Get a Grip on Physics

I have read many of John Gribbin's books, and have liked them all. This is by far the most general and basic of his books that I've read, but it is still wonderful. It is great for general audiences, and is suitable for adults and older children. He describes the basics of physics from early developments through the latest subatomic particle discoveries and string theory, so for such a small book, it covers a lot of area, without the mathematical rigor of a typical physics text. On page 41 he discusses electromagnetic relationships, and has one of the most easily comprehensible explanations (and illustrations) that I have seen for this basic physical phenomenon. In his discussion of the speed of light, he explains the basics of Einstein's insights in a comprehensible manner that clarifies basic relativity well for beginners, though he does make a minor mathematical error on page 49. I found his discussions of quantum physics very strong, with a great explanation of things like the famous "quantum leap" and atomic shell stability that is both accurate, and accessible to non-scientists while still being entertainingly written. I have always admired Ernest Rutherford's work, and was especially amused to see the inclusion of his famed quip about chemistry in his biography: "all of science is either physics or stamp collecting," this despite winning the Nobel Prize for chemistry (which he always regarded as an inferior academic discipline to physics.) As the book gets further into the modern era, needless to say, the subjects get tinier and stranger. Gribbin covers the wackiest of subatomic particles (quarks, antiquarks, leptons, pions, glueballs, tauons, etc.) well, and excels in his basic introduction to string theory, the Schrödinger's Cat paradox, quantum uncertainty, compactification, black holes, superfluidity, and other oddities of the physical sphere. He pays more than a mention to Richard Feynman (although the terrible likeness of Feynman on page 145 makes him look more like the lead singer from "Night Ranger" than the eccentric physicist we know an love.) Feynman was one of the most brilliant men who ever lived, and Gribbin believes, as I do, that he was at least on par with Einstein, and possibly even more insightful. This is a great introduction to physics, but I only gave it four stars for purely physical reasons (sorry about the pun.) The book is printed on unbleached, recycled paper, which is rather dark brown, and is sometimes a big strain on the eyes to read; likewise, the small sections are sometimes chopped up and illustrations are inserted in awkward places, making it more difficult to read than it would otherwise be. I do like the illustrations, and think the biographies and fact boxes throughout help the reader immensely. This is a fine book, and I recommend it highly. I also recommend Gribbin's other books (which are somewhat more complex than this one), and highly recommend Feynman's books as well.

This book is very visually stimulating and provides a great overview of physics hisorty, theories, founders, and current ideas. Every page is differnt: it is not just text and diagrams, but drawings and sketches and smaller blocks of text explaining key ideas, words, and people mentioned. I found this very helpful because it kept me entertained and wanting to read more. Every page I turned gave me several choices of what to read first: either a mini biography about someone, or their ideas or theories, or how something applys to my every day life. It is very cleverly written, and provides a lot of real life, easily relatable examples. It does not, however, delve deeply into the mathematics of physics equations, or the minute details of every theory; so if you are really looking to really learn physics, this will be a bit too shallow. But for the layman, it will provide a lot of general knowledge on the subject, and give you insight into somethings you may have never though about.