E=mc2: A Biography of the World's Most Famous Equation

Rating:
Summary: Relativity made relatively simple
Review: Bodanis has written a fun-to-read and concise guide outlining the history and impact of the world's most famous equation. He opens with an inspired conceit: Cameron Diaz once said, quite seriously, that she wish she knew what the equation meant, and he wrote this book for the curious, intelligent reader who, like Diaz, has little or no background (or even interest) in science and wants to understand Einstein's discovery.

Any book about physics and math that has such an audience in mind risks--indeed, requires--oversimplification. The prose is often so folksy that those of us used to reading more scholarly material will find it a bit annoying, yet even these passages show that the author is truly enjoying his material and wants to convey that enjoyment to his readers. Similarly, nitpickers are sure to have a field day finding inaccuracies and omissions. For example, Bodanis states that an object swells, or gains mass, as its speed approaches the speed of light; in a very lengthy note he admits that this description is only metaphor (and a misleading one at that). Yet, if he had avoided this metaphor and included the more accurate description contained in the note, he certainly would have lost his audience. In this case, I think, Bodanis has made the right decision: a vague or incomplete understanding is certainly better than no understanding at all.

In spite of its intentional simplicity, the book relates a number of interesting biographical tidbits that were unfamiliar to me, particularly about Voltaire's lover, Emile du Chatelet, and the unjustly neglected Lise Meitner, who, by fleeing Nazi Germany, was ultimately robbed of a Nobel Prize. Bodanis makes science, with its back-stabbing egos and generous celebrities, come alive. In addition, unlike many other histories of science, Bodanis does not overlook the importance of religious beliefs in stimulating (and occasionally blinding) scientists, especially Faraday and Einstein.

This book also contains a much-needed and concise answer to Heisenberg's apologists. Make no mistake: Heisenberg was a brilliant scientist and he clearly realized later in life that he was on the wrong side, but it seems incontrovertible that he collaborated with the Nazis. The book to read, as Bodanis notes, is "Hitler's Uranium Club"; its transcripts of secret recordings of Heisenberg's own words belie his later claim that he was trying to thwart the Nazi attempt to create the bomb. Bodanis's appendix includes a sample of the overwhelming and irrefutable evidence against Heisenberg. (Heisenberg's sympathizers often praise "Copenhagen." This play, by Michael Frayn, describes a meeting between Heisenberg and Neil Bohrs that both men recalled years later in conflicting accounts, and it consists entirely of imagined dialogue. Although an indisputably brilliant dramatic work, "Copenhagen" is in essence a work of fiction, since nobody knows for sure what was said or even why the two men really met--as Frayn himself notes in his postscript to the published play. In addition, "Copenhagen" is based on Thomas Powers's biography of Heisenberg, which appeared before the publication of "Hitler's Uranium Club.")

These stories, details, and debates are just a small part of the wealth of information David Bodanis has managed to pack into a slim volume. The appendix, notes, and suggestions for further reading, which amounts to a full third of the book, are not to be missed: not only do they clarify many points covered cursorily in the text, but they are often quite amusing and will surely spur readers to investigate further a number of topics.

