The Science of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials

by Mary Gribbin, John Gribbin

Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy is renowned for its mystery and magic. What’s the truth behind it all? Is the golden compass actually based in science? How does the subtle knife cut through anything? Could there be a bomb like the one made with Lyra’s hair? How do the Gallivespians’ lodestone resonators really work? And, of course, what are the Dark Materials? Drawing on string theory and spacetime, quantum physics and chaos theory, award-winning science writers Mary and John Gribbin reveal the real science behind Philip Pullman’s bestselling fantasy trilogy in entertaining and crystal-clear prose.

Genres: Nonfiction, Science, Philosophy, Physics, Popular Science, Pop Culture, Reference

224 pages, Hardcover

First published August 23, 2003

About the author

Mary Gribbin works in education in East Sussex and writes books about science for children. She won The TES Junior Information Book Award for her book Time and the Universe, and has written a series of books for Ladybird. She has also worked with John Gribbin on Being Human, Ice Age, and major biographies of Richard Feynman and Robert FitzRoy, as well as the "in 90 minutes" series of mini-biographies of Galileo, Newton, Halley, Faraday, Darwin, Mendel, Curie, and Einstein.

She has written for a wide range of newspapers and magazines including She, Cosmopolitan, and the Guardian, has a degree in psychology and has worked for twenty years with children of all ages from 4 to 16. In an earlier incarnation, she was at one time the youngest County Councillor in England. Her other interests include floristry, antiques, and interior design.

Reviews

[ayanami · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very basic introduction to quantum mechanics, theoretical physics, evolution, and other concepts from Philip Pullman's trilogy written at a late elementary/early middle school level. I didn't realize this book was meant for children when I picked it up so I was disappointed by the lack of depth, especially since I was already familiar with most of the science explained. The book really only skims the surface of each concept. Still, it's a worthwhile read for fans of His Dark Materials who have little to no knowledge about these topics and want to understand the series in (slightly) more depth.

[Graham Oliver · Rating 3 out of 5]

This would be a fantastic book to give a child who has just read the trilogy and is excited off the energy from that. It teaches a wide variety of scientific concepts and ties them to events/items in the books. However, this connection is often tenuous and doesn't really teach you more about the books, so if you're familiar with the science already it doesn't add much.

[Megan O'Laughlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, the three books that comprise 'His Dark Materials' series are quite imaginative, with interesting and likable main characters (well, some not quite so likable) and that good old battle between good and evil. In this series, we are introduced to the idea that we exist within layers of worlds and there are some ways to travel in between them. While I neglected engagements to race through the first one and read the second one at a more leisurely pace, I read the third book at a slow and plodding place. So, I felt the first book is incredible but it does lose its momentum and feels like it gets caught in a battle of morals as the story goes on. While Rowling's Harry Potter books began to refer quite wonderfully to human rights issues, Pullman's kid/ adolescent story is more about science v. religion, which is interesting but I truthfully found a bit tiresome.

[Marissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting book that explains in layman's terms the various scientific theories and ideas that Pullman utilized in his trilogy. They discuss more difficult issues such as quantum physics, quantum mechanics, chaos, quantum entanglement, Schrodinger's cat and Multiple Worlds, string theory, and simpler concepts like magnetism and atoms. This is a good accompaniment to the trilogy.

[Liv · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very basic introductions to concepts introduced by His Dark Materials. Unfortunately the oversimplifications and analogies were frustrating (and sometimes misleading) for those interested in an in depth analysis.

[Blinky · Rating 2 out of 5]

I realize that, for some reason, when something is written for children, it has to be simplified (at least unless it is only written for a very few children who are reasonable at an early age); but not only are some of the metaphors devoid of any explanatory value (E. g. what does it mean to say that a universe is inside another universe like a balloon is inside another balloon? It parses from one poetry into another poetry Kaisa's claim to touch other universes with a sweep of her wing, but it really does not explain it.), it seems that some of what is written here is misguiding, rather than simplified, especially as it does get into very advanced topics. I am pretty sure this was my first time reading this book, but the misguiding information would account precisely for a common misconception about QM that I had as a child as well, which is that entanglement can be used for superluminal information transfer. Now, I would say that I'm open-minded on the matter, but if it is brought up, then the No-Communication theorem should at least be mentioned, as that is the contrary position held by mainstream physics on the subject, and it was certainly developed by the time the book was written. Also, it is getting squarely into New Age "quantum mysticism" when it suggests, quite casually, that twins and lovers communicate telepathically because of quantum entanglement. Some of the more established science, such as light polarization and outline of evolution, seem solid to me. It appears to me that the book only uses certain aspects of the original trilogy as lead-ins for outlining various science topics, usually in a superficial and cursory manner, and those lead-ins are not necessarily best explained by the particular theory that is used to explain them, such as the claim that the titular "Golden Compass" provides answers simply by making its user examine their subconscious, and that the reason why adults cannot use it is because children are more open-minded, when the Golden Compass is obviously a fantastic plot device that works by "magic" - what would perhaps also have been helpful would have been a definition of "magic" that the authors so ostentatively contrast from science. Especially as their explanations do not fit the explananda, it would perhaps have been better to concede that there really is no difference between completely alien science, and magic - that can perhaps be explained, but not by any terrestrial science. As the connections to the trilogy are so far-fetched and the information is misleading in some cases (yet in parts that might, depending on what one is interested in, result in gross misconceptions down the line, just like in the book's mentioning of the storm caused by the proverbial flapping of the butterfly's wing), I must advise against this book in favour of the many, more thorough, introductions on all of the topics it cursorily covers. But yet I think a child who enjoyed the trilogy would enjoy the book as well, simply as a fan article associated with the franchise.

