The Primacy of Doubt

The Primacy of Doubt PDF Author: Tim Palmer
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0192655647
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 321

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Book Description
A bold, visionary, and mind-bending exploration of how the geometry of chaos can explain our uncertain world—from weather and pandemics to quantum physics and free will Covering a breathtaking range of topics—from climate change to the foundations of quantum physics, from economic modelling to conflict prediction, from free will to consciousness and spirituality—The Primacy of Doubt takes us on a unique journey through the science of uncertainty. A key theme that unifies these seemingly unconnected topics is the geometry of chaos: the beautiful and profound fractal structures that lie at the heart of much of modern mathematics. Royal Society Research Professor Tim Palmer shows us how the geometry of chaos not only provides the means to predict the world around us, it suggests new insights into some of the most astonishing aspects of our universe and ourselves. This important and timely book helps the reader makes sense of uncertainty in a rapidly changing world.

The Primacy of Doubt

The Primacy of Doubt PDF Author: Tim Palmer
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0192655647
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 321

Get Book Here

Book Description
A bold, visionary, and mind-bending exploration of how the geometry of chaos can explain our uncertain world—from weather and pandemics to quantum physics and free will Covering a breathtaking range of topics—from climate change to the foundations of quantum physics, from economic modelling to conflict prediction, from free will to consciousness and spirituality—The Primacy of Doubt takes us on a unique journey through the science of uncertainty. A key theme that unifies these seemingly unconnected topics is the geometry of chaos: the beautiful and profound fractal structures that lie at the heart of much of modern mathematics. Royal Society Research Professor Tim Palmer shows us how the geometry of chaos not only provides the means to predict the world around us, it suggests new insights into some of the most astonishing aspects of our universe and ourselves. This important and timely book helps the reader makes sense of uncertainty in a rapidly changing world.

The Primacy of Doubt

The Primacy of Doubt PDF Author: Tim Palmer
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781541619715
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 320

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Book Description
How the tools that enabled us to overcome the uncertainty of the weather will enable us to find new answers to modern science's most pressing questions Why does your weather app say "There's a 10% chance of rain" instead of "It will be sunny tomorrow"? In large part this is due to the insight of Tim Palmer, who made uncertainty essential to the study of weather and climate. Now he wants to apply it to how we study everything else. In The Primacy of Doubt, Palmer argues that embracing the mathematics of uncertainty is vital to understanding ourselves and the universe around us. Whether we want to predict climate change or market crashes, understand how the brain is able to outpace supercomputers, or find a theory that links quantum and cosmological physics, Palmer shows how his vision of mathematical uncertainty provides new insights into some of the deepest problems in science. The result is a revolution--one that shows that power begins by embracing what we don't know.

A Song in the Mist

A Song in the Mist PDF Author: Corrinne Averiss
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780192772084
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
The story of the whimsical friendship between a shy panda and a boy, their lives forever linked by music and mist.

The Physics of Christmas

The Physics of Christmas PDF Author: Roger Highfield
Publisher: Back Bay Books
ISBN: 0316054518
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 202

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Book Description
Why might Rudolph's nose have been red? Why do we actually give Christmas gifts? Why has smell become an important component in the Christmas shopping experience? Roger Highfield, science editor of London's Daily Telegraph and co-author of the highly acclaimed The Arrow of Time, has taken a long-overdue look at our most cherished holiday from the rigorous (but highly entertaining) viewpoint of a scientist. What are the thermodynamics involved in cooking a turkey? What are the likely celestial candidates for the Star of Bethlehem? Is the concept of a virgin birth scientifically feasible? What happens to us physically when we overindulge in alcohol? How does snow form? Why are we always depressed after Christmas? How does Santa manage to deliver all those presents in one night? (He has, in fact, little over two ten- thousands of a second to get between each of the 842 million households he must visit.) The Physics of Christmas is that rare science book that manages to be as delightful as it is informative.

The Primacy of Doubt

The Primacy of Doubt PDF Author: Timothy Palmer
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0192843591
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 321

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Book Description
A bold, visionary, and mind-bending exploration of how the geometry of chaos can explain our uncertain world - from weather and pandemics to quantum physics and free willCovering a breathtaking range of topics - from climate change to the foundations of quantum physics, from economic modelling to conflict prediction, from free will to consciousness and spirituality - The Primacy of Doubt takes us on a unique journey through the science of uncertainty. A key theme that unifies these seemingly unconnected topics is the geometry of chaos: the beautiful and profound fractal structures that lie at the heart of much of modern mathematics. Royal SocietyResearch Professor Tim Palmer shows us how the geometry of chaos not only provides the means to predict the world around us, it suggests new insights into some of the most astonishing aspects of our universe and ourselves. This important and timely book helps the reader makes sense of uncertainty in a rapidlychanging world.

Hawking Hawking

Hawking Hawking PDF Author: Charles Seife
Publisher: Basic Books
ISBN: 1541618386
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 458

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Book Description
Stephen Hawking was widely recognized as the world's best physicist and even the most brilliant man alive–but what if his true talent was self-promotion? When Stephen Hawking died, he was widely recognized as the world's best physicist, and even its smartest person. He was neither. In Hawking Hawking, science journalist Charles Seife explores how Stephen Hawking came to be thought of as humanity's greatest genius. Hawking spent his career grappling with deep questions in physics, but his renown didn't rest on his science. He was a master of self-promotion, hosting parties for time travelers, declaring victory over problems he had not solved, and wooing billionaires. In a wheelchair and physically dependent on a cadre of devotees, Hawking still managed to captivate the people around him—and use them for his own purposes. A brilliant exposé and powerful biography, Hawking Hawking uncovers the authentic Hawking buried underneath the fake. It is the story of a man whose brilliance in physics was matched by his genius for building his own myth.