Rating:
Summary: Creative Treatment but Flimsy Results
Review: Bodanis is an expert on intellectual history, not on any one type of science, and that explains the structure of this book. The theme of this book is one of the most creative ideas I've seen in a long time - writing the biography of an idea (Einstein's e=mc^2) as if it were a person cruising through history. Hence the story is not about Einstein's life, or even developments in particular areas of science, but how this equation has worked its way into the public consciousness. Bodanis' coverage of each part of the equation, E, the "equals" sign, M, C, and "squared" is also a very creative concept. Unfortunately, Bodanis can't quite pull off the story without a background in hard science, so the book merely points out the gaps in his non-scientific presentation style. Bodanis quickly rushes through many scientific disciplines, sometimes in just a few paragraphs, that would require many textbooks to adequately explain. And the accuracy of many of his scientific explanations is suspect. You can see several of the other reviews here at Amazon for examples of his faulty science. I would like to add that Bodanis' descriptions of sub-atomic processes (see especially chapter 8) are suspiciously evasive and lacking on details, and show a complete lack of acknowledgement for quantum mechanics. Also, his quick description of the end of the universe (sputtering out as all energy is all used up) is only one of many viable theories on cosmology, though Bodanis does not acknowledge this, except for an extremely brief mention in the footnotes. Most annoyingly, Bodanis does a lot of stretching in this book, trying to add suspense to the history of e=mc^2 in the development of the atomic bomb, and trying to connect the equation to every single branch of science, even plate tectonics in one example. These are indirect connections at best, but the author tries to give them full significance anyway. In fact, Bodanis can hardly get through two paragraphs without mentioning the equation. So while the unusual "biography" idea behind this book is highly creative and original, the results just don't add up.

Rating:
Summary: It Doesn't Really "Matter"
Review: I liked this book. Having read it I believe that I have a better basic understanding of Einstein's formula than I possessed prior to the time I purchased it. I realize that I am not ready nor prepared to enroll at Cambridge or Harvard seeking a doctorate in Quantum Mechanics, but I'm glad I read this book.

The critical reviews of this book posted by many experts miss the point. David Bodanis has provided the target reader with basic generalizations about Einstein's equation in a manner designed not as a definitive textbook but as an introduction to some of the basic concepts of physics. Even more importantly he has done so by using a method specifically designed to be understood by the generalists among us. Rather than dull our senses with elongated mathematical equations, David Bodanis describes these physics concepts in human terms; by telling biographical stories, through analogy and by breathing real life into a mathematical equation.

As a target reader of this book, I seek a basic understanding not a Nobel Prize in physics. Even if the explanations are in places a bit technically inaccurate David Bodanis efforts are worthy of great praise and worthy of your time. For those who criticize the technical accuracy of this book, I am comforted by the fact that once Einstein's formula has run its physical course in the absolute stillness of a silenced universe it will not "matter."

Rating:
Summary: Science is great, history is not
Review: I would give him five stars for his comprehensible explanation of the physics and the time he spent thinking of metaphors for the equation that make its effects understandable. However, his portraits of figures like Oppenheimer and Heisenberg are way off--extreme readings of uncited evidence that is frankly in conflict with both the historical record and the way that contemporary historians interpret it. Heisenberg was NOT a convinced Nazi--he was a German nationalist. There's a difference. Oppenheimer's personality problems were not at the basis of his later exclusion from further government nuclear research--his communist sympathies were the reason. Bodanis makes Teller sound like a crazy and not like the venerable scientist he was. What's sad about all of these misportraits is that they cast doubt on things I want to believe, about Lise Meitner and Celia Payne, for example. Read with care, and compare to a real book about the Manhattan Project (like Richard Rhodes' "Making of the Atomic Bomb") before you swallow this picture whole. For a much more balanced picture of some of the personalities involved that includes a readable account of the science, check out Freeman Dyson's "Disturbing the Universe."

