What Are the Best Enjoyable Science Books for Commuting?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around recommendations for enjoyable science books suitable for commuting. Participants share their experiences with various popular science titles and express interest in both educational and entertaining reads.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant expresses a preference for books by Carl Sagan and G.H. Hardy, seeking enjoyable science reads.
  • Another suggests the "Springer Handbook of Spacetime" and "100 Years of Relativity" as potential reads, although they have not read the former.
  • Multiple participants recommend "The Elegant Universe" and "The Hidden Reality" by Brian Greene as enjoyable options.
  • One participant mentions enjoying "Quantum Physics" by Alastair I.M. Rae, highlighting its appeal to computer scientists.
  • Chet Raymo's "Soul of the Night" is suggested for its soulful portrayal of the universe.
  • Several participants list favorites including "A Brief History of Time" by Stephen Hawking, "Hyperspace" by Michio Kaku, and "Black Holes and Time Warps" by Kip S. Thorne.
  • One participant seeks a biography of Werner Heisenberg and mentions challenges in finding it, while also expressing interest in biographies of other scientists and books about the Manhattan Project.
  • Another participant recommends "Surely You're Joking Mr. Feynman!" by Ralph Leighton as an entertaining account related to the Manhattan Project.
  • A suggestion is made that those who enjoyed "Mathematician's Apology" might also appreciate "The Indian Clerk" by David Leavitt, a fictionalized account of Hardy's interactions with Ramanujan.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally agree on the enjoyment of certain science books, but there is no consensus on a definitive list of recommendations, as various titles are proposed and preferences vary.

Contextual Notes

Some participants express uncertainty about the availability of specific books, and there are mentions of personal preferences that may not align with others' tastes.

RJLiberator
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Hey all,

I am going to be commuting quite a lot soon here and was looking to up my arsenal of science books to read (enjoyably).

I've read books by Carl Sagan recently and have loved them. Books like a Mathematicians Apology by G.H. Hardy were also great.

I guess, I am looking for some popular science books that will teach me a thing or two, while still being enjoyable, while I commute to school.

Any suggestions/links is welcome. :D
 
Physics news on Phys.org
Springer Handbook of Spacetime Hardcover – July 7, 2014
by Abhay Ashtekar (Editor), Vesselin Petkov.. I haven't read this book yet.

or his older book.
100 Years of Relativity: Space-time Structure Einstein And Beyond.. My personal fav. Scarlet eyes.^^

.
 
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RJLiberator said:
Hey all,

I am going to be commuting quite a lot soon here and was looking to up my arsenal of science books to read (enjoyably).

I've read books by Carl Sagan recently and have loved them. Books like a Mathematicians Apology by G.H. Hardy were also great.

I guess, I am looking for some popular science books that will teach me a thing or two, while still being enjoyable, while I commute to school.

Any suggestions/links is welcome. :D

The Elegant Universe and The Hidden Reality, by Brian Greene are very enjoyable for me.

Six Easy Pieces, Six Not So Easy Pieces, and QED by Feynman are also good.
 
Thanks for the recommendations guys. I appreciate it. I have read "The Elegant Universe" and it was a fantastic read. I may need to check out The Hidden Reality to top it off.

julcab, I will do research on your books as soon as I have a moment.

Keep 'em coming PF. :D
 
'Quantum Physics' Alastair I.M. Rae (Beginners Guides).so far i am enjoying.

it Opens Computer Scientist's Mind.
 
Soul of the Night by Chet Raymo
(like Sagan, Raymo makes the universe soulful)
 
A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking.
 
A few of my favorites (That I need to read again);

Hyperspace by Michio Kaku
Mining the Sky by John S. Lewis
Black Holes and Time Warps by Kip S. Thorne
Q is for Quantum by John Gribbin (Encyclopedia)
The Great Scientists by John Farndon
 
You can't go wrong with QED by Feynman and The Elegant Universe by Brian Greene. Also, I thought The Cosmic Landscape by Leonard Susskind was a good read.
 
  • #10
I was trying to find a good book about Werner Heisenberg (a biography) and this one seemed to be good enough but it's not available in the bookstores I normally buy from..
I think it has been discontinued? Does anyone have any suggestions?

I'm also up for biographies of other scientists or perhaps books about the Manhattan project..
 
  • #11
DataGG said:
I was trying to find a good book about Werner Heisenberg (a biography) and this one seemed to be good enough but it's not available in the bookstores I normally buy from..
I think it has been discontinued? Does anyone have any suggestions?

I'm also up for biographies of other scientists or perhaps books about the Manhattan project..

I use a website called alibris for finding second hand books and textbooks.

Have you read "Surely You're Joking Mr Feynman!" by Ralph Leighton?

It's not so much a biography, but an account of some of the things Feynman got up to whilst working on the Manhattan project, teaching in Brazil, etc.

It is highly entertaining, but very informal.
 
  • #12
BOAS said:
I use a website called alibris for finding second hand books and textbooks.

Have you read "Surely You're Joking Mr Feynman!" by Ralph Leighton?

It's not so much a biography, but an account of some of the things Feynman got up to whilst working on the Manhattan project, teaching in Brazil, etc.

It is highly entertaining, but very informal.

Hello BOAS,

Thank you for the suggestion. I've read both "Surely you're joking Mr. Feynman" and "Not always joking Mr. Feynman". I also have his QED book but I haven't read that one just yet.
 
  • #13
If you liked Mathematician's Apology you might like The Indian Clerk by David Leavitt, which is a well written fictionalized account of Hardy's dealings with the peculiar Indian math genius, Ramanujan.
 

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