From Clockwork to Crapshoot: A History of Physics

by Roger G. Newton

Science is about 6000 years old while physics emerged as a distinct branch some 2500 years ago. As scientists discovered virtually countless facts about the world during this great span of time, the manner in which they explained the underlying structure of that world underwent a philosophical evolution. From Clockwork to Crapshoot provides the perspective needed to understand contemporary developments in physics in relation to philosophical traditions as far back as ancient Greece.

Roger Newton, whose previous works have been widely praised for erudition and accessibility, presents a history of physics from the early beginning to our day--with the associated mathematics, astronomy, and chemistry. Along the way, he gives brief explanations of the scientific concepts at issue, biographical thumbnail sketches of the protagonists, and descriptions of the changing instruments that enabled scientists to make their discoveries. He traces a profound change from a deterministic explanation of the world--accepted at least since the time of the ancient Greek and Taoist Chinese civilizations--to the notion of probability, enshrined as the very basis of science with the quantum revolution at the beginning of the twentieth century. With this change, Newton finds another fundamental shift in the focus of physicists--from the cause of dynamics or motion to the basic structure of the world. His work identifies what may well be the defining characteristic of physics in the twenty-first century.

Genres: Science, History, History Of Science, Physics, Nonfiction

352 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2007

Reviews

[Ayse]

P19/33: I don't like the familiar nature of the commentator -- it's almost as if he is speaking with me rather than writing a book. And though I am not bothered by this style in other works (anything by Mary roach or bill Bryson) here it is annoying, especially the way he references other works -- as if they were his great friends who he needs to refer to in sycophantic gushing terms. Similarly I don't like his unfounded and unreferenced moral judgements on situations -- with regards to the conquering of one state by another in ancient times, or the Chinese approach to astronomy for the benefit of the masses as somehow less valuable than the individualistic Greek approach for "curiosity"

[Diffusion Tensor · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although somewhat dated, it still provides a reasonable big-picture overview of the history of physics. However, I discovered a number of errors of details. Also in a book of this length, obviously many topics had to be left out. For example, plasma physics is hardly mentioned at all.

[Nick Drachman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Comprehensive and informative, but often reads like a list of events rather than a cohesive story