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Will it be possible in the twenty-first century to teleport
objects from one place to another? Will superfast quantum computers usher in an
even more powerful second computer revolution? Is our universe only one of an
infinite number of universes? What do all of these questions
have to do with the radical new theory that "everything is information"?
In the groundbreaking The Bit and the Pendulum, acclaimed science writer
Tom Siegfried introduces readers to the frontiers of the radical new physics of
information, and to the host of amazing discoveries it is inspiring -- from the
development of a stunning new breed of quantum computers, to methods for writing
supersecure codes, to revealing fascinating insights into the elaborate computer-like
workings of the cell and resolving long-standing mysteries about the inner workings
of black holes and how the universe evolved. The revolutionary
insight central to all of this new science is that the most fundamental constituents
of matter are not atoms, or even the subatomic particles, but "bits,"
the fundamental units of information. As Siegfried writes: "Scientists are
exploring a new path toward understanding life, physics, and existence. The path
leads through all of nature, from the interior of cells to inside black holes.
Always the signs are the same: the world is made of information."
Siegfried has interviewed the leading researchers, and he provides
wonderfully lucid and entertaining explanations of the remarkable range of work
they are doing. We are introduced to the latest theories in quantum physics and
how they are being applied by quantum cryptographers to create secret codes that
are absolutely unbreakable. We learn how the mind-boggling physics of "reversible
logic" can recapture lost information. We are introduced to Nobel Prize-winning
physicist Murray Gell-Mann and his provocative new idea of a "schema"
to encode the way that nature works. We meet maverick mathematician Leonard Adelman
and learn about his ingenious method of harnessing the information of the genetic
code to create DNA computers. Entering the mind-bending
domain of forefront research in cosmology, we are introduced to physicist John
Wheeler, the namer of black holes, and his ideas about how black holes "swallow"
information. We also learn about the seemingly bizarre "many worlds"
theory that our universe is only one of an infinite number of universes, and we
are introduced to the controversy over M Theory, which some scientists argue is
the long-sought "Theory of Everything." The
Bit and the Pendulum offers an engaging, fast-paced introduction to a fundamentally
new way of seeing the world and an amazing glimpse into many of the hottest areas
of research in science today. Tom Siegfried is the
science editor of the Dallas Morning News. He is the recipient of the American
Association for the Advancement of Science's Westinghouse Award for science journalism. |
