In the 1930s, physics was in a crisis. There appeared to be no
way to reconcile the new theory of quantum mechanics with
Einstein's theory of relativity. Several approaches had been tried
and had failed. In the post-World War II period, four eminent
physicists rose to the challenge and developed a calculable version
of quantum electrodynamics (QED), probably the most successful
theory in physics. This formulation of QED was pioneered by Freeman
Dyson, Richard Feynman, Julian Schwinger, and Sin-Itiro Tomonaga,
three of whom won the Nobel Prize for their work. In this book,
physicist and historian Silvan Schweber tells the story of these
four physicists, blending discussions of their scientific work with
fascinating biographical sketches.
Setting the achievements of these four men in context, Schweber
begins with an account of the early work done by physicists such as
Dirac and Jordan, and describes the gathering of eminent theorists
at Shelter Island in 1947, the meeting that heralded the new era of
QED. The rest of his narrative comprises individual biographies of
the four physicists, discussions of their major contributions, and
the story of the scientific community in which they worked.
Throughout, Schweber draws on his technical expertise to offer a
lively and lucid explanation of how this theory was finally
established as the appropriate way to describe the atomic and
subatomic realms.
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