Existential Physics by Sabine Hossenfelder

For example, this book first introduced me to Thomas Young's Double Slit experiment and entropy, and it also gave me a much better understanding of time dilation and the universe's layout. Ultimately, Hossenfelder offers an open ended question that connects religion, entropy, and physics, however, she does not provide a concrete answer.Īlthough not many answers are given in the book, a ton of information is provided. Although a lot of them believe that religion and science cannot coexist, their personal understanding of why they can't coexist are all quite different. Hossenfelder gives her own opinion and shares the views of other scientists. One of the big questions asked early on is whether “science and religion can coexist?’ The truth is if you asked this question to ten different people you would get ten different answers. For example, the line between philosophy and science is quite blurry in this book, and I often wondered whether I was reading an opinion or a fact.

However, some of the questions being asked are so impossibly big that no one answer can be provided. At first this was strange for me, as I have come to expect most things in physics to have a singular answer.

However, the answers Hossenfelder provides are really a mix of questions and opinions there is no real answer for every question. Most of the chapters are spent asking a question and breaking down the evidence, and at the very end of her discussion is a brief paragraph with an answer. If I had to describe Hossenfelder’s book in one sentence, I would describe it as “The book asks the big questions.” I want to emphasize asks the big questions since Hossenfelder doesn't actually provide many concrete answers, or at least the concreteness that I have come to expect in physics. I’ll share what I learned, which might pique your interest too. Nevertheless, I read the book and thoroughly enjoyed it. Admittedly, I would have never come across a book like this if it wasn’t for my dad since I’m not routinely checking for new publications on physics. The interview piqued my dad's curiosity about her new book, so to expand my burgeoning knowledge of physics, he ordered a copy for me. For some context, Hossendelfer is a research fellow at the Frankfurt Institute for Advanced Studies in Germany and has published more than eighty research articles on physics. This past summer, my dad heard an interview on National Public Radio with Sabine Hossendelfer.

Existential Physics by Sabine Hossenfelder