UNDERSTANDING THE UNIVERSE (REVISED ED)

“Lincoln has an infectious love for physics … (and) demonstrates a humorous writing style that successfully engages the reader.”

“The author is well equipped to write a book on the topic … It is not light reading, but worth the effort … Lincoln is careful to distinguish between what is known versus what is merely dreamed.”

“A veteran of many popular talks on physics, (Lincoln) charmingly relates the tale of humankind's almost insatiable curiosity about the ultimate nature of nature and the quest to determine the basic particles of matter. His style is engaging and obviously directed to informed lay readers, but the more scientifically minded will find it equally appealing … If digested with the notion that this topic is presented in a broad swath, both historically and scientifically, and not meant to be definitive, the work offers readers an appreciation of the investigative procedure, the accumulated body of research, and the people who did the investigating.”

“Don Lincoln, an experimentalist on DZero at Fermilab, motivates his tale of the development of particle physics, from its origins to its current state, almost entirely by experiments, a refreshing alternative to the usual theoretical treatments. Rather than posing thought experiments, Lincoln describes real experiments that have led to deeper questions and the consequent progress of particle physics … With his light and easy-to-read style, Lincoln's humor and personal tales do much to convey the flavor of modern particle physics research — a picture that is not often painted so realistically in other popular physics books. The content is more complicated than in most similar books, but this is a virtue for its intended audience, as it allows for greater depth.”

“Knowledgeably written … ‘Understanding the Universe’ provides the nonspecialist general reader with a fascinating and informative introduction to the complex world of quarks, leptons, and the forces that govern particle physics. Written especially to introduce lay readers to subatomic mysteries, (the book) discusses the Big Bang, known and proven theories, suspected hypotheses that have yet to be firmly established, cutting-edge discussions of modern particle physics experiments, and much more. Black-and-white diagrams help illustrate the amazing ideas presented with a minimum of mathematics and a maximum of awe.”

“Don Lincoln takes us on a rollicking tour of the universe: The reader finds out what we particle physicists understand about it, how we arrived at that understanding and where we think we're going next with our research … Lincoln enlivens the landscape with fresh details, irreverent (yet never unkind) remarks on the cast of characters, and explanations that are homey, humorous and often completely original … In his epilogue Lincoln addresses explicitly the question of why particle physicists ask why … the real reason we do research is simply this: It's tremendously fun to figure the universe out.”

“… Lincoln offers lay readers a complete tour of particle physics …(he) writes very well, using a mixture of humor, history and analogies as well basic scientific explanations … (and) does a particularly good job of covering the full gamut of particle physics.”

“This book is addressed to the curious layman, with only a murky recollection of school physics, who wants to know how far mankind has gone in understanding the world around us … It is an excellent reference for any scientist who is occasionally unsure how best to explain a particular physics concept to a non-specialist audience … his understanding and explanations of complex phenomena are excellent and the book strikes a balance between depth and accessibility.”

“The author faces complex topics in a very simple and clever way without using mathematics but by simple (and suitable) analogies. The reading is intriguing and very flowing and, sometimes, very entertaining. The book is peppered with amusing anecdotes that make reading smoother and funny. This book is a masterpiece of scientific disclosure. I recommend its reading for those people who want to delve into the wonders of modern Physics.”