The Elegant Universe: The beauty and mystery of the cosmos explained with clarity and awe in this international bestseller

There seems to be some confusion as 2 versions of this book appear on the website - one published in '2000' and one in '2010'. I ordered and reviewed the '2000' version which is actually the upated 25th anniversary edition (2024) as mentioned in the description, though the book cover is different to that pictured. Although this page also refers to a 'later' edition, that links to the '2010' publication which has no description so I've no idea which version that actually is! When I tried to edit this review I got the message 'You already reviewed another variant of this product. You've been redirected to that review.' even though I haven't reviewed the other book so I've no idea what's going on there either. I'd suggest you stick to the item with over 3,000 reviews and a description and avoid the one with less than 10 and no description. Don't let that put you off this book; it's exceptional. For the 25th anniversary release, Brian Greene has opted to leave the bulk of the book as originally published but has added a preface and a most interesting epilogue to bring it up to date. The original was extremely well written and he did a marvellous job of explaining some, what would have been, very difficult concepts. Armed with the knowledge gained by that, the epilogue presents some truly astonishing developments since that time. I must admit to having even more questions now but, because he does such a good job of presenting the ideas, I'm able to frame them quite coherently. He hints that he is tempted to write another book encompassing many more of the new developments and I hope he does so. I'd be first in line for such a tome. I passed on my paperback copy to a friend but would like to re-examine this tome whenever the desire takes me. Consequently, I have now purchased the Kindle version. It's well worth the price and has the added advantage of being able to search the text - the index of the printed book is good but a decent search tool adds flexibility.

An excellent introduction to String Theory for the lay reader. As others have said it may help to have some prior knowledge of modern science, by which I mean if you have no scientific background and you have never read any popular science works on particle physics and relativity before, this may not be the best place to start (others have mentioned for example Stephen Hawking's A Brief History Of Time as perhaps a better place to begin). However, that said, for those readers willing to put in a little effort this is a great read. Greene begins by looking at the bedrocks of modern physics, relativity and quantum theory before progressing on to the eleven dimensions of string theory. It is thanks to writers like Greene, who are able to explain, without resorting to complex mathematics, such difficult concepts that the layman can begin to get a feel for the wonders of the universe. A fascinating read. "[An] important book.... The Elegant Universe presents the ideas and aspirations-and some of the characters-of string theory with clarity and charm." -Scientific American "In the great tradition of physicists writing for the masses, [Greene] sets a standard that will be hard to beat." -New York Times Book Review "[A] tour-de-force of science writing...peels away layers of detail and reveals the stunning essence of cutting-edge physics." -Shing-Tung Yau, Harvard University; Fields Medallist, winner of the National Medal of Science I also recommend two other works by Greene, The Fabric of the Cosmos: Space, Time and the Texture of Reality and The Hidden Reality: Parallel Universes and the Deep Laws of the Cosmos .

This book by Brian Greene, a professor of physics and mathematics, is focussed on string theory. Regrettably, it's a book I wasn't able to finish because I found it got more and more complicated as it progressed. It started off well with some excellent explanations of quantum theory and relativity, although most of this I was already familiar with. It then progressed to string theory, and the first few chapters, all covering new ground for me, were well presented. However, I started to get into difficulties as the author tried to explain how the five different string theories may all be variants of a single theory. I struggled to follow much of this and gave up part way through chapter 12, so I didn't make it to understanding M-theory. Consequently, I never got to read the subsequent chapters on black holes or cosmology. I could have struggled on but one factor in the back of my mind was that the Kindle edition I was reading, which was purchased from Amazon in January 2014, was derived from a book published as long ago as 2000 so I felt it was likely that string theory would have moved on since then. Consequently, I was conscious that some of the more advanced concepts may have been updated or replaced in the intervening years and I might have been wasting my time trying to understand something that was no longer considered valid. These thoughts were somewhat demotivating. But from what I learnt, or at least as it was understood in around 2000, string theory is highly theoretical, with only approximate (and usually multiple) solutions to what are sometimes just approximate equations. There is no strong experimental evidence to support the theory, and neither is the theory of much value in predicting experimental results. Nevertheless, the theory does try to make sense of, and rationalise, the numerous fundamental particles making up the standard model. It also seeks to unite quantum theory with general relativity and gravity. It therefore has the potential to solve problems that have faced physics since the quantum and general relativity theories were first formulated in the early 20th century. It's undoubtedly a complex theory but Greene does a good job of explaining much of the basics. I particularly liked the way that for many tricky concepts he explained them from two different angles, often using analogies. Therefore, I found that if I didn't quite understand one explanation, there was often a second explanation from a different perspective that made more sense to me. I found this double attack approach very useful for enforcing many of the basic ideas. String theory requires more dimensions than we are familiar with in our everyday lives, these extra dimensions being very small and curled up. It's difficult to visualise what this means but Greene provided an excellent (although simplified) explanation of these curled up dimensions using the example of an insect walking along a hose pipe, where the length of the hose pipe represents a dimension we're all familiar with, and which can be seen from afar, but the cylindrical cross-section of the hose pipe is a curled up dimension, only visible from close-up. Although I didn't manage to finish it, I'm still awarding this book 4 stars because I doubt that many authors could better Greene's treatment of this difficult subject. His approach is entirely non-mathematical, which is a challenge for a theory based entirely on mathematics, yet he manages to present many complex ideas in an understandable manner. Looking on Amazon today I discover that the 2000 Kindle edition I was reading has been replaced by a 2011 edition. A sample I downloaded looks very similar to what I've already read but I'm wondering if some of the chapters may have changed.

