The surprising story of eccentric young scientists who stood up to convention—and changed the face of modern physics.
Today, quantum information science is among the most exciting scientific frontiers, attracting billions of dollars in funding and thousands of talented researchers. But as MIT physicist and historian David Kaiser reveals, this cutting-edge field has a surprisingly psychedelic past. How the Hippies Saved Physics introduces us to a band of freewheeling physicists who defied the imperative to “shut up and calculate” and helped to rejuvenate modern physics.
In the 1970s, amid severe cutbacks in physics funding, a small group of underemployed physicists in Berkeley decided to throw off the constraints of academia and explore the wilder side of science. Dubbing themselves the “Fundamental Fysiks Group,” they pursued an unconventional, speculative approach to physics. They studied quantum theory alongside Eastern mysticism and psychic mind-reading, discussing the latest developments while lounging in hot tubs. Unlikely as it may seem, their work on Bell’s theorem and quantum entanglement helped pave the way for today’s breakthroughs in quantum information science.
How the Hippies Saved Physics is published by W. W. Norton.
Preview the book here. Read an excerpt in Scientific American here. Read a brief blog post about the book here.
Listen to radio interviews about the book, courtesy of NPR’s On Point; Illinois Public Radio’s Focus; Wisconsin Public Radio’s Veronica Rueckert Show and To the Best of our Knowledge; Canadian Broadcasting Company Radio’s The Current; WICN; and KNews.
To schedule an interview, please contact Elizabeth Riley at eriley@wwnorton.com or 212-790-9425.
