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Comment by Osmium | Hacker News Reader

> but read some books on history of physics (and math) first.

That's great advice. Do you have any more recommendations?

As a working scientist myself, I find that a historical context really helps. This is especially true when a lot of quantum concepts are taught from a quasi-classical approach first, which arguably makes things harder for everyone in the long run, but feels more natural when you consider the historical thinking that led there (electron spin, I'm looking at you).

Edit: Some recommendations of my own... A math teacher in school very kindly leant me a biography of James Clerk Maxwell (might have been 'The Man Who Changed Everything' but I'm not sure) and Marcus du Sautoy's 'Music of the Primes.' They were both great introductions, and definitely changed my thinking.

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I recommend Connections or The Day the Universe Changed (out of print, I think?), both by James Burke. These aren't comprehensive histories of science, but they show how science, technology, and society are intimately connected. They are incredibly well written with lots of carefully selected images. In addition, there accompanying videos were also made (with very high production value) which are also a great deal of fun to watch.

In addition to Connections and tDtUC, I also recommend this[1] interview, in which Burke discusses current problems related to privacy and technology, the balkanization of traditional social structures, speculation about using technology to replace important decision-making with a continuous Delphi-technique-style referendum, and social responsibility in a post-scarcity future.

https://youarenotsosmart.com/transcripts/transcript-intervie...

For some reason the videos got all taken down from YouTube.

Oh no =(

Looks like they're still available as DVDs though, so at least it's not _gone_. Still sad though =(

Another kind of source of inspiration and a subtle form of knowledge that may be hard to gain from elsewhere is older physics books, for example Richtmyer and Kennard's Introduction to Modern Physics (4th ed., 1947). Often written in an impeccable style, these books contain information that is now considered of historical value only and yet may be invaluable in providing the exactly those - historical - details that are omitted or glossed over in more modern texts.

Another one in this vein is The Variational Principles of Mechanics by Cornelius Lanczos.

"The End of Physics" is a good one. You may also re-think your desire to learn physics. If you get through the book and still want to learn, then you will do it completely without illusions.

https://www.amazon.com/End-Physics-Myth-Unified-Theory/dp/04...

I'm curious whether any physicists here have read this book and found its claims justified. I'm just a layman who enjoys reading about physics from time to time, but it seems to me that there are actually a large number of unsolved problems in physics that are experimentally accessible to us right now, and there's plenty of space for new theories to yield testable predictions. People were making claims similar to the ones in this book 100 years ago; they were unjustified then, and I expect them to turn out to be unjustified now.

I'm curious whether any physicists here have read this book and found its claims justified.

Which claim in particular? I recommend the book, not so much because of its conclusions, but rather because of its excellent history telling.

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