The Lightness of Being

The Lightness of Being PDF Author: Frank Wilczek
Publisher: Basic Books
ISBN: 0786731680
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 287

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Book Description
A Nobel-prize winning physicist takes on the essential question: what are we made of? Our understanding of nature's deepest reality has changed radically, but almost without our noticing, over the past twenty-five years. Transcending the clash of older ideas about matter and space, acclaimed physicist Frank Wilczek explains a remarkable new discovery: matter is built from almost weightless units, and pure energy is the ultimate source of mass. He calls it "The Lightness of Being." Space is no mere container, empty and passive. It is a dynamic Grid-a modern ether- and its spontaneous activity creates and destroys particles. This new understanding of mass explains the puzzling feebleness of gravity, and a gorgeous unification of all the forces comes sharply into focus.The Lightness of Being is the first book to explore the implications of these revolutionary ideas about mass, energy, and the nature of "empty space." In it, Wilczek masterfully presents new perspectives on our incredible universe and envisions a new golden age of fundamental physics.

Nineteen Ways of Looking at Consciousness

Nineteen Ways of Looking at Consciousness PDF Author: Patrick House
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
ISBN: 125015118X
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 130

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Book Description
A concise, elegant, and thought-provoking exploration of the mystery of consciousness and the functioning of the brain. Despite decades of research, remarkable imagery, and insights from a range of scientific and medical disciplines, the human brain remains largely unexplored. Consciousness has eluded explanation. Nineteen Ways of Looking at Consciousness offers a brilliant overview of the state of modern consciousness research in twenty brief, revealing chapters. Neuroscientist and author Patrick House describes complex concepts in accessible terms, weaving brain science, technology, gaming, analogy, and philosophy into a tapestry that illuminates how the brain works and what enables consciousness. This remarkable book fosters a sense of mystery and wonder about the strangeness of the relationship between our inner selves and our environment.

How Quantum Activism Can Save Civilization

How Quantum Activism Can Save Civilization PDF Author: Amit Goswami
Publisher: Hampton Roads Publishing
ISBN: 1612830528
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 306

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Book Description
“Goswami shows that the quantum worldview is not dreamy philosophy or esoteric physics, but has profound social consequences of planetary significance.” —Larry Dossey, MD, New York Times–bestselling author Beginning with Taking the Quantum Leap by Fred Alan Wolf, there have been a number of books that have created new paradigms for integrating science and spirituality. These books have been long on theory and short on application. This work represents something completely different for this genre. In his previous book, God is Not Dead, Goswami proved that not only are science and religion compatible, but that quantum physics proves the existence of God. In this new book, Goswami moves beyond theory into the realm of action. He asserts that quantum thinking is striking the death blow to scientific materialism; that quantum thinking allows us to break from past bad habits and brings us into free will and possibilities. Beginning with the question: “God is here, so what are you going to do about it?” Goswami calls for a plan of action that involves applying “quantum thinking” to a variety of societal issues. He issues a call for a spiritual economics that is concerned with our well-being rather than only our material needs; democracy that uses power to serve, instead of dominating others; education that liberates rather than shackles; and new healthy practices that restore wholeness. “Dr. Amit Goswami as usual has the most brilliant insights into how consciousness conceives, constructs, and becomes biology.” —Deepak Chopra “Read it seriously and take heart—all is not lost and we can change reality.” —Fred Alan Wolf, author of Taking the Quantum Leap

Behind the Curve

Behind the Curve PDF Author: Joshua P. Howe
Publisher: University of Washington Press
ISBN: 0295805099
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 324

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Book Description
In 1958, Charles David Keeling began measuring the concentration of carbon dioxide in the earth's atmosphere at the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii. His project kicked off a half century of research that has expanded our knowledge of climate change. Despite more than fifty years of research, however, our global society has yet to find real solutions to the problem of global warming. Why? In Behind the Curve, Joshua Howe attempts to answer this question. He explores the history of global warming from its roots as a scientific curiosity to its place at the center of international environmental politics. The book follows the story of rising CO2—illustrated by the now famous Keeling Curve—through a number of historical contexts, highlighting the relationships among scientists, environmentalists, and politicians as those relationships changed over time. The nature of the problem itself, Howe explains, has privileged scientists as the primary spokespeople for the global climate. But while the “science first” forms of advocacy they developed to fight global warming produced more and better science, the primacy of science in global warming politics has failed to produce meaningful results. In fact, an often exclusive focus on science has left advocates for change vulnerable to political opposition and has limited much of the discussion to debates about the science itself. As a result, while we know much more about global warming than we did fifty years ago, CO2 continues to rise. In 1958, Keeling first measured CO2 at around 315 parts per million; by 2013, global CO2 had soared to 400 ppm. The problem is not getting better - it's getting worse. Behind the Curve offers a critical and levelheaded look at how we got here.