[Nick Stibbs · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was utterly bored by science at school, by and large, being much more of a humanities person at that point in time, and I've managed to wing my way through life understanding very little about science, apart from that mentioned in evolution of consciousness books. Recently I've decided it's about time to get my quarks sorted from my cells, my Lamarck from my Darwin, and my anthropic principle from my cosmological constant.

So a good way in (apart from the several books on environmental science that I've been reading), was this kids' guide to the science of Philip Pullman's fantasy trilogy, His Dark Materials. Now, perversely, I haven't read any of those books, though I have seen the film for Northern Lights and have read several articles about or by Pullman, so am familiar with his thinking. He's a pretty....groovy isn't the word....deep guy and I have time for his imaginative humanism, enjoying the way his plays with religious assumptions and subverts them into a more exciting sense of reality.

I walked away from this book, a bit wiser about a few scientific principles, though somewhat confused as to how much I could draw parallels with some of Pullman's concepts like Dust and scientific theories about dark matter and such like. This is not a strictly science book in the narrow sense of the term, since to explain some of Pullman's ideas, the author looks at Jungian ideas of synchronicity, which are certainly outside the box of non-psychic scientific thinking but full marks for drawing kids attention to this important and to my mind commonplace phenomenon in life, that defies everyday scientific theories.

I would have liked to have seen more discussion of Pullman's use of the Daemon in the trilogy but that would be wading further into the territory of psychology and religion, betraying my own interests and probably wouldn't weather inclusion in a book supposedly about that terribly safe and dependable field that we call science. What is a Daemon? The author alludes to Jung's own Daemon, Philemon and Socrates was supposed to have one. Blake used the term, Poetic Genius; Whitman the term, Eidelon; others would speak of guardian angels, spirit guides, shadows, doubles. A daemon may simply be a metaphor for our subconscious, which to a keen eye, is visible, if unintegrated, as a hovering sidekick and potential usurper of our conscious persona.

The book is easy to read, may be quite boring for those up to date with science, but a useful and fun way to learn a few things if you're coming from a point of relative ignorance like me.

[Chris Whybrow · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a relatively simple introduction to some of the interesting scientific concepts behind Philip Pullman's 'His Dark Materials' trilogy. While it's quite interesting, it's not the be-all-and-end-all work on these concepts, for a more in depth study you will have to look elsewhere.

I've also noticed a bit of Pullman's religious agenda seems to have sneaked into this book as well, which is only to be expected. The book also ignores some of the logical inconsistencies and plot holes in Pullman's work. I noticed in the section on string theory and spectres it used the spectre explanation from 'The Subtle Knife'*, with no reference to the explanation in 'The Amber Spyglass'. And as Pullman's magic system is very loose and vague (much of it actually based on rituals scorned by this book) the explanation provided for it is somewhat limited.

But if this book gets Pullman's fans into science, then it does deserve praise.

*Can't blame them really. The 'scientific' explanation for spectres in 'The Subtle Knife' is much cooler and more interesting. Actually, so is the entire book in comparison to 'The Amber Spyglass'.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you've read the trilogy you will really enjoy this, I didn't notice half of the science because the story of Lyra and Will is so amazing so I appreciate this analysis all the more. Dust, String Theory, Chaos Theory, Parallel Worlds, Our Donut Universe and gravity, Serendipity, Synchronicity, Schrodinger's Cat, Evolution and Natural Selection, Gaia and light...they're all there and clearly explained. The Gribbin's tone is a bit juvenile but not patronizing. Their audience is middle schoolers perhaps but they present complex issues, including an excellent definition of science, in a bright, breezy way worthy of a second read after picking up "His Dark Materials" again to catch all I missed the first time around.

[Astra · Rating 5 out of 5]

According to this book, scientists have a theory (a theory because we don't have the stuff to prove it yet) that whenever you make a decision it creates a completely new world. For example, if you decide to go eat a cookie instead of continuing watching TV then there would be a new world in which you kept on watching TV. Right now I've just come to the part of the book where it explains how in The Subtle Knife you can cut actually cut into the nucleus of atoms and release whatever is inside, the stuff a scientist called Werner Heisenberg called potentia.

[Irene Lázaro · Rating 4 out of 5]

He visto que mucha gente ha criticado este libro por no ser lo suficientemente profundo, pero la verdad es que si buscas un libro profundo de física cuántica igual no es la mejor idea acudir a un libro para niños de 11 años. No creo que esa fuera la idea de los autores.
Yo creo que es encomiable ya solo el hecho de que hayan querido introducir a los niños conceptos muy complicados de cuántica, astrofísica, magnetismo... además, viene con una bibliografía donde los lectores pueden buscar más información si quieren saber más.
A mí este libro me hizo enamorarme de la física desde pequeña y alimentó mi inquietud, que al fin y al cabo es de lo que se trata.

