Niels Bohr's Times,: In Physics, Philosophy, and Polity

Historical description of the development of nuclear and quantum physics, especially from the viewpoint of Bohr and colleagues, many who Pais worked with. Provides a non-technical description of many of the principles of modern physics.

I bought this book for my Dad and he loved it ..... BUT he's a retired scientist with an interest in and basic knowledge of quantum mechanics. He particularly enjoyed the explanations of this very weird branch of physics. As an example of the type of reader who may enjoy this - he's the only person I know who has read "A Brief History of Time" cover to cover.

I enjoyed this book. I think the book may even be the definitive account of Bohr's life. My big complaint about this book, though, is as follows: the book is not good for an everyday person who wants to know about Bohr. It goes very heavy (in my mind, too heavy) into physics developments of the twentieth century. Combined with the fact that Pais is not that great at explaining these concepts, you have to have a good background in science to enjoy this book. All told, though, I thought Pais did a good job at showing the reader a glimpse of Bohr's world. Highly recommended for science types.

Anyone who knows Pais' Subtle is the Lord (Einstein biography) - which, to my shock is listed as 'out of stock' - will certainly appreciate this Bohr biography. Bohr was a towering figure in the physics of the first half of the 20th century, and Pais covers it all - physics, politics, personal life, philosophy, and everything else. Again, to have somebody as highly qualified as Pais write scientific biographies is a pure pleasure.