Quarks, Leptons and the Big Bang

by Jonathan Allday

Quarks, Leptons and The Big Bang , Third Edition, is a clear, readable and self-contained introduction to particle physics and related areas of cosmology. It bridges the gap between non-technical popular accounts and textbooks for advanced students. The book concentrates on presenting the subject from the modern perspective of quarks, leptons and the forces between them. This book will appeal to students, teachers and general science readers interested in fundamental ideas of modern physics. This edition brings the book completely up to date by including advances in particle physics and cosmology, such as the discovery of the Higgs boson, the LIGO gravitational wave discovery and the WMAP and PLANCK results.

Genres: Science, Physics, Nonfiction

375 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1997

Reviews

[Rachael · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a nice exploration of particle physics and cosmology. Allday has accessible but somewhat mathematical (algebra level) introductions to the concepts of relativity and quantum mechanics. By the end the reader will know what the standard model is, what feynman diagrams are, and have experience knowing how quantum mechanics is used to determine probabilities. They will also know something about big bang cosmology and the inflationary epoch. The only downside is, some of the stuff is obviously outdated. The Higgs has been discovered, supersymmetrical particles still are not found and GUTs not the same. He discusses the LHC which is now up and operational (though currently being outfitted to reach its maximum 14 TeV capacity). With those provisos though, I enjoyed the first half the most.

[Prejudice Neutrino · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful overview of modern cosmology and particle physics. You will learn all about fermions, how particle accelerators operate, and the origins of the universe. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in understanding the quantum world as well as cosmology!

[Kevin Wong · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gives a good overview about particle physics and peers into quantum physics for head stuff.