Centuries ago, when the ancient philosopher Zeno proposedhis famous paradox involving Achilles and the Tortoise, he struck at the heart of one of science's most enduring and intractable problems: How do we define the infinite? From then on, our greatest natural philosophers, logicians, mathematicians, and scientists, from Aristotle to Stephen Hawking, have been stymied-and driven-by infinity. Acclaimed Science writer Richard Morris guides us on a fascinating, literate and entertaining tour of the efforts made throughout history to make sense of the mind-bending concept of the infinite. In tracing this quest, Morris shows us how each new encounter with infinity drove the advancement of physics and mathematics. Along the way, we encounter such luminaries as Galileo and Newton, Tycho Brahe and Giordano Bruno, and the giants of modern physics: Planck, Einstein, Bohr, Feynmann, Hawking, and numerous others. Beginning with simple logical puzzles and progressing to the latest cosmological theories, Morris shows how these same infinity problems helped spawn such groundbreaking scientific developments as relativity and quantum mechanics. Though in many ways, the infinite is just as baffling today as it was in antiquity, contemporary scientists are probing ever deeper into the nature of our universe and catching fleeting glimpses of the infinite in ways the ancients could never have imagined. Ultimately, we see that hidden within the theoretical possibility of an infinite number of universes may lie the answers to some of humankind's most fundamental questions: Why is there something rather than nothing? Why are we here?

Margaret Cavendish's prolific and wide-ranging contributions to seventeenth-century intellectual culture are impossible to contain within the discrete confines of modern academic disciplines. Paying attention to the innovative uses of genre through which she enhanced and complicated her writings both within literature and beyond, this collection addresses her oeuvre and offers the most comprehensive and multidisciplinary resource on Cavendish's works to date. The astonishing breadth of her varied intellectual achievements is reflected through elegantly arranged sections on History of Science, Philosophy, Literature, Politics and Reception, and New Directions, together with an Afterword by award-winning novelist Siri Hustvedt. The first book to cover nearly all of Cavendish's major works in a single volume, this collection brings together a variety of expert perspectives to illuminate the remarkable ideas and achievements of one of the most fascinating and prolific figures of the early modern period.

Today we are blessed with two extraordinarily successful theories of physics. The first is Albert Einstein's general theory of relativity, which describes the large-scale behaviour of matter in a curved spacetime. This theory is the basis for the standard model of big bang cosmology. The discovery of gravitational waves at the LIGO observatory in the US (and then Virgo, in Italy) is only the most recent of this theory's many triumphs. The second is quantum mechanics. This theory describes the properties and behaviour of matter and radiation at their smallest scales. It is the basis for the standard model of particle physics, which builds up all the visible constituents of the universe out of collections of quarks, electrons and force-carrying particles such as photons. The discovery of the Higgs boson at CERN in Geneva is only the most recent of this theory's many triumphs. But, while they are both highly successful, these two structures leave a lot of important questions unanswered. They are also based on two different interpretations of space and time, and are therefore fundamentally incompatible. We have two descriptions but, as far as we know, we've only ever had one universe. What we need is a quantum theory of gravity. Approaches to formulating such a theory have primarily followed two paths. One leads to String Theory, which has for long been fashionable, and about which much has been written. But String Theory has become mired in problems. In this book, Jim Baggott describes ": an approach which takes relativity as its starting point, and leads to a structure called Loop Quantum Gravity. Baggott tells the story through the careers and pioneering work of two of the theory's most prominent contributors, Lee Smolin and Carlo Rovelli. Combining clear discussions of both quantum theory and general relativity, this book offers one of the first efforts to explain the new quantum theory of space and time.

In The Quantum Universe, Brian Cox and Jeff Forshaw approach the world of quantum mechanics in the same way they did in Why Does E=mc2? and make fundamental scientific principles accessible—and fascinating—to everyone. The subatomic realm has a reputation for weirdness, spawning any number of profound misunderstandings, journeys into Eastern mysticism, and woolly pronouncements on the interconnectedness of all things. Cox and Forshaw’s contention? There is no need for quantum mechanics to be viewed this way. There is a lot of mileage in the “weirdness” of the quantum world, and it often leads to confusion and, frankly, bad science. The Quantum Universe cuts through the Wu Li and asks what observations of the natural world made it necessary, how it was constructed, and why we are confident that, for all its apparent strangeness, it is a good theory. The quantum mechanics of The Quantum Universe provide a concrete model of nature that is comparable in its essence to Newton’s laws of motion, Maxwell’s theory of electricity and magnetism, and Einstein’s theory of relativity.

