Now widely available in English for the first time, this is Carlo Rovelli's first book: the thrilling story of a little-known man who created one of the greatest intellectual revolutions Over two thousand years ago, one man changed the way we see the world. Since the dawn of civilization, humans had believed in the heavens above and the Earth below. Then, on the Ionian coast, a Greek philosopher named Anaximander set in motion a revolution. He not only conceived that the Earth floats in space, but also that animals evolve, that storms and earthquakes are natural, not supernatural, that the world can be mapped and, above all, that progress is made by the endless search for knowledge. Carlo Rovelli's first book, now widely available in English, tells the origin story of scientific thinking: our rebellious ability to reimagine the world, again and again.

In this short book, renowned theoretical physicist and author Carlo Rovelli gives a straightforward introduction to Einstein's General Relativity, our current theory of gravitation. Focusing on conceptual clarity, he derives all the basic results in the simplest way, taking care to explain the physical, philosophical and mathematical ideas at the heart of "the most beautiful of all scientific theories". Some of the main applications of General Relativity are also explored, for example, black holes, gravitational waves and cosmology, and the book concludes with a brief introduction to quantum gravity. Written by an author well known for the clarity of his presentation of scientific ideas, this concise book will appeal to university students looking to improve their understanding of the principal concepts, as well as science-literate readers who are curious about the real theory of General Relativity, at a level beyond a popular science treatment.

THE PHENOMENAL BESTSELLER FROM THE AUTHOR OF HELGOLAND AND THE ORDER OF TIME 'The perfect antidote to the fluff and nonsense around right now. Learn how the world is and how you might just fit in' Simon Mayo 'By God, it's beguiling' New Statesman These seven short lessons guide us, with simplicity and clarity, through the scientific revolution that shook physics in the twentieth century and still continues to shake us today. In this mind-bending overview of modern physics, Carlo Rovelli explains Einstein's theory of general relativity, quantum mechanics, black holes, the complex architecture of the universe, elementary particles, gravity, and the nature of the mind. Not since Richard Feynman's celebrated Six Easy Pieces has physics been so vividly, intelligently and entertainingly revealed. Translated by Simon Carnell and Erica Segre

THE #1 SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER One of TIME's Ten Best Nonfiction Books of the Decade 'Captivating, fascinating, profoundly beautiful. . . Rovelli is a wonderfully humane, gentle and witty guide for he is as much philosopher and poet as he is a scientist' John Banville 'We are time. We are this space, this clearing opened by the traces of memory inside the connections between our neurons. We are memory. We are nostalgia. We are longing for a future that will not come' Time is a mystery that does not cease to puzzle us. Philosophers, artists and poets have long explored its meaning while scientists have found that its structure is different from the simple intuition we have of it. From Boltzmann to quantum theory, from Einstein to loop quantum gravity, our understanding of time has been undergoing radical transformations. Time flows at a different speed in different places, the past and the future differ far less than we might think, and the very notion of the present evaporates in the vast universe. With his extraordinary charm and sense of wonder, bringing together science, philosophy and art, Carlo Rovelli unravels this mystery. Enlightening and consoling, The Order of Time shows that to understand ourselves we need to reflect on time -- and to understand time we need to reflect on ourselves. Translated by Simon Carnell and Erica Segre

A mesmerizing trip to the strange new world of white holes, from Carlo Rovelli, the bestselling author of Seven Brief Lessons on Physics Let us journey into the heart of a black hole. Let us slip beyond its boundary, the horizon, and tumble - on and on - down this crack in the universe. As we plunge, we'll see geometry fold, we'll feel the equations draw tight around us. Eventually, we'll pass it: the remains of a star, deep and dense and falling further far. And then - the bottom. Where time and space end, and the white hole is born . . . With lightness and magic, here Rovelli traces the ongoing adventure of his own cutting-edge research, of the uncertainty and joy of going where we've not yet been. Guiding us to the edge of theory and experiment, he invites us to go beyond, to experience the fever and the disquiet of science. Here is the extraordinary life of a white hole.

In this short book, renowned theoretical physicist and author Carlo Rovelli gives a straightforward introduction to Einstein's General Relativity, our current theory of gravitation. Focusing on conceptual clarity, he derives all the basic results in the simplest way, taking care to explain the physical, philosophical and mathematical ideas at the heart of "the most beautiful of all scientific theories". Some of the main applications of General Relativity are also explored, for example, black holes, gravitational waves and cosmology, and the book concludes with a brief introduction to quantum gravity. Written by an author well known for the clarity of his presentation of scientific ideas, this concise book will appeal to university students looking to improve their understanding of the principal concepts, as well as science-literate readers who are curious about the real theory of General Relativity, at a level beyond a popular science treatment.

