About this item
A concise, elegant exploration of time from the author of the international bestseller Seven Brief Lessons on PhysicsWhy do we remember the past and not the future? What does it mean for time to "flow"? Do we exist in time or does time exist in us? In lyric, accessible prose, Carlo Rovelli invites us to consider questions about the nature of time that continue to puzzle physicists and philosophers alike.For most listeners this is unfamiliar terrain. We all experience time, but the more scientists learn about it, the more mysterious it appears. We think of it as uniform and universal, moving steadily from past to future, measured by clocks. Rovelli tears down these assumptions one by one, revealing a strange universe where at the most fundamental level time disappears. He explains how the theory of quantum gravity attempts to understand and give meaning to the resulting extreme landscape of this timeless world. Weaving together ideas from philosophy, science and literature, he suggests that our perception of the flow of time depends on our perspective, better understood starting from the structure of our brain and emotions than from the physical universe.Already a bestseller in Italy, and written with the poetic vitality that made Seven Brief Lessons on Physics so appealing, The Order of Time offers a profoundly intelligent, culturally rich, novel appreciation of the mysteries of time.
About the Author
Carlo Rovelli was born in Italy, is a US citizen and lives in France. His main activity is in theoretical physics, where he is known as one of the founders of loop quantum gravity. He has also interests in the history and philosophy of science. He has written "Quantum Gravity", a treatise on loop quantum gravity and, for the large public, "The First Scientist: Anaximander and his Legacy", which is primarily a reflection on the nature of science. The book is translated in five languages and has been awarded by the "Prix du Livre Haute Maurienne". Rovelli has worked in various Universities in Italy, the US and France. He is currently head of the quantum gravity group at the Center For Theoretical Physics of the Aix-Marseille University. He is Honorary Professor of the Normal University of Beijing, and member of the International Academy for the Philosophy of Science.
