I think this is, quite possibly, one of the best books I've read on the fourth dimension. For those saying "but the fourth dimension is time", all I have to say is, no, not in this case. We're discussing four spatial dimensions, which we can only really represent with mathematics in our three dimensional world. Naturally this is written by a mathematician and he did quite an exquisite job at explaining the nature of this utterly foreign dimension.
Now readers won't walk away being able to picture four dimensional beings or structures, but one will be able to grasp a fairly general understanding of what it would be like for a four dimensional being or object to exist and interact with our dimension. Naturally Rucker does this by explaining the relations between the dimensions by changing our perspective and having us think two dimensionally. For this he relies heavily on a book written by Edwin Abbott called "Flatland". I highly recommend you read "Flatland" before you attempt to tackle Rucker's book, as he constantly quotes "Flatland", almost to his books detriment. He also quotes other texts like "Spaceland" (which Rucker also wrote) or "Flatterland" here and there, but the one he relies upon most is "Flatland". "Flatland" is a natural and easy introduction to learning how to think from the perspective of a different dimension and helps the reader to fully grasp Rucker's analogy as he projects the relationship from the second and third dimensions to a relationship between the third and the fourth dimension. Naturally he points out that some of these points are mere conjecture as we cannot observe fourth dimensional objects in our reality... yet. "The 4th Dimension" is also illustrated with all kinds of silly cartoons to give the book a much lighter feel to its fairly heavy topic. The illustrations will certainly help anyone who really needs to see a drawing of some of the concepts Rucker talks about.
I was originally introduced to some of these concepts via Michio Kaku's book "Hyperspace". While he did a pretty good job explaining four spatial dimensions, I think this book really delves into it a lot deeper. The reader walks away with a much fuller understanding of the concepts concerning this different dimension. Not only will you learn about this, Rucker also goes through a very interesting history concerning humanity's fascination with things beyond our own dimension. He delves into metaphysics and explanations for ghosts as well as recounting the mathematical history (which is the real mainstay of this book). The spiritual aspects of this book are more anecdotal to help give the reader some historical or philosophical perspective in lieu of the mathematics.
If you're really curious about the possibility of other spatial dimensions then this book is a great read. The physics and universe research may be a little outdated by this point since the book originally came out in the 1980's, but it's application in helping a person think of how the fourth dimensional being would react is still applicable. While I'm pretty sure it's agreed that there are more than three spatial dimensions in existence, this book still treats that aspect as if there's still a major debate going on about it. After finding absolute proof of Black Holes in the universe, I think the multi-dimensional universe (or multiverse) concept is pretty realistic, since if the Black Hole singularity transcends our space and time... it has to go somewhere! Anyway, don't forget to read "Flatland" before you pick this up and I think people will find this a fun and informative read.
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MURALI MOHAN PASUMARTY
One more for personal library
Reviewed in India 🇮🇳 on December 29, 2018
