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First let me say that I have a degree in physics and in education. I may not be the typical reader but I think I can provide a reasonable review of this book.
The book is a very clear and well delineated explanation of the basics of quantum mechanics. Orzel provides the relevant background needed to understand each section along with a historical outline of how the physics developed. His teaching is lucid and straightforward (think Carl Sagan or Isaac Asimov). The examples and questions are provided outlined in a tongue in cheek manner as discussions with his dog. I am somewhat torn about the verbiage relating to his dog, it is sometimes funny, but can also be distracting. I think in the classroom the humor would come across more consistently. It does add a level of absurdity to the book, and if quantum mechanics is anything, it is sometimes quite absurd to those of us living our daily lives in a classical world.
I also laughed out loud many times while reading the chapter on debunking the snake oil salesmen who try to use various garbled versions of quantum mechanics to explain how their gizmos can provide "free energy" or "improve your health". I have had a lot of conversations with people about these contraptions (and those Amish space heaters advertized in the paper all the time, but that is another issue).
The historical perspective in each section is excellent, specifically the development of wave/particle duality and the Copenhagen interpretation. Orzel's presentation of the manner in which theories are developed and tested is superb. For students this is may be eye opening, many of them seem to believe that science develops in a linear and straightforward manner and the examples presented by Orzel show the more convoluted path often taken.Read more ›
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38 of 39 people found the following review helpful
Writing a book about physics for laymen can always be a difficult task. I have read more than I can count. Books can either be too technical and unapproachable to be of interest to the lay person, or they can be so silly and irrelevant that not enough meaty information is contained within. As a background on myself, I am an engineer by training, and as a wise man on Magrathea once said, "I am a great fan of science."
The book itself is geared towards somebody with a decent knowledge of physics and math, but not necessarily quantum mechanics. I would say high-school level should be fine, but then again, with what passes for high school education, it's possible that it could be beyond some people (some may have issue with words like exponential). The reader should note that the book is really "How to Teach Quantum Mechanics To Your Dog" as Physics in general is not covered (and it even avoids relativity). This is not a negative, but just an FYI.
Overall, excellent book---I probably picked up something new in every chapter. Some of the science was familiar, though I was not aware of all the players and fun stories involved. For the science I knew, I appreciated having a good way to explain it to friends and family. As the book progressed, I discovered new things about quantum mechanics which I did not know.
You'll learn about how the most often referenced piece of quantum mechanics (Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle) is also the most misunderstood. You'll also learn not only about Schrodinger's Cat, but also his many women (who knew physicists were like that?).Read more ›
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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful
My 11 year old son is nuts about physics, so I got this book to see how it would go over with him. It did, perfectly. The whole ruse of explaining physics to a dog was hilarious to him and really made concrete some of the things that the author was trying to explain. I had my son explaining to me, laughing, how a dog could walk through a tree if he went slowly enough (with all the physics behind that crazy statement) and then hilariously illustrating what would happen if the dog didn't go quite slow enough. (He'd bonk his head). You'd think he was recounting a Calvin and Hobbes joke. The entire time my son was reading this he kept coming to me with, "did you know..." and "wow! I never realized that" epiphanies. He did say that some of the stuff being explained was really hard, although he jumped to the author's defense saying that he thinks it's not that he did a bad job explaining it, it's just that some of it was, well, tough.
I am very pleased with this book and am so glad I selected it for my son. It seems to be a great choice for an intelligent person without much real physics background who wants to learn about the material.
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20 of 23 people found the following review helpful
Chad Orzel has come up with an interesting way to teach quantum physics - by using scenarios from the real world. He does this specifically by having conversations with his dog, Emmy, about how she'd like to catch those fast bunnies and squirrels in the back yard, or live in a universe where Chad always drops steak on the floor. It helps to make a difficult-to-understand subject a little more applicable to what we see, and the little discussions he has with the dog are used very well to clear up the ideas he's discussed and I found many of my own questions answered that way.
My beef with the book is that it wasn't clear this was about quantum physics. Mr. Orzel is not really writing for the lay person as much as he's writing for someone who already has a decent understanding about classical physics. My high school physics class was a long time ago and I didn't understand it very well even then. But it's still a subject I wish I could understand better now, but it doesn't seem to come as easily as it does for some others. Nonetheless, I can say that I now understand *some* things about quantum physics a little better.
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This item: How to Teach Quantum Physics to Your Dog
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