The first half is quite easy to follow and very engaging. The second half begins to introduce concepts that I struggled with but which I described in a analogous manner that I think if I had worked hard for many hours to understand it would’ve benefited me. My take from this is that particle physics has advanced far greater than I would’ve imagined and his description of what happened to the universe at extremely small time scales after the Big Bang is fascinating.

Written in 1999, I found this was not for the faint hearted, e.g. my background is the Arts with a life-long fascination with science. When necessary, it is illustrated with quality black-and-white diagrams which help. Brian Greene writes well and, as the title suggests, sees the Universe, not “just as” cut-and-dried science. The more he discovers/explains, the more he recognises the elegance. He writes with the clarity of Richard Dawkins, Jim al Khalili, Jacob Bronowski, appreciating the wonder, seeing the links. The book is divided into five sections, then sub-divided: 1. Edge of Knowledge 2. Dilemma of Space, Time and Quanta 3. Cosmic Symphony 4. String Theory and Fabric of Spacetime 5. Unification in the Twentieth Century For many, the first sections will be more comfortable reading, the latter being more challenging in which, on occasions, I felt like a twenty-first century Columbus, challenged all the way with new material and ideas. Space and Time in section two become Spacetime in section four and he ponders whether the fabric of the universe can be torn and, if so, what will result. “Einstein’s general relativity says no, the fabric of space cannot tear. The equations of general relativity are firmly rooted in Riemannian geometry … the underlying mathematical formalism requires that the substrate of space is ‘smooth’ …” (P. 263) He then considers the results of irregularities, tears, dents and bumps, a universe in which Einstein’s theory breaks down and quantum physics facilitates this new understanding. For non-physicists, be prepared to read sections more than one but be prepared also for the elegance to emerge as the brain fabric is stretched into new knowledge. Well worth the effort to keep up with Mr Greene.

Chapters 1 to 5 were excellent. Everything explained and illustrated, with the help of space travellers Gracie and George, in a way that even I could follow. Then came part 3. Brian Greene must have assumed that I had become educated along the way. The friendly little examples seem to have disappeared to be replaced with a more intense narrative. Fascinating still, but I have to take it in easy stages. I am currently still immersed in chapter 6 with no light yet visible at the end of the tunnel.

The book starts with descriptions of Special and General Relativity which are the best I have ever read. Having mastered this, and feeling very pleased, I moved on and got progressively more confused by every layer of theory and complexity that was added. At first you understand and it makes sense. Then you mostly understand but the details wash over you. Then you just get the gist. In the final chapters you just wonder at the level of complexity that the human mind can achieve without really understanding anything! A Plank length is an incredible 10E-35 meters. The way that Brian Greene explains the significance of this unit makes beautiful sense (although I couldn't have repeated the explanation even 5 minutes after I read it and marveled at it). This is a great book. Not for anyone wanting to build a universe, but for interested science graduates who want an overview of the state of the art in [the quest for] grand unified theories.

It is a great book for anyone who is interested in the advances of modern physics related to relativity, quantum physics and string theory. It is written lucidly, dodging the equations to give someone an overall impression about the subject. Obviously one cannot expect to become expert in these subjects without understanding the mathematical part of it, but one definitely gets the flavour. As a small example I really liked the description of gravity and how it is sort of generated from the deformation of space, or the fact that we are actually always moving at a constant speed of light's speed in the space-time are striking revelations to me, and just prompts me to know and learn more about this beautiful subject(s).

The author talks about important facts of the general relativity. Next he has an approach to the mirror symmetry. It is interesting the words of Yau, who admits that by mathematical view, the mrror symmetry is only conjectural and probably also in error. It needs to aspect the job of Batyrev for an exact proof. Nevertheless it born several models about the physics of the strings. Greene explicates those arguments with a strong passion and a nice style.

Great lecture

Excelente livro

I’ve never studied physics but have always been fascinated by cosmology.. this book is exquisite… explains things in layman terms while still being quite technical..

Greene writes an extremely accessible book on the universe at the micro and macro levels, with no math required and common everyday examples and analogies.