THE MAGICK OF PHYSICS
Uncovering the Fantastical Phenomena in Everyday Life
by Felix Flicker
A fresh, above-average entry in the science-is-fun genre.
From the beginning, Flicker, lecturer in physics and astronomy at Cardiff University, equates science with magic. Throughout history, a person able to produce blazing light from a crystal was considered a wizard. Today, a light-emitting diode in a flashlight can do that. Familiarity may spoil matters in a lengthy science course, but Flicker is anything but boring. Throughout the book, Flicker mixes basic science with oddball phenomena. He explains that cosmologists study the universe, while particle physicists study the infinitesimal quantum world. In between lies the middle realm, which many popular writers ignore. This is Flicker’s specialty: condensed matter physics, the study of solids, liquids, gases, and plasma. It’s a fascinating arena. Of course, solids are solids, and liquids flow, but many solids—e.g., lead, cheese—can flow, and scientists still debate whether glass is a liquid or solid. Boats float on a liquid, but they float on air if it’s dense enough. Plasma is matter whose atoms have lost or gained electrons and become charged. “Plasma is the predominant state of condensed matter throughout the universe; stars are great balls of the stuff,” writes the author. Condensed matter physicists love phase transitions: solid to liquid, liquid to gas, gas to plasma. Almost all liquids shrink when they freeze, but water expands; that ice floats is a lifesaver. If oceans froze from the bottom up, Earth would be a permanent ball of ice. It takes a lot of energy to boil water, but “it takes about ten times more energy to turn 100°C liquid water into steam as it does to heat the water from room temperature to 100°C." A vital source of energy, steam still drives 85% of the power generated on Earth. The author consistently provides clear explanations of complex phenomena, including thermodynamics and entanglement. Readers unfamiliar with college physics will share Flicker’s wonder, if not full understanding.
Popular science that is entertaining but not dumbed-down.