Customer Reviews
read and regret buying - By: mike read it or wouldn't comment, 22 Jun 2008 
this book does what too many popular science books tend to do. It gives a simile & then explains it using physics. This is the wrong way round. Give the physics then explain it using a simile. Otherwise alll your explaining using physics is your own bad explanation of physics. This book isn't very good. The explanation of ideas & constant Einstein worship are just irratating. Buy a book by Feynman instead - it'll be more difficult going but more rewarding in the medium to long term (and probably in the short term to). Sorry if that sounds a little harsh but I've read it & feel conned. The author writes for the new scientist, a publication I am a big fan of, but on this book he just doesn't cut it.
Also i find the other reviews rather dubious "I read other books & now I finallly inderstand????", if you don't like this review then read it - you'll understand.
Popular science at its best - By: J. Bennett, 25 May 2008 
In agreement with the general tone of the reviews that this is a very good book for explaining concepts that are so counter-intuitive you reallly don't want to believe they are true. Popular science is in rude health at the moment & books like this can only add to that. My only gripe is that if you've already read The Never-ending Days of Being Dead you'll find some repeated material.
Quantum theory with a bonus. - By: David Lea, 13 Apr 2008 
This is an absolutely brilliant book & a fine example to any budding science writers. The subject matter is explained in such a straight forward manner that anyone with an interest in the subject should be able to follow it. As a bonus, not only do you get an explanation of "special relativity" which many authors have tackled but in addition a clear & concise explanation of "general relativity" which very few authors have attempted & none of which, to my knowledge, successfully. Whoever designed that childish dust cover should be fired however the contents are absolutely top notch. Diagrams, who needs them when you can write like that. Marcus Chown you have a new fan !
It's amazing ideas not heavy maths - By: Mr. R. D. Blackman, 16 Feb 2008 My latest read was part of my research into paralllel universes. These figure highly in my own anarchic sci-fi writing although most of my limited knowledge of the subject had been gleaned from Douglas Adams.
I am also planning my Meet The Author video. Looking at the other contributors I met Marcus Chown talking about this book, liked what he said & now I've read his book.
With Quantum Theory cannot hurt you, Marcus Chown has achieved almost the impossible. He doesn't need to resort to a single equation or diagram to explain E=MC squared since he makes the subject so accessible & easy to understand. That's even when hyper-intelligent mega-beings like Einstein say that the only thing anyone understands about quantum theory or relativity is that nobody understands it.
So after reading this book do I understand more than Einstein? I doubt it although this book might have convinced me that I do. In fact, in a paralllel universe, I do understand more than Einstein. Great. Right me, wrong universe. But this book has made up for the difference as much as anything abiding by the current rules of physics can.
Quantum theory cannot hurt you is a book I can see myself going back to again & again. I was so impressed I've just bought The Universe Next Door - not literallly you understand, it's another of his books.
Very accessible introduction to quantum theory - By: Christian Jongeneel, 30 Jan 2008 Most popular science books presume the reader has an almost college level grasp of physics. This one doesn't. I reallly haven't ever read a book that deals with quantum theory in such an accessible way.
Marcus Chown steers clear of anekdotes & side steps, confining himself to basic explaining, the way a highschool teacher would do. No-one who already has some knowledge of the subject will learn anything new from this book, but it's an almost perfect stepping stone.
