The Five Biggest Unsolved Problems in Science

Rating:
Summary: 5 Unsolved Problems - Or is it 100's
Review: The authors open with a nice discussion of the scientific process, and remind us that science uses a different language from that used in everyday speech. That language is called mathematics. "Because mathematical skills require a great deal of effort to acquire, explaining scientific hypotheses to people not trained in mathematics requires translation of mathematical concepts into conversational language. Unfortunately, the meaning of the hypothesis may suffer in the process."

Before I forget to mention it, may I add that the running cartoon commentary by Sidney Harris is superb!

Five unsolved problems are discussed, one each from the fields of physics, chemistry, biology, geology, and astronomy. Then 27 more are asked in an "appendix" type chapter and given only half-page answers. This book is similar to another one I read, by Malone, "Unsolved Mysteries of Science," which had 23 unanswered questions, many of them the same. I like to read this sort of book because it aids me in my quest to maintain general scientific literacy. I am reminded that for every bit of knowledge we gain, new questions invariably arise, that never-ending quest being the nature of science. I personally think we'll still be looking for the TOE (Theory of Everything) in 100 years, but reading about unsolved problems will notify me if string theory is abandoned, if parallel universes are found, or if the complete structure and function of the proteome is ascertained (fat chance).

Anyway, this is another of those books that get me a little closer to being able to read Nature magazine comfortably, and I think it is well worth one's time.



Rating:
Summary: A survey course in Science
Review: This is like a condensed survey course of various facets of Science. The authors cut to the chase by focusing on one major unsolved problem in each discipline. Their breadth of knowledge is impressive and their presentations are comprehensible for laymen like me. I was particularly attracted to the question "How was the first living thing formed?" and also "Why is the universe expanding faster and faster?". The accompanying cartoons are well done. The ideas folder at the end touches on many current news topics like greenhouse gases and genetic engineering. An interesting read for those who wonder "Why?".

Rating:
Summary: Fine introduction for the general reader
Review: This is written by two guys who teach physics (Wiggins) and chemistry (Wynn) at the college level in a reader-friendly manner in which each of the five unsolved problems are presented, explained, and critiqued. Each section is then concluded with indications of how these problems might be solved. There are some nice cartoons by Sidney Harris to augment the text.

The five "biggest" problems are (from different disciplines and not without controversy):

1. The nature and origin of mass. (Why do some particles have mass while others do not?)

It is obvious that we really do not understand the nature of mass from our inability to form a unified theory involving gravity, a theory that would unify quantum mechanics and relativity. Indeed I think physicists are just whistling in the dark when they talk about particles and fields. It's clear to even this casual observer that the real nature of particles/waves, particles/fields is not really understood, and perhaps cannot be understood in anything other than a once or twice removed mathematical sense. We can write equations that describe what we observe, but the intrinsic nature of all phenomena remains veiled. We avoid infinities in the mathematics of physics as a long-observed and much beloved rule (something like Occam's Razor) with the result that we (necessarily) "construct" limits on the physical world like those named after Max Planck. Beyond (or "below," or "under" or "smaller than," etc.) those limits is potentially a whole universe of physics much like what might be beyond the Big Bang in cosmology.

Authors Wiggins and Wynn acknowledge that the Standard Model of physics has a "dark side" (p. 30) and that the long-sought Higgs field particle may be a "mathematic convenience." (p. 31) From my point of view everything in physics (and this includes all of string theory) that has not met with experimental proof is possibly a "mathematical convenience." This is not to denigrate physics or physicists. On the contrary. What physicists have accomplished toward an understanding of the world in which we live stands as one of humankind's most glorious achievements. The problem is that (as quoted from J.B.S. Haldane on page 159) "the universe is not only queerer than we suppose, but queerer than we can suppose." In other words don't hold your breath for the dreamed-of "Theory of Everything." And if it arrives, don't imagine that "everything" really is "everything."

2. How did lifeless chemical reactions become life?

The authors present some of the history (Stanley Miller's primordial soup experiment; panspermia, etc.), outline the problems, tell us a little about DNA and RNA, and finish with how the puzzle might be solved and by whom. I would observe that imbedded within this question is a theoretical bugaboo that first needs to be resolved. We have to agreeably define what "life" is before we can hope to make a distinction between very complex but "lifeless" self-replicating molecules and molecules forming living organisms. As such, the problem is one of definition as much as anything else. Clearly if we left out our notion of things living as opposed to things not living, we might discover a step-by-step continuum without a clear demarcation point.

3. How do proteins control cells and tissues? ("What is the complete structure and function of the proteome?")

The authors note that since the genome has been mapped and sequenced, "the unsolved problem" in biology "has shifted" to "How do protein molecules built from directions provided by [the]...genomes contribute to the structure and function of organisms?" (p. 71) A very complex problem indeed, but at least it is a practical problem and not a theoretical one, and as such (unlike some others in this book) is one that conceivably can be solved through a whole lot of hard work.

This is about cells and how they function. The authors reprise the genome mapping and sequencing story, and then point to "Protemics: The Next Frontier."

4. Can we predict the weather? (Or, how accurate can our weather predictions be?)

This of course is about complexity theory and why that famous butterfly in the Sahara continues to influence the formation of hurricanes in the Carribean.

Quick answer: accuracy will continue to fall off as the square of the distance in time. Just joking, but clearly the more lengthy the forecast, the more uncertain it will continue to be.

5. Why is the universe expanding faster and faster?

Ah, yes. What IS the nature of Einstein's fudge factor that has recently returned? I love this one. The real question is what IS all that dark energy and dark matter out there? As the authors point out only 4%(!) (see page 129) of all the matter in the universe is accounted for in terms of things seen. Seventy-three percent is in the form of dark energy and another 23% in the form of dark matter. It is amazing to realize that over 90% of what exists is stuff we know next to nothing about!

A nice part of the book are the "folders" at the back in which many other interesting issues are briefly presented. The problems in the "Problem Folder" are organized according to disciplines, "Physics Problems," Chemistry Problems," etc. There are sixteen ideas in the "Ideas Folder," including such things as anti-matter, protein folding, chaos theory, global warming, and so on.

Bottom line: Wiggings and Wynn do a good job of introducing the general reader to what scientists at the horizon are working on. It's really amazing to realize how far we've come as knowledge-seeking creatures, and then to get a glimpse of how incredibly much there is we don't know.

Rating:
Summary: A Fun Way to Discover the Intriguing
Review: We teach subjects not related to the science Wiggins and Wynn address - except in the ways that really matter. For example, reviewer Winston teaches American Government; he finds this book profoundly "usable" in that its point includes the notion (disused in some high political places) that problems can be treated by thinking, and shouldn't be expected to be solved by wish fulfillment and received authority. In this sense the book is a continuation of the earlier "Quantum Leaps in The Wrong Direction," only this time the scientific problems are "harder," as they are particular (albeit big!) quests on which scientists have been working. The pleasure scientists take in the pursuit is communicated in a way that leaves no doubt by the authors, and it is marvelous, breath-taking and invigorating. This is just one of the delights of the book. Another is that there is an unsolved mystery for everyone! The chapter sub-headings are a great device and most welcome. The pictures are fascinating and the cartoons are right-on and funny. Reviewer Friedler, who teaches creative and expository writing, finds the book accessible and readable in its well-timed understatement and clever analogy, and in its style and conceptual clarity. It flows and the reader understands. This is not an easy thing, given the mighty topics. We highly recommend this delightful book for its captivating material and entertaining reading.