The instant Sunday Times bestseller -- a beautiful story of rebellion and science 'Popular science has rarely been so good' Prospect 'A triumph. . . We are left in a world that is not disenchanted by science, but even more magical' Financial Times In June 1925, twenty-three-year-old Werner Heisenberg, suffering from hay fever, had retreated to the treeless, wind-battered island of Helgoland in the North Sea in order to think. Walking all night, by dawn he had wrestled with an idea that would transform the whole of science and our very conception of the world. In Helgoland Carlo Rovelli tells the story of the birth of quantum physics and its bright young founders who were to become some of the most famous Nobel winners in science. It is a celebration of youthful rebellion and intellectual revolution. An invitation to a magical place. Here Rovelli illuminates competing interpretations of this science and offers his own original view, describing the world we touch as a fabric woven by relations. Where we, as every other thing around us, exist in our interactions with one another, in a never-ending game of mirrors. A dazzling work from a celebrated scientist and master storyteller, Helgoland transports us to dizzying heights, reminding us of the many pleasures of the life of the mind. Translated by Erica Segre and Simon Carnell Chosen as a Book of the Year by The Times, Financial Times, Sunday Times, Guardian and Prospect

'The physicist transforming how we see the universe' (Financial Times) 'An utter joy' (Adam Rutherford) 'A hugely engaging book... Rovelli is a charming, thought-provoking tour guide' (Manjit Kumar Prospect) Do space and time truly exist? What is reality made of? Can we understand its deep texture? Scientist Carlo Rovelli has spent his whole life exploring these questions and pushing the boundaries of what we know. In this mind-expanding book, he shows how our understanding of reality has changed throughout centuries, from Democritus to loop quantum gravity. Taking us on a wondrous journey, he invites us to imagine a whole new world where black holes are waiting to explode, spacetime is made up of grains, and infinity does not exist -- a vast universe still largely undiscovered. Translated by Simon Carnell and Erica Segre

Generalising Newton's law of gravitation, general relativity is one of the pillars of modern physics. While applications in the beginning were restricted to isolated effects such as a proper understanding of Mercury's orbit, the second half of the twentieth century saw a massive development of applications. These include cosmology, gravitational waves, and even very practical results for satellite based positioning systems as well as different approaches to unite general relativity with another very successful branch of physics - quantum theory. On the occassion of general relativity's centennial, leading scientists in the different branches of gravitational research review the history and recent advances in the main fields of applications of the theory, which was referred to by Lev Landau as "the most beautiful of the existing physical theories". Contributions from: Andy C. Fabian, Anthony L. Lasenby, Astrophysical black Holes Neil Ashby, GNSS and other applications of General Relativity Gene Byrd, Arthur Chernin, Pekka Teerikorpi, Mauri Vaaltonen, Observations of general Relativity at strong and weaks limits Ignazio Ciufolini, General Relativity and dragging of inertial frames Carlo Rovelli, The strange world of quantum spacetime

Quantum gravity is among the most fascinating problems in physics. It modifies our understanding of time, space and matter. The recent development of the loop approach has allowed us to explore domains ranging from black hole thermodynamics to the early Universe. This book provides readers with a simple introduction to loop quantum gravity, centred on its covariant approach. It focuses on the physical and conceptual aspects of the problem and includes the background material needed to enter this lively domain of research, making it ideal for researchers and graduate students. Topics covered include quanta of space; classical and quantum physics without time; tetrad formalism; Holst action; lattice QCD; Regge calculus; ADM and Ashtekar variables; Ponzano-Regge and Turaev-Viro amplitudes; kinematics and dynamics of 4D Lorentzian quantum gravity; spectrum of area and volume; coherent states; classical limit; matter couplings; graviton propagator; spinfoam cosmology and black hole thermodynamics.

