Geons, Black Holes, and Quantum Foam: A Life in Physics

Author: Kenneth W. Ford

Brand: W. W. Norton & Company

Color: Other

Edition: Revised ed.

Number Of Pages: 390

EAN: 9780393319910

Release Date: 17-02-2000

Package Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.6 x 1.2 inches

Languages: English

Binding: paperback

Part Number: photographs

Details: Winner of the American Institute of Physics Science Writing Award

"This delightful account is packed with insights…[Wheeler] is a consummately American physicist whose wide-ranging career spans much of a disturbing century." ―Michael Riordan, New York Times Book Review
He studied with Niels Bohr, taught Richard Feynman, and boned up on relativity with his friend and colleague Albert Einstein. John Archibald Wheeler's fascinating life brings us face to face with the central characters and discoveries of modern physics. He was the first American to learn of the discovery of nuclear fission, later coined the term "black hole," led a renaissance in gravitation physics, and helped to build Princeton University into a mecca for physicists.
From nuclear physics, to quantum theory, to relativity and gravitation, Wheeler's work has set the trajectory of research for half a century. His career has brought him into contact with the most brilliant minds of his field; Fermi, Bethe, Rabi, Teller, Oppenheimer, and Wigner are among those he called colleagues and friends. In this rich autobiography, Wheeler reveals in fascinating detail the excitement of each discovery, the character of each colleague, and the underlying passion for knowledge that drives him still. Photographs