This book is the second greatly expanded edition of the previous booklet "Quantum Entanglement and the Collective Unconscious". It collects the best contributions published by the author in his blogs, social networks and sites in Italian, translated into English. The reader will be amazed at the originality of the arguments. From the happy marriage between quantum physics and Carl Jung's collective unconscious, a new metaphysics of the universe is born and a place emerges in which matter and spirit collaborate and are guided by cosmic synchronicities to lead man towards incredible evolutionary projects. Carl Jung and Wolfgang Pauli worked respectively in the field of psyche and in that of matter. These two sectors are considered absolutely incompatible with each other. In fact, scientific materialism denies the existence of any psychic component in the known universe. Despite the enormous distance between their disciplines, the two scientists established a collaboration that lasted more than twenty years. During that period they never stopped looking for a "unifying element", capable of reconciling, on a scientific level, the reasons of the psychic dimension with those of the material dimension. Unfortunately, they did not achieve this in their lifetime, but they were prophets of a new scientific interpretation of the universe. In fact, the evolution of knowledge in the field of quantum physics, and above all the experimental confirmations of phenomena such as quantum entanglement, re-evaluate their theories. Today the idea of a universe that is not divided into "material objects" emerges strongly. The universe is not divided but consists of a single reality, made up of spirit and matter. This is the reality that Jung and Pauli called "Unus mundus". Matter and psyche have equal dignity and together contribute to the existence of the universe. The editorial series “Cenacolo Jung Pauli” is a place of knowledge and study. We believe it is the most suitable environment to resume work from the point where Carl Jung and Wolfgang Pauli left off. We can affirm that, today, scientific topicality ennobles their research and projects them towards even more daring interpretations than they themselves had imagined. Carl Gustav Jung (1865-1961) was a Swiss psychologist and psychotherapist, well known for his theories on the collective unconscious and synchronicity. Wolfgang Pauli (1900-1958) is one of the fathers of quantum physics. About Pauli we can say that in the year 1945 he received the Nobel Prize for his studies on a basic principle of quantum mechanics, known as the "Pauli exclusion principle". Finished printing on June 2, 2022 Bruno Del Medico is a blogger, writer, editor, specializing in the dissemination of issues related to social current events and the new frontiers of science. He is the author of many texts related to the recent pandemic and of a specialized series on quantum physics and metaphysics.

A practical, in-depth description of the physics behind electron emission physics and its usage in science and technology Electron emission is both a fundamental phenomenon and an enabling component that lies at the very heart of modern science and technology. Written by a recognized authority in the field, with expertise in both electron emission physics and electron beam physics, An Introduction to Electron Emission provides an in-depth look at the physics behind thermal, field, photo, and secondary electron emission mechanisms, how that physics affects the beams that result through space charge and emittance growth, and explores the physics behind their utilization in an array of applications. The book addresses mathematical and numerical methods underlying electron emission, describing where the equations originated, how they are related, and how they may be correctly used to model actual sources for devices using electron beams. Writing for the beam physics and solid state communities, the author explores applications of electron emission methodology to solid state, statistical, and quantum mechanical ideas and concepts related to simulations of electron beams to condensed matter, solid state and fabrication communities. Provides an extensive description of the physics behind four electron emission mechanisms—field, photo, and secondary, and how that physics relates to factors such as space charge and emittance that affect electron beams. Introduces readers to mathematical and numerical methods, their origins, and how they may be correctly used to model actual sources for devices using electron beams Demonstrates applications of electron methodology as well as quantum mechanical concepts related to simulations of electron beams to solid state design and manufacture Designed to function as both a graduate-level text and a reference for research professionals Introduction to the Physics of Electron Emission is a valuable learning tool for postgraduates studying quantum mechanics, statistical mechanics, solid state physics, electron transport, and beam physics. It is also an indispensable resource for academic researchers and professionals who use electron sources, model electron emission, develop cathode technologies, or utilize electron beams.