Warped Passages: Unraveling the Mysteries of the Universe's Hidden Dimensions.WARPED PASSAGES: Unraveling the Mysteries of the Universe's Hidden Dimensions LISA RANDALL Lisa Randall (born 18 June, 1962) is a leading theoretical physicist and expert on particle physics, string theory and cosmology. She works on several of the competing models of string theory in the quest to explain the fabric of reality, and was the first tenured woman in the Extra dimensions, wormholes, and parallel universes may sound like science fiction, but they are concepts being considered by physicists as a way to explain the mysteries of the universe. Randall, a theoretical physicist at Harvard University Harvard University, mainly at Cambridge, Mass., including Harvard College, the oldest American college. Harvard College Harvard College, originally for men, was founded in 1636 with a grant from the General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. , explains in clear and accessible language the experiments scientists have done to test the standard model of particle physics particle physics or high-energy physics Study of the fundamental subatomic particles, including both matter (and antimatter) and the carrier particles of the fundamental interactions as described by quantum field theory. , which explains the fundamental particles fun·da·men·tal particle n. See elementary particle. of matter and the forces between them. Before diving into the more complex ideas behind string theory, the author provides an overview of early 20th-century physics, including the key ideas behind relativity and quantum mechanics quantum mechanics: see quantum theory. quantum mechanics Branch of mathematical physics that deals with atomic and subatomic systems. It is concerned with phenomena that are so small-scale that they cannot be described in classical terms, and it is . She then tackles the more speculative and exciting theories that scientists began only recently to consider, including the notion of small, curled-up extra dimensions and infinite braneworlds that are undetectable in our three-dimensional universe. Overall, Randall provides an excellent primer to the most elusive and groundbreaking concepts of modern physics. HarperCollins, 2005, 499 p., b&w illus., $27.95. |
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