When I walk along the streets on a fine day, I see clouds and trees and the boundaries formed by blue skies and mountains. And also, I see buildings. After I read this book, I enjoy walking even more. The images of man-made structures are composed of regular shapes like lines, rectangles, and circles. But the images of nature seem to be fundamentally different. The shapes of nature are irregular and far more diverse, and are also more beautiful. The waves at the sea shore and the sounds of seagull purify and heal my mind. What makes nature so special that man cannot imitate it perfectly? Chaos theory can give an answer for the question. It claims the following:
When a complex system in nature evolves in time, it does according to universal rules.
For examples, consider a jellyfish and the ink dropping in water. Although one is a living being and the other is not, about shapes, they are quite similar. The lightening paths and the shapes of some trees are also such examples. The universal rules have some features breaking the common sense.
1. Simple and determined (in every detail) systems can behave in an extremely complicated way, apparently random and almost unpredictable.
2. Different systems can behave in the same way, caring not at all for the details of a system's constituent atoms.
3. Butterfly effect: small change in initial condition can give rise to qualitatively different results.
Moreover, if we try to analyze the complex system using geometry, then we come to encounter fractal geometry, not ordinary Euclidean geometry in which main objects are lines, rectangles, and circles. Shapes in fractal geometry again resemble shapes in natural phenomenon like clouds, trees, sea shore, etc. Chaos theory is really charming.
Chaos theory emerged around 1960s. The meteorologist Edward Lorentz is recognized as the father of this theory. He found the butterfly effect and investigated the problem of how far aperiodicity is responsible for unpredictability. The author, James Gleick, successfully teaches us what chaos theory is. As a journalist, he interviewed many original inventors of chaos theory. Beyond simply listing materials from chaos references and interviews with inventors, he wrote another great book about chaos. Almost half of the story is about mathematics. Reading the book, I felt ashamed when I found that he fully understand modern mathematics although he is not a professional mathematician.
Now, I want to say about some bad points of the book. In several places, its explanation is vague. For example, the author explains the work of Barnsley through several pages. He does it with comparison to the game of throwing coins. But even though I could understand the analogy, I couldn't understand anything of the work of Barnsley. There are several places like that. I think it's because the author tried to contain as much contents as possible in an appropriate sized book. Another example of vagueness is about turbulence. Turbulence is regarded as one of the most difficult problems in physics before the chaos theory emerges. The effort to understand turbulence was one of the major impetuses that produced chaos theory. The book describes how chaos theory contributed to understand turbulence. But even though I finished the book, I couldn't understand in what concrete sense - by concreteness I mean clarity of explanation accessible to general audience - chaos theory were helpful.
But the bad points are few compared with the merits of the book. It deals with almost all major inventors and historical events in the early history of chaos theory so that readers, after reading the book, may safely say they learned a lot about chaos theory. That's a good point. For example, the following were really new ideas to me:
1. Chaotic aspects of a living organism can serve as self-defending system.
2. Some sudden irregular movement of organism of eye muscles and sudden blockage of blood vessels possibly happen without any external reason, but with only its internal rule of movements.
3. Mode locking phenomenon: I am not sure that this is also a chaos phenomenon. Some firefly congregates in trees during mating periods, thousands at one time, blinking in a fantastic harmony. A radio receiver to lock in on signals even when there are small fluctuations in their frequency. Moon always faces the earth.
4. Renormalization theory: In particle physics, when we compute equations according to old quantum mechanics, many times we encounter infinity. In nature, every quantity must be finite. So this is absurd. Renormalization is a technique developed from 1940s to 1970s to avoid this problem. After reading the book, I come to know that renormalization is closely related to chaos theory.
If you read the book, you will find great intellectual amazement. I can guarantee you that the amazement will exceed that of when you first learn relativity or quantum mechanics.
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Reviews with images
A Fascinating Journey into Chaos and Revolutionary Science
"Chaos: Making a New Science" is a book that captivated me from the very first page. James Gleick takes us on a fascinating journey through chaos, exploring a science that challenges our conventional perceptions.Gleick demonstrates his mastery by making complex scientific concepts accessible to the average reader. His skill in interweaving human stories with scientific discoveries creates a compelling narrative.As you progress through the pages, you are immersed in the fascinating history of the emergence of chaos theory. From the engaging accounts of key figures to the clear explanation of concepts like sensitivity to initial conditions, Gleick manages to maintain interest without sacrificing scientific rigor.What makes this book stand out even more is its timeless relevance. Although written in the 1980s, the ideas and principles presented remain foundational in modern science.In summary, "Chaos" not only provides a masterful exploration of chaos and the new science that emerged from it but also invites the reader to question and redefine their understanding of the world around us. Highly recommended for those seeking an engaging and enriching read in the realm of science.
Top reviews from the United States
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Reviewed in the United States on April 2, 2015
Reviewed in the United States on February 1, 2024
Gleick demonstrates his mastery by making complex scientific concepts accessible to the average reader. His skill in interweaving human stories with scientific discoveries creates a compelling narrative.
As you progress through the pages, you are immersed in the fascinating history of the emergence of chaos theory. From the engaging accounts of key figures to the clear explanation of concepts like sensitivity to initial conditions, Gleick manages to maintain interest without sacrificing scientific rigor.
What makes this book stand out even more is its timeless relevance. Although written in the 1980s, the ideas and principles presented remain foundational in modern science.
In summary, "Chaos" not only provides a masterful exploration of chaos and the new science that emerged from it but also invites the reader to question and redefine their understanding of the world around us. Highly recommended for those seeking an engaging and enriching read in the realm of science.
A Fascinating Journey into Chaos and Revolutionary Science
Reviewed in the United States on February 1, 2024
"Chaos: Making a New Science" is a book that captivated me from the very first page. James Gleick takes us on a fascinating journey through chaos, exploring a science that challenges our conventional perceptions.Reviewed in the United States on February 1, 2024
Gleick demonstrates his mastery by making complex scientific concepts accessible to the average reader. His skill in interweaving human stories with scientific discoveries creates a compelling narrative.
As you progress through the pages, you are immersed in the fascinating history of the emergence of chaos theory. From the engaging accounts of key figures to the clear explanation of concepts like sensitivity to initial conditions, Gleick manages to maintain interest without sacrificing scientific rigor.
What makes this book stand out even more is its timeless relevance. Although written in the 1980s, the ideas and principles presented remain foundational in modern science.
In summary, "Chaos" not only provides a masterful exploration of chaos and the new science that emerged from it but also invites the reader to question and redefine their understanding of the world around us. Highly recommended for those seeking an engaging and enriching read in the realm of science.
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Top reviews from other countries
halfluke
The most popular book on chaos theory, and for a good reason.
Reviewed in Italy on December 25, 2023