Anthony Zee – författare

The ten biggest ideas in theoretical physics that have withstood the test of timeCould any discovery be more unexpected and shocking than the realization that the reality we were born into is but an approximation of an underlying quantum world that is barely within our grasp? This is just one of the foundational pillars of theoretical physics that A. Zee discusses in this book. Join him as he presents his Top Ten List of the biggest, most breathtaking ideas in physics—the ones that have fundamentally transformed our understanding of the universe.Top Ten Ideas of Physics tells a story that will keep readers enthralled, along the way explaining the meaning of each idea and how it came about. Leading the list are the notions that the physical world is comprehensible and that the laws of physics are the same here, there, and everywhere. As the story unfolds, the apparently solid world dissolves into an intertwining web of dancing fields, exhibiting greater symmetries as we examine them at deeper and deeper levels. Readers come to see how physical truth is universal, not relative, and how the forces in the multiverse are not disparate pieces but an indivisible unity—a vision only partially realized today.With Zee’s trademark blend of wit and physical insight, Top Ten Ideas of Physics reveals why the book of nature is written in the language of mathematics, why entropy and information are intimately linked, and why the action principle underpins the choreography of all that exists.

An exceptionally accessible introduction to quantum field theoryQuantum field theory is by far the most spectacularly successful theory in physics, but also one of the most mystifying. This venerable subject provides the crucial bridge between the long established quantum mechanics and the still hypothetical string theory. Quantum Field Theory, as Simply as Possible provides an essential primer on the subject, giving readers the conceptual foundations they need to wrap their heads around one of the most important yet baffling subjects in physics.Quantum field theory grew out of quantum mechanics in the late 1930s and was developed by a generation of brilliant young theorists, including Julian Schwinger and Richard Feynman. Their predictions were experimentally verified to an astounding accuracy unmatched by the rest of physics. Quantum field theory unifies quantum mechanics and special relativity, thus providing the framework for understanding the quantum mysteries of the subatomic world. With his trademark blend of wit and physical insight, A. Zee guides readers from the classical notion of the field to the modern frontiers of quantum field theory, covering a host of topics along the way, including antimatter, Feynman diagrams, virtual particles, the path integral, quantum chromodynamics, electroweak unification, grand unification, and quantum gravity.A unique and valuable introduction for students and general readers alike, Quantum Field Theory, as Simply as Possible explains how quantum field theory informs our understanding of the universe, and how it can shed light on some of the deepest mysteries of physics.

A fully updated edition of the classic text by acclaimed physicist A. ZeeSince it was first published, Quantum Field Theory in a Nutshell has quickly established itself as the most accessible and comprehensive introduction to this profound and deeply fascinating area of theoretical physics. Now in this fully revised and expanded edition, A. Zee covers the latest advances while providing a solid conceptual foundation for students to build on, making this the most up-to-date and modern textbook on quantum field theory available.This expanded edition features several additional chapters, as well as an entirely new section describing recent developments in quantum field theory such as gravitational waves, the helicity spinor formalism, on-shell gluon scattering, recursion relations for amplitudes with complex momenta, and the hidden connection between Yang-Mills theory and Einstein gravity. Zee also provides added exercises, explanations, and examples, as well as detailed appendices, solutions to selected exercises, and suggestions for further reading.

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An engaging exploration of beauty in physics, with a foreword by Nobel Prize–winning physicist Roger PenroseThe concept of symmetry has widespread manifestations and many diverse applications—from architecture to mathematics to science. Yet, as twentieth-century physics has revealed, symmetry has a special, central role in nature, one that is occasionally and enigmatically violated. Fearful Symmetry brings the incredible discoveries of the juxtaposition of symmetry and asymmetry in contemporary physics within everyone''s grasp. A. Zee, a distinguished physicist and skillful expositor, tells the exciting story of how contemporary theoretical physicists are following Einstein in their search for the beauty and simplicity of Nature. Animated by a sense of reverence and whimsy, Fearful Symmetry describes the majestic sweep and accomplishments of twentieth-century physics—one of the greatest chapters in the intellectual history of humankind.