Quantum Profiles: Second Edition

by Jeremy Bernstein

What was Albert Einstein like as a person? How did J. Robert Oppenheimer's religious background impact his scientific endeavors? Why did John Stewart Bell get into physics in the first place? Prolific science writer Jeremy Bernstein has followed up on his original Quantum Profiles , published in 1990, with seven added Wendell Furry, Philipp Frank, J. Robert Oppenheimer, Victor Weisskopf, Tom Lehrer, Max Jammer, and Robert Serber. The profiles on John Stewart Bell, John Wheeler, and Albert Einstein from the first edition have been revised and expanded, as well.

Bernstein presents each profile carefully, and the context provided in these historical profiles is revolutionary in each approach. Bernstein's unique academic and social background allows readers to fully grasp the character profiles in each chapter. With a conversational writing style, Bernstein lets readers get to know these ten prolific physicists-from personalities to historical and scientific significance-in a whole new way.

Genres: Science

228 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1990

Reviews

[Don · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting take on profiling scientists. Bernstein digs deep into the lives of two of the most significant quantum physicists of the 20th century - John Steward Bell and John Archibald Wheeler. Bell was most famous for formulating his Bell's Theorem that demonstrated the non-localness of entangled quantum particles if the predictions of quantum theory are correct. Wheeler's fame came from so many branches of physics - mostly quantum mechanics and general relativity - coining the terms 'black holes' and 'worm holes'.

Interestingly, the profiles are somewhat personal interview accounts by both about the paths they followed and what that meant to their lives that gives more insight than what you might find in a biography. What I found unusual, and may have been some of the inspiration for this book, was that Bernstein was able to elicit commentary from both about Einstein's refusal to believe that quantum mechanics was a complete theory. Both knew Einstein and his beliefs. In fact the final chapter was a brief biography of Michele Angelo Besso - a lifelong friend of Einstein who may have been instrumental in helping Einstein formulate his first theories while both worked at the patent office together. Whether Besso provided any insight remains unclear, but, he most certainly was a sounding board for Einstein.

Why this final epilogue was provided was a bit strange in the book - but, it seems to be focused on how scientists who grew up with quantum mechanics had no problem with its apparent probabilistic and non-local behavior vs. Einstein's adamant belief in an underlying realism that has yet to be discovered.

[Richard]

Not what I was expecting. It was essentially historical and about the personalities of those people involved in the making of quantum theory. Not much about the theory itself. This is a library book, btw, which is overdue by maybe 10 years.

[m · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bernstein's a good writer.