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I have read so many books on astrophysics, including those written by Stephen Hawking, to answer my curiosity on space-related issues. However, the fun stops three-quarters into the book when the author starts talking about the string theory. I found this book to be particularly entertaining because of the way the author focuses his story telling on the war between the two camps on whether "information" is lost in a black hole, it makes readers eager to follow to the end to see who is going to win that war. And bit by bit, the author adds basic knowledge about the otherwise hard-stuff on astrophysics so that readers are able to follow what kind of war he is waging against. As important as it is to know about this "new" stuff on astrophysics, I found the theory to be too difficult for a lay person to understand, albeit the author's attempt to simplify it. But thankfully, the space devoted to the theory is small enough that the confusion about the string theory does not destroy the fun from reading the preceding chapters.
I really did enjoy reading this book by Susskind. It is an easy but deep and complete explanation of the holographic universe idea, with a lot of flashbacks of how Susskind arrived to it and had to fight with Hawking (and the astronomy community) before it was accepted and considered as a breaktrough towards the unification/understanding of General Relativity and Quantum Mechanics.So, go and get it.
His editors held his feet to the ground and forced him to flesh out those elementary steps for the reader. It's a very fast and (believe it or not) easy read. Too much if you ask me. Susskind explains most all current quantum physics concepts including string theory, holographic principle, multiple dimensions, conservation of data, and (of course) the black hole paradox.
No need to go overboard.One other thing to remember while reading: the analogies drawn to help readers visualize concepts are, for the most part, one dimensional. I also liked his side note about science being the study of the observable, therefore ideas about black holes leading to alternative universes, heaven, or hell cannot be considered valid hypothesis.Much kudos to Susskind's editors. I've seen some of his lectures, and even the most elementary concept discussions he has a tendency to skip steps in explanations because they seem obvious to physicists. This is a fantastic book for physics groupies. It just resembles a static picture. I mean an exorbitant amount.
He clearly respects, admires, and challenges Hawking. We get it.
Keep the context literal to understand the point clearly and don't `test' the analogies.Buy this book it will blow your mind, educate you, and entertain you. Complex concepts are laid out in simple analogies for the layman.
What I mean is when the author describes something like `energy at the event horizon' as `resembling a TV set tuned to static', the analogy does not go any further than that. On occasion, though, this doesn't happen.
So expect a few concepts to have the "miracle happens here" step.Susskind refers to Steven Hawking a lot in this book. It doesn't mean energy shoots out from behind the surface, or it's a flat surface, or you can change the channel to I Love Lucy.
This book epitomizes the phrase "Truth is stranger than fiction."
I have been so pleased with this book. And Susskind seems like the kind of person you would love to invite to dinner - a serious thinker who is endlessly amusing. It started out rather slowly with some very basic concepts (read boring to those of us with any math skills), but quickly evolved into the most lucid and entertaining description of our universe (and the ultra-bright humans living within it) that I have ever read. It's physics, its personal, it's engaging and clear. He knew Feynmann (whose large red text books I still treasure from college days) - he spars with Hawking. Well, he just tells a good story - you won't be disappointed.
He is very enthusiastic when he talks about his "battle" with Stephen Hawking, along with string theory and other theoretical physics. I really enjoyed reading this book. Susskind loves physics and it shows. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in learning about black hole physics in non-technical language. Or to anyone looking for a fun and interesting book.
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