Product Description
This clearly explained layman's introduction to quantum physics is an accessible excursion into metaphysics and the meaning of reality. Herbert exposes the quantum world and the scientific and philosophical controversy about its interpretation.

CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 4.5 based on 30 reviews)

Recommended, but with a reservation. by Solomon (Colorado)

4 Stars
December 28, 2008
I recommend this book, but with the reservation that the book should only be considered as an adjunct to other books on the subject of the meaning of quantum theory. I will have more to say about this later, along with recommendations of the books that I think should be read in order to get the most out of this current book. This book discusses the implications of quantum theory and why they have led prominent physicists to believe that there may not be any deep reality, or that reality only exists when an intelligent observer is looking, or that all things are interrelated in a manner that allows "action at a distance" to travel beyond the speed of light (actually instantaneously), or that there are many parallel worlds continuously being created. All of these ideas appear to be straight out of science fiction, but they are in actuality concepts developed by some of the most renowned physicists of the 20th century. Read this book to see why this "science fiction" may indeed be science fact. The book has an overview of quantum theory, but this overview is, in my opinion, presented much more clearly in other books (to be discussed). The ideas of quantum reality are, however, presented in a more organized and focused manner than in other books devoted to this subject. I especially enjoyed the discussion of the uncertainty principal based on the wave equation as opposed to that of matrix mechanics, which I was already familiar with. I almost did not read this book because of the way that it is presented. I looked it over several times before buying it. I had the following concerns, discussed below, which were largely unwarranted. I mention them here because the readers of this review may have similar concerns. 1) The subtitle of the book is "An excursion into metaphysics and the meaning of reality". This book is not a book about the metaphysics of reality, in the sense that it is not a philosophy text; rather it is a physics book, based on the work of the most outstanding physicists of the 20th century. 2) Nowhere on the cover, or inside of the book, does it say who Nick Herbert (the author) is and what his qualification to write this book might be. This generally means that the publisher is afraid that if you knew more about the author you would not buy the book, or that the stated author is a pseudonym. A quick search of the Internet shown that while Nick Herbert is not a theoretical physicist of worldwide renown, he has a PhD in physics, has taught the subject, and has had a significant industrial career. 3) The book was published in 1985 and may thus be out-of-date. This is, in my opinion, not a severe problem because the questions regarding the meaning of quantum reality have been around since the 1930's and have not yet been resolved. Also, the book includes the experimental evidence supporting Bell's theorem, which is not included is some books on quantum reality that were published at about the same time. Bell's theorem, and its implications, are the subjects of the last part of the book, so the inclusion of this experimental data is very important as it lends experimental support for the strange predictions of quantum theory, reducing the level of speculation inherent in these predictions. While I liked this treatment of Bell's theorem, I think that Brian Greene's treatment in "The Fabric of the Cosmos" is even better. Greene also provides a much better treatment of Einstein's "EPR" criticism of Quantum Theory and what it implies. 4) Early in the book there is a list of 6 versions of quantum reality that reads like bad science fiction. This gave me the false impression that the book was more "new age" than "new physics". The versions of quantum reality are based on physics, which are described in a general and largely non-mathematical manner. As mentioned, I have a significant reservation, one that caused me to give this book 4 stars, instead of 5. I found the discussion of the "measurement problem", which at the heart of the book and has led to the myriad of ideas regarding quantum reality, to be somewhat muddled and, from my perspective, somewhat incomprehensible. Herbert uses the idea of polarization to define the "measurement problem", whereas I find the description of this problem based on two-slit interference experiments to be much more understandable. In fact, had I not already been familiar with this approach I would probably have had to put the book down and would have gone on to read something else. I would recommend that anyone reading this book should first read Gribbin's "In Search of Schrodingers Cat", Feynman's "Six Easy Pieces" (the chapter on quantum behavior) and Greene's "The Fabric of the Cosmos". All three give highly understandable treatments of the "measurement problem", and Gribbin and Greene provided better treatments of EPR and Bell's theorem. Gribbin also gives a very concise historical presentation of the development of quantum theory. I would also recommend Gribbin's "Schrodingers Kittens and the Search for Reality" as it brings his other book up-to-date (at least to 1995), particularly in that it includes the experimental support for Bell's theorem, as does Greene's book. (Gribbin's earlier book does not include this, even though it was written at about the same time as Herbert's book.) I also recommend Feynman's QED as it presents quantum theory in a way that avoids many of the conundrums resulting from the other views of quantum theory. Herbert discuses QED, but in a very cursory manner and does not discuss the fact that it avoids some of the pitfalls inherent in the other approaches (but introduces come of its own, which Herbert does not even mention). Without the above-mentioned background, I am afraid that the reader may become quite lost. I recommend this book to college students studying quantum mechanics. The book complements the more problem solving aspects of quantum theory, dwelling on the deeper implications of what is being presented. Some advance high school student may also get a lot from this book. I would not, however, recommend it to people who expect a "new age" philosophical discourse. They will be disappointed and unless they also are reasonable well versed in physics they will likely find the book somewhat impossible to follow in all but the most superficial manner.

Wonderful, simple introduction to the Quantum world by R. Nelson (Los Angeles, CA, USA)

5 Stars
September 17, 2008
I never progressed beyond basic high school physics, but I've been interested in learning about Quantum physics for years. My dad, who's been studying QP for years, recommended this book to me as the most simple starting place, noting that he thought other books dealt with Bell's theorum a bit better. I loved this book. It was simple and as straight-forward as possilbe considering the strangeness of the quantum world. The only think I had a bit of trouble wrapping my brain around was the EPR description. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in quantum and the nature of the world in which we live - or THINK we live. I can't wait to read more books on the subject.

Reality is not what it used to be by Mark Gibbs (Singapore)

5 Stars
August 22, 2008
As Nick Herbert points out early on in the book, the best kept secret of modern physicists is that they have "lost their grip on reality." Although written in the 1980s this book remains, in my opinion, the best overview of quantum physics on the market. One has to wonder why the Newtonian model of existence is still pushed so remorselessly in our schools. Evidently we are only comfortable with the blatant external appearances of life and are terrified of looking beyond that. What you cannot see...you must ignore. Nick Herbert does an excellent job of exposing that paradigm as a ridiculous self-deception.

Really Real by J. E. Coates (Washington, DC)

5 Stars
April 30, 2008
The key values of this book are 1) its holistic approach to explaining quantum mechanics and 2) its "realist" (philosophically materialist) perspective on quantum mechanics. Its an extremely lucid account of quantum phenomena and quantum theory for the lay reader with excellent analogies and examples.

Excellent! by Sixtus Beckmesser von Dixie (USA)

5 Stars
March 05, 2008
I have read numerous popular science books regarding quantum physics over time, and by far, Nick Herbert's "Quantum Reality" is by far the very best. His writing style is elegant. His exposition of quantum theory and its implications for reality is systematic and in-depth while at the same time being clear, fast paced, and easy for the layman to follow. A most enjoyable and enlightening read! As the work is now over 20 years old, although I do not think much has changed in quantum physics or its implications for deep reality (beyond Everett's Many World's Interpretation overtaking the Bohr/Heisenberg Copenhagen Interpretation in terms of the raw number of professional physicists adhering thereto), except for much broader acceptance of Bell's Theorem and of the validity of observed instances of non-locality, an updated 2nd edition would be quite valuable.

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