Quantum gravity is perhaps the most important open problem in fundamental physics. It is the problem of merging quantum mechanics and general relativity, the two great conceptual revolutions in the physics of the twentieth century. The loop and spinfoam approach, presented in this 2004 book, is one of the leading research programs in the field. The first part of the book discusses the reformulation of the basis of classical and quantum Hamiltonian physics required by general relativity. The second part covers the basic technical research directions. Appendices include a detailed history of the subject of quantum gravity, hard-to-find mathematical material, and a discussion of some philosophical issues raised by the subject. This fascinating text is ideal for graduate students entering the field, as well as researchers already working in quantum gravity. It will also appeal to philosophers and other scholars interested in the nature of space and time.

Quantum gravity is among the most fascinating problems in physics. It modifies our understanding of time, space and matter. The recent development of the loop approach has allowed us to explore domains ranging from black hole thermodynamics to the early Universe. This book provides readers with a simple introduction to loop quantum gravity, centred on its covariant approach. It focuses on the physical and conceptual aspects of the problem and includes the background material needed to enter this lively domain of research, making it ideal for researchers and graduate students. Topics covered include quanta of space; classical and quantum physics without time; tetrad formalism; Holst action; lattice QCD; Regge calculus; ADM and Ashtekar variables; Ponzano-Regge and Turaev-Viro amplitudes; kinematics and dynamics of 4D Lorentzian quantum gravity; spectrum of area and volume; coherent states; classical limit; matter couplings; graviton propagator; spinfoam cosmology and black hole thermodynamics.

'A joy of a book - enriching, illuminating, eclectic and far from a conventional science read' Richard Webb, New Scientist Books of the Year 'Carlo Rovelli's imaginative rigour, his lively humour and his beautiful writing are inspiring' Erica Wagner One of the most inspiring thinkers of our age, the bestselling author of Seven Brief Lessons on Physics transforms the way we think about the world with his reflections on science, history and humanity In this collection of writings, the logbook of an intelligence always on the move, Carlo Rovelli follows his curiosity and invites us on a voyage through science, history, philosophy and politics. Written with his usual clarity and wit, these pieces range widely across time and space: from Newton's alchemy to Einstein's mistakes, from Nabokov's butterflies to Dante's cosmology, from travels in Africa to the consciousness of an octopus, from mind-altering psychedelic substances to the meaning of atheism. Charming, pithy and elegant, this book is the perfect gateway to the universe of one of the most influential scientists of our age.

CHOSEN AS A BOOK OF THE YEAR BY THE TIMES, FINANCIAL TIMES, SUNDAY TIMES, GUARDIAN AND PROSPECT The instant Sunday Times bestseller -- a beautiful story of rebellion and science 'Popular science has rarely been so good' Prospect 'A thrilling story, written with wit and panache' John Banville In June 1925, twenty-three-year-old Werner Heisenberg, suffering from hay fever, had retreated to the treeless, wind-battered island of Helgoland in the North Sea in order to think. Walking all night, by dawn he had wrestled with an idea that would transform the whole of science and our very conception of the world. In Helgoland Carlo Rovelli tells the story of the birth of quantum physics and its bright young founders who were to become some of the most famous Nobel winners in science. It is a celebration of youthful rebellion and intellectual revolution. An invitation to a magical place. Here Rovelli illuminates competing interpretations of this science and offers his own original view, describing the world we touch as a fabric woven by relations. Where we, as every other thing around us, exist in our interactions with one another, in a never-ending game of mirrors. A dazzling work from one of our most celebrated scientists and master storyteller, Helgoland transports us to dizzying heights, reminding us of the many pleasures of the life of the mind. Translated by Erica Segre and Simon Carnell

Prominent scientists and philosophers of science address contemporary debates on the nature of Time. Their contributions freely discuss its unity and reality, its compatibility with the orders of classical philosophy (present, past and future) and with the disputed idea of free will (Volume 1). They also present a detailed and updated state of the role of Time in the so-called exact sciences: biology — or more precisely genetics, evolution, neurosciences, natural and artificial intelligence (Volume 2) , and physics — relativity, quantum mechanics and quantum gravity, and cosmology (Volume 3).

Prominent scientists and philosophers of science address contemporary debates on the nature of Time. Their contributions freely discuss its unity and reality, its compatibility with the orders of classical philosophy (present, past and future) and with the disputed idea of free will (Volume 1). They also present a detailed and updated state of the role of Time in the so-called exact sciences: biology — or more precisely genetics, evolution, neurosciences, natural and artificial intelligence (Volume 2) , and physics — relativity, quantum mechanics and quantum gravity, and cosmology (Volume 3).