The Matter of Everything: How Curiosity, Physics, and Improbable Experiments Changed the World

Category: Book
By (author): Sheehy, Suzie
Subject:  NON-FICTION / General
  SCIENCE / Experiments & Projects
  SCIENCE / History
  SCIENCE / Physics / General
Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
Published: January 2023
Format: Book-hardcover
Pages: 320
Size: 9.25in x 6.25in x 0.81in
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Additional Notes

From The Publisher*A physicist's surprising, fascinating journey through the experimentsthat unlocked the nature of matter and gave riseto the technology that ushered us into the modern world.

Physics has always been engaged in the pursuit of expanding our knowledge of the nature of matter and the world around us. But how can you use experiments to further this quest? How do you measure the mass of a particle a trillion times smaller than a grain of sand? How do you capture the movement of particles that have traveled billions of miles through deep space into our atmosphere? And, finally, why is all this important?

In The Matter of Everything, accelerator physicist Suzie Sheehy introduces us to the people who, through a combination of genius, persistence and luck, staged the experiments that changed the course of history. From the serendipitous discovery of X-rays in a German laboratory, to the scientists trying to prove Einstein wrong (and inadvertently proving him right), to the race to split open the atom, these experiments not only shaped our understanding of the cosmos, but also shaped how we live within it. These breakthroughs have helped us build detectors that map the insides of volcanoes, develop life-saving medical equipment and create electronic devices used in everything from fiber-optic cables to solar panels-among countless other advancements.

Along the way, Sheehy pulls back the curtain to reveal how physics is really done-not only by theorists with blackboards, but by experimentalists with brilliant designs. Celebrating human ingenuity, creativity and above all curiosity, The Matter of Everything is an inspiring story of discovery, and a powerful reminder that progress is a function of our desire to know.
Review Quote*"This is a book about the fundamental problems of physics written from a viewpoint I hadn't come across before: that of the experimenter. Someone first thought of the cloud chamber, or the cyclotron, or the MRI scanner, and that person (or that team) had to build one: you couldn't buy one off the shelf. The actual sequence of experiments, and failures, and more experiments, and success, is a fascinating one, especially for any readers excited, as I am, by the thought of making things. A splendid idea, vividly carried out: I enjoyed this book enormously."
- Philip Pullman
 
"This fascinating and highly readable book captures the radical excitement of experimental science as it's being made. It's an all-action thriller, laced with some of the most profound ideas humans have ever had."
– Brian Eno
 
"Kicking off with the discovery of X-rays towards the end of the nineteenth century to the massive colliders scientists dream of building today, The Matter of Everything is an impassioned, elegant history of particle physics and its applications. Dr. Sheehy adroitly brings together a glittering cast of characters -- from the famous giants of the field to the unjustly overlooked scientists whose shoulders they stood on -- to tell the story of the most fundamental of all sciences."
- Ananyo Bhattacharya, author of The Man From the Future
 
"The Matter of Everything is a magical tour of the great experiments defining the most incredible century in physics, which saw exploring the cutting edge of science move from tabletop curiosities to literally the world's largest machines. Sheehy seamlessly weaves the science and history with why this matters to all of us: as she expertly illustrates, our quest to understand the tiniest of particles has had an enormous impact on technology, health and society, reaching far beyond the lab."
- Andrew Steele, author of Ageless
 
"This is story-telling at its very best and why I fell in love with physics. Sheehy's attention to detail shines through every story and yet there's a lightness of touch in the way she highlights the passion, drive, ingenuity and, ultimately, the sheer triumph of science in unlocking nature's secrets."
- Jim Al-Khalili, author of The World According to Physics
Biographical NoteDR. SUZIE SHEEHY is a physicist, science communicator and academic who divides her time between research groups at the University of Oxford and University of Melbourne. She is currently focused on developing new particle accelerators for applications in medicine. The Matter of Everything is her first book.