardcover)

The first law of quantum mechanics is: take an innocent word like "empty" and show that it really means its exact opposite. Genz's ramble through the history of the physics and philosophy of so-called empty space is well worth a read. Practically every page has insights that I haven't seen in any another treatment of this subject. The book is bound to provoke thought and discussion. But brace yourself. It's no easy read. The main problem is organization -- sometimes you feel adrift in a void, with no reference points to tell you where the argument is going and why. The book is a translation from German, and although individual sentences are clear and often engrossing, a stronger editorial hand would have been welcome. The English edition does contain some new information, such as the recent experimental demonstration of the bizarre "Casimir effect", but misses out on new evidence and theories for the cosmological constant.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars hello reviewer, check the dates of publication, June 28, 2006

By 

hot4hypatia (29.48 N , 98.51 W) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Nothingness: The Science Of Empty Space (Paperback)

One reviewer states this is a rehash of "The Book Of Nothing" by John Barrow.
Hello! The Genz book was written several years prior to the Barrow text.
tyvm

12 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A multi-faceted masterpiece., April 9, 1999

By 

eupraxis "eupraxis" (New Orleans, LA USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Nothingness: The Science Of Empty Space (Helix Books) (Hardcover)

This is a multi-faceted masterpiece of science and serious philosophy. Not for New Age-ists or the intellectually lazy, this book endeavors to shed light on the perplexing question of "nothing". Nothing ain't nothing. A treasure for science and philosophy advocates, historians of science, and -- by the way -- those who would like to treat their students to a novel approach to the questions of at least two epochs of learning.