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Binding: Hardcover
Dewey Decimal Number: 530
EAN: 9780385520690
Edition: 1
ISBN: 0385520697
Label: Doubleday
Manufacturer: Doubleday
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 329
Publication Date: March 11, 2008
Publisher: Doubleday
Release Date: March 11, 2008
Studio: Doubleday
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Product Description:
A fascinating exploration of the science of the impossible—from death rays and force fields to invisibility cloaks—revealing to what extent such technologies might be achievable decades or millennia into the future.
One hundred years ago, scientists would have said that lasers, televisions, and the atomic bomb were beyond the realm of physical possibility. In Physics of the Impossible, the renowned physicist Michio Kaku explores to what extent the technologies and devices of science fiction that are deemed equally impossible today might well become commonplace in the future.
From teleportation to telekinesis, Kaku uses the world of science fiction to explore the fundamentals—and the limits—of the laws of physics as we know them today. He ranks the impossible technologies by categories—Class I, II, and III, depending on when they might be achieved, within the next century, millennia, or perhaps never. In a compelling and thought-provoking narrative, he explains:
· How the science of optics and electromagnetism may one day enable us to bend light around an object, like a stream flowing around a boulder, making the object invisible to observers “downstream”
· How ramjet rockets, laser sails, antimatter engines, and nanorockets may one day take us to the nearby stars
· How telepathy and psychokinesis, once considered pseudoscience, may one day be possible using advances in MRI, computers, superconductivity, and nanotechnology
· Why a time machine is apparently consistent with the known laws of quantum physics, although it would take an unbelievably advanced civilization to actually build one
Kaku uses his discussion of each technology as a jumping-off point to explain the science behind it. An extraordinary scientific adventure, Physics of the Impossible takes readers on an unforgettable, mesmerizing journey into the world of science that both enlightens and entertains.
Average Rating: 
Rating:  -
It's become a pretty much accepted fact now that a lot of the great future inventions we see on the likes of Star Trek, Star Wars and just about any show involving science fiction are not going to exist within our lifetimes. But the one-word question you must be asking yourself then about things like time travel, teleportation, and deadly laser cannons is when? Thankfully the great scientist and bestselling author, Michio Kaku, has lots of answers for you.
In Physics of the Impossible, Kaku breaks down what the future holds for humanity with its great inventions by what he calls Class Impossibilities, divided into Class I for possible inventions within one or more centuries, Class II to cover the next millennia, and finally Class III which ranges from hundreds of thousands to millions of years. The likes of force fields, telepathy and starships are covered under Class I, faster than light travel and parallel universes in Class II, and perpetual motion machines (which never run out of power and can continue indefinitely) under Class III.
The brilliance with Kaku is that while he is discussing all these interesting subjects, he is also going into depth about physics and mathematics, covering the history of the development of certain subjects, and subliminally educating readers in complex physics. Kaku even provides a clear definition with plenty of similes for relativity, thermodynamics, and quantum theory.
Physics of the Impossible is the perfect book for any type of nerd, as well as any person who wants some answers to why we don't have flying cars and transporters yet. No science background is required, as Kaku breaks everything down to its simplest form. The result is a fascinating book that gives one hope for future inventions, possibly even within our lifetimes.
[...]
Rating: -
Amazing, best book I've read on 'the very near future in technology & medicine' ...save maybe Ray Kurzweil.
Should be high school & college curriculum immediately ... & maybe the USA would begin pulling it's own weight & doing it's part internationally/globally. = )
Pix of Lawrence M. Krauss, Bill Shatner & G. Lucas woulda been cool too ; )
Rating: -
I would put this on the must read list for anyone who's interested in science, technology, and sci fi. It looks at those things we see in movies and on TV and gives an honest, straightforward approach to these questions and does so in plain English. Get it, read it, love it.
Rating: -
Kaku takes you to the edge of the universe in ways that are hard to even think about!
Rating:  -
I read this good book, here in Brazil.
This book taks about things such as teletransport, wormholes, starships, telepathy, etc.
The main good thing of this book is to show front edge physics, for the general public. Almost all teenagers can understand this book. It is a book for general public, not for physics. As a Brazilian, I must tell you that the author only remembers a Brazilian scientist, just one time, on the notes (page 310). And this only Brazilian remembered is (in my opinion) the biggest Brazilian scientist alive: Miguel Nicolelis.
Another great quality of the author is his open mind.
The main problem of this book is to forget things that are near, such as nuclear fusion reactors. Yes, he talks something about this in two pages, but the information isn't enough. About quantum computers, there's just some pages. About nuclear trash destination, electric vehicles and space elevator, there's nothing in this book.
As a suggestion to the author,I must suggest that this book must be bigger, with chapters about nuclear fusion reactors, nuclear trash destination and new kinds of space lauching.
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