Now: The Physics of Time - and the Ephemeral Moment that Einstein Could Not Explain

· Penguin Random House Audio · Narrated by Christopher Grove
4.0
5 reviews
Audiobook
10 hr 2 min
Unabridged
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About this audiobook

“Now” is a simple yet elusive concept.

You are reading the word “now” right now. But what does that mean? What makes the ephemeral moment “now” so special? Its enigmatic character has bedeviled philosophers, priests, and modern-day physicists from Augustine to Einstein and beyond. Einstein showed that the flow of time is affected by both velocity and gravity, yet he despaired at his failure to explain the meaning of “now.” Equally puzzling: why does time flow? Some physicists have given up trying to understand, and call the flow of time an illusion, but the eminent experimentalist physicist Richard A. Muller protests. He says physics should explain reality, not deny it.

In Now, Muller does more than poke holes in past ideas; he crafts his own revolutionary theory, one that makes testable predictions. He begins by laying out—with the refreshing clarity that made Physics for Future Presidents so successful—a firm and remarkably clear explanation of the physics building blocks of his theory: relativity, entropy, entanglement, antimatter, and the Big Bang. With the stage then set, he reveals a startling way forward.

Muller points out that the standard Big Bang theory explains the ongoing expansion of the universe as the continuous creation of new space. He argues that time is also expanding and that the leading edge of the new time is what we experience as “now.” This thought-provoking vision has remarkable implications for some of our biggest questions, not only in physics but also in philosophy—including the ongoing debate about the reality of free will. Moreover, his theory is testable. Muller’s monumental work will spark major debate about the most fundamental assumptions of our universe, and may crack one of physics’s longest-standing enigmas.

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Ratings and reviews

4.0
5 reviews
Mohsen Sadatiyan
April 26, 2018
Although the subject is extremely fascinating, curious and essential, the personal view of the author and his unproductive critical view ruined the joy of learning about this subject. He mentions that some scientist believes in an idea like a religion and you can see the same behaviour from him regarding multiple subjects, including free will. First quarter of the book is like watching many movie trailers. You can get an idea about the subject but nothing reach a conclusion and he continuously refer to next sections for explaining things. As a experimental physisis you might expect him to explain many important physical discovery through original historic path and experiments, but he just scratch the surface of subjects without connecting ideas and reaching a conclusion. Toward the end of the book he mainly expresses his personal philosophy that is closer to belivers way of thinking than scientists. Although you might learn something and might enjoy some sections, definitely doesn't worth the money and time.
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James Fulfer
August 9, 2020
I only listend to the prieview, it left me wondering ; (phylisophical quote,me, if you answer all stupid questions you will have the answers to the brilliant ones..)If like the flow of water in a toilet differs clockwise/ counter clockwise depending on what side of the equatorial line your on. Does the universe have such a border that delegates the rotation of things, and if so how and which side are we on, and if not then what does and to what extent does it affect , only main grav force/all
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Brandon Kauffman
November 25, 2020
The author teaches many topics in physics that have philosophical implications. He explains what free will is, and how many scientists point use science as their religion to explain it. This book explains physics concepts in the earlier chapters and then explains philosophical explanations of the limits of science, such as consciousness and free will. The author bases all of these philosophical explanations based on the physics of the previous chapters. I enjoyed the actual book, but the narrator has an amazing voice while reading this book
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About the author

Richard A. Muller is professor of physics at the University of California, Berkeley, and the best-selling author of Physics for Future Presidents. For his outstanding work in experimental cosmology, he was awarded a 1982 MacArthur “Genius” Fellowship, and also a share of the 2015 Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics for the discovery of dark energy.

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Narrated by Christopher Grove