Quantum Leaps (ePub)

In the early years of its conception, J Robert Oppenheimer spoke of quantum theory as a subject that was 'unlikely to be known to any poet or historian.' Yet, as Bernstein notes, in just sixty-odd years, one can find at least nine million entries on Google under the rubric 'quantum theory' — from poets and historians, as well as film critics and Buddhist monks. How did quantum mechanics enter general culture so pervasively?

Having studied the subject for over a half-century, Jeremy Bernstein returns in this second edition to enlighten readers with a witty insider's perspective on the development of quantum theory as well as its loopholes. It is also a scintillating account of the interplay between brilliance and fallibility in humankind, even in the key figures who have shaped common understanding of quantum theory — such eminent figures include Niels Bohr, the Dalai Lama, Tom Stoppard, and most notably, John Bell who made pioneering contributions in quantum physics.

At once thought-provoking and intellectual, this semi-autobiographical popular science book is highly recommended for readers with rudimentary knowledge of science history, philosophy, and naturally, physics.

• A Frontispiece
• Acknowledgements
• An Introduction
• Bishops
• Quantum Buddhists
• Léon Rosenfeld
• A Double Slit
• A Measurement
• Entanglements
• Anyway What the #$*! Do We Know?
• L'Envoi
• Appendix

• Bernstein is an influential author and theoretical physicist best known for his popular science writing and profiles of scientists. He was a staff writer for The New Yorker from 1961 to 1995 and authored many dozens of articles. He has also written regularly for The Atlantic Monthly, the New York Review of Books, and Scientific American, among others
• Highly personalized account of the quantum research world