Niels Bohr's Times by Abraham Pais
Niels Bohr's life spans times of revolutionary change, in science and in its impact on society. He can be considered, along with Einstein, as the major driving force behind the new mathematical and philosophical descriptions of the atom, the nucleus, and their subsequent repercussions. Abraham Pais, the biographer of Einstein, traces Bohr's progress from his well-to-do origins in late 19th-century Denmark to his central position on the world political scene, particularly because of the development of nuclear weapons during World War II. Bohr was one of the great enabling figures in modern science, not only because of his direct involvement in the application of quantum theory to our understanding of the structure of the atom, but also because he gathered around him in Copenhagen most of the brightest young minds of the period. Figures like Pauli, Dirac, and Heisenberg, all required Bohr's imprimatur, to varying degrees, before they considered their work ready for widespread consumption. He had a complex relationship with Einstein, both in terms of their fundamental disagreements and their profound though distant mutual respect. He owed an important debt to his mentor, Rutherford - a man who came to serve, in many ways, as his role model. Pais describes the state of physics before Bohr and considers his legacy, both theoretical and practical. But more than this, he captures the essence of Bohr, the intensely private family man who, despite appalling personal tragedy, became one of the best-loved cultural figures of recent times.
tells the full story in a deeply informative and yet comfortably informal manner..I find it beautifully lucid and yet convincingly authoritative Nature 'Pais has written an excellent account ... which will be a standard reference for many years to come THES '... a book that grips by its clarity and the importance of its subject matter ... remarkably timely.' New Scientist
Abraham Pais gehort zu den international fuhrenden Quantenfeldtheoretikern und Einstein-Biographen unserer Zeit. Fur Physiker war Pais der 'Mister Quantenfeldtheorie'. Fur Albert Einstein war er ein Kollege und Freund am Institute for Advanced Studies (in Princeton). Fur ein breiteres Publikum ist er der Autor der Einstein-Biographie 'Raffiniert ist der Herrgott', schrieb Physics Today.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780198520498 |
| ISBN 10 | 0198520492 |
| Title | Niels Bohr's Times |
| Author | Abraham Pais |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Hardback |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press |
| Year published | 1991-10-01 |
| Number of pages | 582 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |