The number one physics book on Amazon of Italy

In summary: That is, the author does not resort to formulas, but to stories, analogies, and personal experiences, which makes the book very approachable and interesting.In summary, this book is about quantum gravity and how physicists are trying to understand how the universe works. It is a readable book that is mainly based on stories and analogies rather than formulas.
  • #1
marcus
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http://www.amazon.it/dp/8860306418/

It came out in January 2014.

I looked today on Amazon.it (Italian Amazon) and the book was not only #1 in the category Physics, but was actually #141 in the ALL BOOKS category. For a physics book that is remarkable.

I sampled the reviews, all were 5 star or 4 star, with the great majority being 5 star.
 
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  • #3
What kind of book is it?
 
  • #4
Greg Bernhardt said:
So did you get a copy? :)

I read Italian (spent some time in Italy, and it's not so different from the Spanish and French I took in high school and college) and like the language. I've been reading it off and on, skipping around.
Last week I loaned it to a friend who also can read Italian and he tells me he has ordered himself a copy.

It's not a technical book. Almost no equations. It give INTUITIVE guidance about how to think of general relativity spacetime, and quantum matter. And at the end, how to think about the two (quantum geometry and quantum matter) interacting together, that still being work in progress. It approaches the insights often through anecdotes from the lives of people who had them. Personalizes. I like it.

I have no idea when it will be published in English translation, I expect it will eventually but might be a while.

StevieTNZ said:
What kind of book is it?
 
  • #5
One way to answer "what kind of book is it" would be to translate a sampling of the CUSTOMER REVIEWS from Italian Amazon:
http://www.amazon.it/dp/8860306418/
Here are some, in case anyone is interested. I've put the English (google translator plus some tweaking) and then the Italian original, one by one.

Reality Is Not How It Appears
ALBERTO GREPPI
Among the many physics books I've read, this is absolutely one of the best ever.
It tells the history of physics since its early beginnings, from Anaximander and Democritus to the present day, with an exceptional clarity.
It transmits to the reader the fascination of scientific research, as well as the enormous difficulties to achieve important results.
It inspires one to deeper scientific, philosophical and literary reading.
It's the book that I will give to the people I most respect. A.G.

10 di 10 persone hanno trovato utile la seguente recensione
5.0 su 5 stelle La realtà non è come ci appare 1 marzo 2014
Di ALBERTO GREPPI
Formato:Copertina flessibile|Acquisto verificato
tra i molti libri di fisica letti, questo è uno dei più belli in assoluto.
racconta la storia della fisica e sin dalle sue prime origini, da Anassimandro e Democrito fino ai giorni nostri, con una chiarezza espositiva eccezionale.
Trasmette al lettore il fascino della ricerca scientifica , come pure le enormi difficoltà per raggiungere risultati importanti.
stimola alla lettura per maggior approfondimento scientifico, filosofico e letterario.
E' il libro che regalerò alle persone che più stimo. A.G.

Philosophy and history of physics
Massimo Guizzardi
Wonderful ride in the history of thought and of human genius and research of the profound nature of life.
Recommended reading for all thinkers who are 15 and older.

8 di 8 persone hanno trovato utile la seguente recensione
5.0 su 5 stelle Filosofia e storia della Fisica 23 febbraio 2014
Di guizzardi massimo
Formato:Copertina flessibile|Acquisto verificato
Meravigliosa galoppata nella storia del pensiero e del genio umano e della ricerca della natura profonda della vita.
Lettura consigliata a tutti i pensatori dai 15 anni in su.

A history of scientific thought
RENATO
Rovelli has managed to combine a subject considered among the most difficult with the language of a gripping novel.
Through his story you will get to understand topics that probably you never had the courage to face, frightened by difficulties.
The words and explanations fully replace scientific formulas.
Sole regret: that the book is so short.

6 di 6 persone hanno trovato utile la seguente recensione
5.0 su 5 stelle storia del pensiero scientifico 4 marzo 2014
Di RENATO
Formato:Copertina flessibile|Acquisto verificato
Rovelli è riuscito a coniugare una materia ritenuta tra le più ostiche con un linguaggio da romanzo avvincente.
Attraverso il suo racconto si arriva a comprendere argomenti che probabilmente non abbiamo mai avuto il coraggio di affrontare , spaventati dalle difficoltà.
Le parole e le spiegazioni sostituiscono esaurientemente le formule scientifiche.
Unico rimpianto, che il libro sia così breve.

A look at the way physicists explain what we call reality (surprising!)
Vincenzo Montevecchi
The book Rovelli, a physicist of international renown, is focused on the latest research in the field of quantum gravity. The subject is certainly not easy to explain, unless one has exceptional talent for communicating with a wide audience. So here Rovelli, starting from the first ideas of the Greek philosophers on the structure of matter and the world in general, takes us gradually, in a light understandable manner, to the latest theories (many already being tested) about the composition of matter, space, time and gravity, making us understand that their essence is not normally how we think. It may not be a book for everyone, but for many, yes. It's a chance to gain new perspective and reflect on our own state of existence.

5 di 5 persone hanno trovato utile la seguente recensione
5.0 su 5 stelle Uno sguardo su come i fisici spiegano quello che noi chiamiamo realtà (e che sorprese!) 31 marzo 2014
Di Vincenzo Montevecchi
Formato:Copertina flessibile|Acquisto verificato
Il libro di Rovelli, fisico di fama internazionale, è incentrato sulle ultime ricerche nell'ambito della gravitazione quantistica. Argomento certo non facile da spiegare, a meno che non si abbia una capacità divulgativa notevole. Ecco quindi che Rovelli, partendo dalle prime idee dei filosofi greci sulla struttura della materia e più in generale del mondo, ci accompagna gradualmente, in modo leggero e comprensibile, fino alle ultime teorie (molte delle quali già verificate) sulla composizione della materia, dello spazio, del tempo e della gravità, facendoci capire come la loro essenza non sia come normalmente la pensiamo. Non credo sia un libro per tutti, ma per molti sì. Un'occasione per avere un punto di vista nuovo e riflettere sul nostro stesso stato di esistenza.

On the concept of information
Giancarlo Meloni
I have not read the book in its entirety.
I looked here and there
and I found something
of great interest.
At the beginning of Chapter 12
on information,
precisely at p. 208,
is presented a remarkably simple
definition of the quantity of information,
which is usually defined
in a very confused way.
I, who am a mathematician
of a certain age,
was never able to understand
this well the concept of
information = surprise = entropy of a proposition.
Then I did a quick survey
among physicists, computer scientists and mathematicians
I know
and I found that no one
had the ideas so clear.
I conclude that Rovelli
is a genius in the field
of popular science
simply because he thoroughly understands
what he is explaining
and does not just repeat things
like a parrot,
as too many people do.

9 di 10 persone hanno trovato utile la seguente recensione
5.0 su 5 stelle Sul concetto di informazione 31 marzo 2014
Di Giancarlo Meloni
Formato:Copertina flessibile|Acquisto verificato
Non ho letto il libro nella sua interezza.
Ho guardato qua e là
ed ho trovato una cosa
di grande interesse.
All'inizio del capitolo 12
sull'informazione,
precisamente a pag. 208,
è presentata una semplicissima
definizione di quantità di informazione,
che usualmente è definita
in modo molto confuso.
Io, che sono un matematico
di una certa età,
non ero mai riuscito a capire
cosí bene il concetto di
informazione = sorpresa = entropia di una proposizione.
Poi ho fatto una rapida inchiesta
tra i fisici, gli informatici e i matematici
che conosco
e ho scoperto che nessuno
aveva le idee cosí chiare.
Ne deduco che Rovelli
è un genio, nel campo
della divulgazione scientifica,
semplicemente perché ha capito a fondo
quello che spiega
e non si limita a ripetere le cose
come un pappagallo,
come troppe persone fanno.

=============================

Italian students have started buying their physics textbooks, and the textbook sales have displaced this one from #1 spot. But it is still the number one NON-textbook, and I see it has also won a book prize that is given every year in Rome for excellence in science writing.
 
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  • #6
I do hope it gets translated in English! I wouldn't mind reading it.
 
  • #7
marcus said:
http://www.amazon.it/dp/8860306418/

It came out in January 2014.

I looked today on Amazon.it (Italian Amazon) and the book was not only #1 in the category Physics, but was actually #141 in the ALL BOOKS category. For a physics book that is remarkable.

I sampled the reviews, all were 5 star or 4 star, with the great majority being 5 star.

I didn't notice the "t" in your opening statement.
 
  • #8
Heh heh! No it was the book, not me. :biggrin:
It is still doing quite well, Just now around 8PM pacific time I checked and:
Posizione nella classifica Bestseller di Amazon: n. 148 in Libri (Visualizza i Top 100 nella categoria Libri)
n.3 in Libri > Scienze, tecnologia e medicina > Fisica

So it was #148 in all the books Amazon Italia sells, and #3 physics bestseller.
 
  • #9
One reason I think it's doing really well is that when I look at the list of physics bestsellers
http://www.amazon.it/gp/bestsellers/books/508871031/&tag=
the first 40 or 50 of them are always TEXTBOOKS, except for this one.

Like just now, today, "Realtà" was #3 and the first NON textbook besides that was number 45 or 46.

Even on days when the textbook sales are heavy and "Realtà" is, say, #15 in physics it is STILL a mile ahead of all the other popular physics books, e.g. like books by Carl Sagan, or Richard Feynman, or Haku, or Kawking or whatnot.

I think demand for Highschool and College physics texts in seasonal, like it is in Usa, so I think of the other non-textbooks as the real comparison, and this one is doing really really well by that standard. Looks blockbuster to me.
 
  • #10
While we are talking about other language expositions...A while back I came across a
French Masters/PhD exposition on (possibly 0ld-hat) LQG. Personally I have to admit that I didn't exactly get top marks in my GCSE French exams, however I was able to follow a lot of this French exposition on the basic structure behind LQG! (I'll have to try to find it again for peeps to have a look at) It was very well written and I was able to realize this despite my poor french skills.

Personally, I am very interested in "learning" new languages via reading about subjects I already have a sound understanding in. Thanks - who knows - I might learn a bit of Italian by trying to go through this book.
 
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  • #11
Wait Julian! I'll bet you the French edition of Realtà comes out well before the English. You would have several good reasons for sampling that one rather than having a go at the Italian original.

That is what happened with Rovelli's Anaximander book. The French version came out at least 2 years before the American, and it actually won a French Book Prize! I forget which one.

If you like maintaining your reading skill in French by reading physics you already know some of in a foreign language that would be a natural.

BTW I made another comparison just now around 9:30PM pacific time and Realtà was #107 in all books category.
At the same time the next bestseller non-textbook physics book was Feynman "QED" and it was #2096. That's a factor of 20 lead over all the other popular physics books!

Maybe I can find out if and when there's going to be a French edition. (With this level of success in the Italian market it seems a good bet there will be one, and likely without much delay.)
 
  • #12
marcus said:
Wait Julian! I'll bet you the French edition of Realtà comes out well before the English. You would have several good reasons for sampling that one rather than having a go at the Italian original.

That is what happened with Rovelli's Anaximander book. The French version came out at least 2 years before the American, and it actually won a French Book Prize! I forget which one.

If you like maintaining your reading skill in French by reading physics you already know some of in a foreign language that would be a natural.

BTW I made another comparison just now around 9:30PM pacific time and Realtà was #107 in all books category.
At the same time the next bestseller non-textbook physics book was Feynman "QED" and it was #2096. That's a factor of 20 lead over all the other popular physics books!

Maybe I can find out if and when there's going to be a French edition. (With this level of success in the Italian market it seems a good bet there will be one, and likely without much delay.)

French would be best for me as I know maths type French language.

You mentioned something about Feynman and QED - I have to say that I have personally written up my own notes on the derivation of the Feynman rules for QED myself - written up myself (in English of course - my French aint that good)!
 
  • #13
No luck. I could find no clue as to when a French or English version might appear. I'm reluctant to write an email to Rovelli or anyone else about such a seemingly trivial matter. Just have to wait and see.

But meanwhile I looked just now and saw that Realtà is again #1 best seller in Physics! and in the all books category it is #72.

For comparison, the next most popular non-textbook physics book continues to be "QED" and it is #50 in Physics and #2102 in All Books.
 
  • #14
marcus said:
I'm reluctant to write an email to Rovelli or anyone else about such a seemingly trivial matter. Just have to wait and see.

I have just emailed him from my university email, and will let you know of the response I get.
 
  • #15
Received a response:
Thanks for the interest!
The book does not exist in English yet. I hope it will be soon translated and published...
carlo
 
  • #16
Stevie, thanks for reporting Rovelli's answer.
I just checked and the book ranked 17 x 485. Number 17 in Physics and number 485 in All Books.

The closest non-textbook runners-up were Brian Greene's "L'Universo Elegante, Superstringhe, , Dimensioni Nascoste e la Ricerca della Teoria Ultima" which ranked 67 x 2118
and the Italian translation of James Kakalios' "The Physics of Superheros" ranking 68 x 2150

So Rovelli's "Realtà" was getting swamped by physics texts (those eager Italian high school students getting ready for their fall classes by reading ahead.) but it still beats the nontext competition by a wide margin.
 
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  • #17
Realtà is still the number one non-textbook in physics at Amazon Italia.
osizione nella classifica Bestseller di Amazon: n. 348 in Libri
n.12 in Libri > Scienze, tecnologia e medicina > Fisica

http://www.amazon.it/gp/bestsellers/books/508871031/&tag=

When I looked just now the closest non-textbook rival was n. 37 in physics and ranked over 1035 in the all books category. So basically trailing by about a factor of 3.
 
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  • #18
Rovelli's popular physics book "Realtà…" continues to do pretty well. I just looked in at Amazon-Italy and
"Posizione nella classifica Bestseller di Amazon: n. 155 in Libri (Visualizza i Top 100 nella categoria Libri)
n.5 in Libri > Scienze, tecnologia e medicina > Fisica"

The book ranked #155 among all the books Amazon.it sells, and #5 in the Physics category.

Here's the amazon.it link if anyone wants to read the reviews (in Italian)
http://www.amazon.it/dp/8860306418/
Here's the listing of physics bestsellers:
http://www.amazon.it/dp/8860306418/

the rest of the top 20 or so are textbooks, so "Reality…" is fairly consistently showing up as the top non-textbook physics bestseller.
This has been the case for over a month now, ever since I started looking (around 13 July).
 
  • #19
marcus said:
No luck. I could find no clue as to when a French or English version might appear. I'm reluctant to write an email to Rovelli or anyone else about such a seemingly trivial matter. Just have to wait and see.
An update (email exchange):

"Hi again Carlo

I see you have a publication due to be released in October -- https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01AY2Q0M0/?tag=pfamazon01-20 I was wondering whether this is the translation version of ‘La realtà non è come ci appare. La struttura elementare delle cose’?"

Carlo's response: "yes, it is."

Pre-ordered my copy!
 
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  • #20
I have it (in Italian). I did not get to halfway., not because it is difficult but because, you know, other stuff.

Ah me, so little time, so many book reviews to read!

I must pick it up again and maybe let you know how it looks to a non-physicist, stuck at a certain level.

And it is published in English. https://www.amazon.com/dp/0241257964/?tag=pfamazon01-20
 
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1. What is the title of the number one physics book on Amazon of Italy?

The number one physics book on Amazon of Italy is "Fisica per tutti" by Carlo Rovelli.

2. Who is the author of the number one physics book on Amazon of Italy?

The author of the number one physics book on Amazon of Italy is Carlo Rovelli, an Italian theoretical physicist and writer.

3. What is the subject matter of the number one physics book on Amazon of Italy?

The number one physics book on Amazon of Italy, "Fisica per tutti", covers a wide range of topics in physics including relativity, quantum mechanics, and the nature of space and time.

4. What makes the number one physics book on Amazon of Italy stand out?

The number one physics book on Amazon of Italy, "Fisica per tutti", is written in a clear and accessible language, making complex physics concepts easy to understand for a general audience.

5. Is the number one physics book on Amazon of Italy available in other languages?

Yes, "Fisica per tutti" has been translated into several languages, including English, Spanish, and French, making it accessible to a wider audience.

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