[Charles Noyes · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book gave me something I wanted but wasn't executed well. It was a book that explained the science behind the series His Dark Materials. The series has a lot of science and dimensional travel so a book explaining it was very helpful to me. The only problem was that there was a few examples in this book that annoyed me. Like the incoherent storyline they chose to explain and the bad explanations for a few things. All in all, this book is only for hardcore fans of the series and shouldn't be taken too seriously. After all, it is only two author's interpretations of someone else's work.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book does a really good job of balancing science and story. It explains in order to lend weight to the world of the book, but doesn't get bogged down in a lot of equations, formulas, or diagrams. The author does a really good job blending the story of the book, scientific quotes, and explanations of the related scientific equations.

Reading through the explanations of how real science corresponds to the world made me want to read the series again, especially the second and third books.

[L · Rating 4 out of 5]

From dark matter to dust, the aurora to the mysterious alethiometer that is like an oracle, this book explores the science behind Philip Pullman's magical world. Anyone who is interested in science and literature should read this book, even if your scientific knowledge isn't that vast. Having studied sciences, a bit of philosophy and literature I naturally found this book to be most interesting. Fans of Pullman's fantasy trilogy should definitely read this book; on light, dust, stars and magic.

[Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a fun and very readable introduction to such topics as quantum physics, the Northern lights, magnetism, hidden dimensions, wheels, and other scientific subjects behind Philip Pullman's wonderful His Dark Materials series. The authors are well-established writers of science books for young readers, as well as fans of Pullman's novels.

[Sally · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. It is aimed at a young reader who wants to understand things like quantum physics and string theory. I never really had a mind for science in school (except maybe biology), so the authors broke down the concepts in a way that helped even me to understand them.

[Dhaivyd Hilgendorf · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed it.

[Lía Honorato · Rating 3 out of 5]

La verdad esta relectura me gustó más de lo que esperaba (esperaba odiarla de hecho), cuando leí este libro de niña, recuerdo que me costó muchísimo terminarlo. Hoy creo que fue una lectura muy interesante que me hizo percatarme de la enorme cantidad de cosas que había olvidado del colegio en cuanto a ciencias y otras que posiblemente nunca supe.
Fue una interesante lectura pero no puedo darle más puntaje puesto que no fue algo que realmente disfrutara mientras leía, existía el interes y la curiosidad pero no sentía ganas de leer más con cada capítulo que pasaba.

[Smiley C · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting book and there are some really informative facts. The best part is that it is written in a language that is quite easy to understand, and the usual complication of those scientific topics are simplified that even someone who are not used to reading non-fiction books--like me, can actually have motivation to continue reading. It is also amazing how all those science facts fit into the story, the plot of His Dark Materials, without readers realising.

[Abigail Lee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pitched at a weird level - in depth descriptions of basic concepts but then they throw in complex terms such as ‘wavefunctions’ without any context. As someone who studied quantum at university, these terms are familiar but I couldn’t help but wonder what someone with less experience would think of this.
Overall, mildly interesting, I didn’t get anything further out of it that wasn’t really covered in the trilogy.

[David Gallagher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Clear, accessible science, rife with analogies and child-like thought experiments. As explanatory material on life, time, and the nature of reality, this work is graciously sparse on existential-dread-inducing philosophy.

I would put the reading level at about ages 8-15, but I happily gobbled all this up at 30, so live your best life...

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a bad book. It explains exactly what it claims to. The problem is with me - I wasn't as interested in learning the basic science principles as I thought I might be. The tie-ins between the science and the fiction are well done and make sense. I can see young adults being inspired by it to investigate the various theories further.

[DanielvanBeethoven · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars for the readability and comprehensible presentation of the scientific concepts, but also for the sometimes rather far-fetched connections to His Dark Materials.

(Side note: I'm not qualified to judge whether the information in this book is in all respects correct, nor can I assess if some of this information may be out-of-date - after all, this book was published in 2003.)

[Tony · Rating 4 out of 5]

Skimming through the science implicit in the trilogy adds to my pleasure. I'd not been aware of how much the novels can be seen as consistent with modern science much of which I'd only hazily absorbed.

[MT · Rating 3 out of 5]

- Read like a high school course book. can’t see why this trilogy need any further scientific explanations to story. It the fact that they classified dust as elementary particle on the story, but any scientific or rational thought not sound validate to this universe at all. Let fantasy rules !

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written for kids but still informative and interesting, especially reading it immediately after finishing the series.

[Richard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good refresher for some science topics. They do a good job of explaining complex theories in an understandable, interesting way.

[Nada Hamdy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good

[Isa M&M · Rating 5 out of 5]

Honestly, this is the book that started my adventure in this world of reading and fantasy

[LJ]

scientific explanation of one of my favorite "fantasy" trilogies !!