Rating:
Summary: Reading this book requires E.
Review: The simple equation having only 5 symbols is deep in meaning. It took the genious of Einstein to put the equation together way back in 1905 - - - What E found was: Energy equals mass when you accelerate mass to the speed of light squared. That's 670,000,000 mph times itself.
C stands for 'celeritis' in latin and it means, 'swiftness.' C squared is 448,900,000,000,000,000 mph!
No speedometer exists on Earth that can travel that fast! WOW!
Einstein knew that energy could naturally transform itself into mass under specific and unique condtions.
The equation was published in 1905 and essentially remained dormant and untested until the war.
Then it became a horrifying reality that Einstein himself wished he never uncovered all those years ago.
Other scientists converged their great minds together in a think tank called the Manhatten Projet, and the world changed for the worse --- upon their nuclear discoveries.
Did Fat Boy really need to do what he did?
NEVER! THe controversy broils to this day.
It is so strange to contemplate that in the pool of the most intelligent men on Earth, not a one of them was smart enough to forsee the evil that they created.
Like the saying goes, "You can lead a man to wisdom, but you can't make him think."
None of them thought about what this nuclear power could do when left in terrorist grips.
This book tells the story behind the famous little equation.
Einstein did play a part in developing nuclear arsonel, even though he later denied he encouraged it.
Please see his letter to President FDR on pages 117 - 18.
The reader is left to draw thier own conclusions on that.
Regardless of the controversy, I read this book and must give it my highest recommendations to all who ever wondered what this equation means. It's deep but not complex.
It's complex but not inaccessable by average minds.
What's really chilling is reading what is not said in between the lines of this book.
Could we have avoided the discovery of the Atomic bomb?
Imagine our world without it.....and to think, the Germans weren't all that close to uncovering the secret behind the destruction.
This is a good book about E = mc 2.
Read it and learn that all discoveries have a dark side.

Rating:
Summary: Light on Science But a Great Read
Review: This book reads like a novel at times; esspecially the middle chapters which are historical events illustrating the consequences of Einstein's famous equation. It does spend the beginning chapters dissecting each part of the equation, and the history of discovery for each attributes meaning. This is very interesting from a Social/Cultural and Scientific perspective. From this foundation, the book delves into the repercussions of the equation, mostly in WW2, and then ponders it's possibilties. The writing hovers on the surface mostly, but the author was smart enough to leave several pages of notes at the end that provide detailed information about most technical aspects he brushed over in the narrative. I highly reccommend the book to anyone who is not of high Science savvy but who is interested in tapping into the meaning of this momumental equation. By doing this, you'll come to understand why we're born knowing the name Albert Einstein and understand why he gave our understanding of reality a more wholesome, organic view.

Rating:
Summary: A bumpy ride through Relativity
Review: This is a mildly eccentric book on Relativity. David Bodanis claims at the start that he won't be talking about physics and Einstein --- he's just going to tell you about The Famous Equation. But once he's done with the first chapter, which goes through the basic principles of the equation step-by-step, he gets into physics and Einstein. He loses his focus quickly, but he's always entertaining.

Bodanis loves colorful anecdotes about physicists, the art of discovery, contributions by neglected scientists (primarily women), and the prospect of the Nazis building an atomic bomb. It's this last topic that weakens the book. Frankly, the Nazis never came close to building an atomic bomb. Yes, they would have had a Fat Man or a Little Boy if they built reactors and had heavy water and understood the physics and had a team of scientists working on it and they tested it. But they didn't have any of it. "Might have" doesn't cut it.

The second half of this book is made up of biographies of scientists and extensive footnotes. Bodanis makes good use of the notes, giving you plenty of sources and a lot of additional information. His personal interests are on full display here, as he mentions whatever concept or story that the footnoted information triggers in his mind. It's fun to read, although it does tend to wander.

I recommend this book to anyone who's read a little bit about Relativity. It's a useful refresher, an eccentric view of the topic that will keep your interest. If you've never read about Relativity, try Gribbin and White's biography of Einstein first --- or, better yet, Richard Wolfson's book on Relativity (which is still the best).

Rating:
Summary: Would you like to know what Einstein knew?
Review: Truly, do you think understanding Einstein's theories and the illusive equation E=mc2 is impossible, reserved only for the physicists and geniuses? Stop! With David Bodanis' book you can understand and explain E-mc2 to anyone! Wouldn't it be great to feel the joy of understand special relativity, general relativity and all its implications. This accessible, well-written, engrossing book does all that and more. It welcomes you as a capable, intelligent person into the seemingly elite world of scientific knowledge. It is fantastic to read and re-read. As accesible as it is it would make an excellent text or reference book also. Do not miss adding this to your collection.