Book Blog #6: Physics of the Impossible by Michio Kaku

Physics of the Impossible is an inquiry into much of the technology and seemingly incomprehensible ideas being developed in the realm of theoretical physics. There were several aspects of the book that I enjoyed, one such thing being the seemingly endless amounts of references that the author had in respect to what he was trying to describe. He also had a great deal of analogies the he used to explain the more complex ideas in a way that almost anyone could understand. The last thing that I recognized as being unique to this book over almost any other physics book that I have read was the tone that was projected throughout the novel. More often than not, when an author decides to write a book about such a subject, the focus of the novel is on the information, and little thought is given to the tone and overall entertainment value evoked in the audience. This book is an exception. Kaku creates both a learning and entertaining atmosphere that improves an already fascinating work. The only aspect that I did not enjoy thoroughly was the predictions that the author gave to when such technology might be available to a large population. The conclusion consistently seemed to be centuries (or more) away. Such conclusions are understandable, seeing as no one can accurately determine who will be responsible for the world's next great discovery. However, it is somewhat frustrating as a reader to read that what you are reading about will not be part of society until the distant and unforeseeable future. That being said, I would recommend this book to anyone who has an interest in science fiction, theoretical physics, or to someone who enjoys thinking outside of the box.

Questions

1. What did you find surprising about the facts introduced in this book?

The most surprising facts that were introduced in this book from my perspective were the ideas that some of these technologies are well on their way to becoming part of reality. Science-Fiction creations such as plasma barriers and windows have actually been created, but on a small scale. The same could be said for Anti-Matter, supposedly the most volatile substance that can be created. Approximately 1.5 nanograms are created each year in particle accelerators. Such a number might seem small, and rightfully so. However, such findings are encouraging, and improved methods are being developed that will (by estimation) increase the rate at which it can be produced by ten times. It has been said by many scientists that the growth of technology has been and will continue to be that of exponential increase. If this holds to be true, we will witness some of the largest advancements in human history to date.

2. Does the author present information in a way that is interesting and insightful, and if so, how does he or she achieve this?

The author presents information in both interesting and insightful ways through the analogies that he uses to describe the technologies and engineering aspects behind them, as well as by providing references that the general public can relate to, such as Star Trek and Star Wars. These bits of information as well as the overall enlightening tone of the novel create a unique atmosphere that is interesting and exploratory.

Book Blog #5: Unearthing Atlantis by Charles Pellegrino

     Unearthing Atlantis is one of the books that I have most enjoyed reading since the beginning of this year. The subject of the book is predominantly an archaeological discovery, but the author does a good job of incorporating many different fields of science into the  novel as well. One of the parts that I particularly enjoyed was the brief history of the world that the author puts together in order to give the reader a grasp of the huge geological time that has elapsed since the creation of the planet. He gives a summary of what the world looked like, and the events that unfolded  in reverse chronological order (multiplying by factors of 2 after each summary to avoid boring the reader). This was helpful to me because I have a hard time putting the past two millennia into perspective, let alone prehistoric events. The only aspect of this book that I did not enjoy was the author's use of names and eras so early and often. Throughout the book, he uses names of rulers and dynasties as reference points rather than actual dates, which is understandable due to the uncertainty of some of the times in which the figures came into power. However, it does get confusing at times, and I lost interest several times because of it. That being said, I would recommend this book to my friends and family, because it addresses a very interesting topic, and it did improve my understanding of our planet's history. I would advise whoever I encourage to read this book to be familiar with prehistoric eras and some important rulers of the ancient world.

Questions

1. How has reading this book changed your opinion of a certain person or topic?

     Before reading this book, I had a very different perspective on what I believed Atlantis to have looked like. It was one straight out of the pages of a fantasy-fiction novel; a civilization with the technology to fly over vast areas, and possibly even the technology to have created structures difficult for our finest architects and engineers to produce today. It could be said that this book brought my expectations down to, but it gave me a greater appreciation for what the Atlanteans might have actually been capable of. The author of the book is summarizing the events of an expedition that was being done to uncover the remnants of a volcanic eruption in Thera, an island in the Mediterranean near Crete. The archeologist were able to uncover several buildings that stood to be three stories tall, and several had indoor plumbing; the amazing thing is that they are thousands of years old! Tere were also several gold and silver artifacts found dating back to the same time period. These aren't exactly the feats of technology that one would expect after hearing about Atlantis, but it is still an amazing feat of engineering to have produced such things thousands of years before anyone else.

2. Does the author present information in a way that is interesting and insightful, and if so, how does he or she achieve this?

      The author does present information in several different ways, all being insightful and interesting. Several times throughout the novel, the author sites information from ancient texts (often times written by Plato) in order to provide the most accurate information available. He also provides pictures of the expedition several times throughout the book in an effort to illustrate what he is saying in addition to describing it.


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