Entanglement: The Greatest Mystery in Physics - Softcover

Amir D. Aczel

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0470850477 ISBN 13: 9780470850473

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons, 2002

Synopsis

From the bestselling author of Fermat's Last Theorem, the story of a group of scientists who set out to finish what Einstein started.

Can two particles become inextricably linked, so that a change in one is instantly reflected in its counterpart, even if a universe separates them? Albert Einstein's work suggested it was possible, but it was too bizarre, and too contrary to how we then understood space and time, for him to prove. No one could. Until now.

Entanglement tells the astounding story of the scientists who set out to complete Einstein's work. With accessible language and a highly entertaining tone, Amir Aczel shows us a world where the improbable-from unbreakable codes to teleportation-becomes possible.

About this title

About the Author

Amir D. Aczel, PhD, is the author of a number of successful books, including: The Mystery of the Aleph, Fermat's Last Theorem and God's Equation: Einstein, Relativity and the Expanding Universe. He is Professor of Statistics at Bentley College and lives in Boston. His work has been translated into Turkish, Hebrew, French, German, Italian, Chinese and Spanish.

From Publishers Weekly

In his newest book, Aczel (Fermat's Last Theorem) discusses a great mystery in physics: the concept of entanglement in quantum physics. He begins by explaining that "entanglement" occurs when two subatomic particles are somehow connected or "entangled" with one another, so that when something happens to one particle, the same thing simultaneously happens to the other particle, even if it's miles away. However, this concept violates the theory of special relativity, since communication between two places cannot occur faster than the speed of light. Einstein knew that the mathematics of quantum theory predicted that this could happen, but he didn't believe it. In the last decade, researchers have shown in laboratory experiments that entanglement does indeed happen, and in one case it occurred over a distance of almost 10 miles. Aczel explores how a Star Trek-like teleportation may be possible via entanglement (however, a particle's quantum state, not the entire particle, is teleported to its mate), though perhaps at the expense of demonstrating entanglement's more real-world applications to cryptography. General readers may need to skim over his technical explanations, whereas more advanced readers will be interested in only the last third of the book. While the book won't satisfy dedicated science buffs, it will be an accessible entry into this concept of quantum physics.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
• Publication date: 2002
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0470850477
• ISBN 13: 9780470850473
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 288