Het leukste populair wetenschappelijke boeken dat ik ken. Ik las de vertaling een jaar of tien geleden maar krijg weer zin om het te herlezen. Dat komt vooral door het intro:
'Een tijdje terug las ik in het tijdschrift Première een interview met de actrice Cameron Diaz, waarbij de interviewer aan het eind vroeg of er nog iets was dat zij graag zou willen weten. 'Ja', zei Diaz. 'Wat betekent eigenlijk E = mc2?'

I'm not too clued up on WWII but this book touches on how close it came to a different result.

I like the way the book was written as a biography of the equation rather than Einstein. But I would have preferred the notes at the end of the book to have been footnotes, couldn't get through them all.

It looks like I cannot get enough of Historical Science books. This is yet another book that surprised me. In this book, the Author presents History and the impact of Einstein's famous equation. He initially tries to give a decent historical account of how the equation came about.

The book has its downsides. I really felt the equation could have been explained in much more exciting way than the Author did. But, I did like the fact that the Author focused in great detail about making of the Atomic Bomb (The Manhattan Project) and its destructive force that led to the surrender of Japan. Even though I was aware of most of the things described in this book from some of the other books I have read before, I still enjoyed going over them again thoroughly. Definitely a good read.

I just sat at Dean & Deluca reading this through. It was a book I had stolen from a guest (not very nice, I know, but I had to read it once I saw the title. I'm working on a new art piece based partly on physics.) It is a really interesting book on the history of the science behind the equation and then how it has been used since. It's partly a little lesson in physics for us non-scientist types. (I do seem to know a lot of physicists so it's useful information for parties.) And a little heartning (for me) to know just how many phyicists aren't that great at math. The big ideas seem to come about by looking at a problem from a different direction than the accepted one (then having that idea stolen by the same people who said your ideas were crazy.)
Speaking of which, it also made me realize how many women of science go unrecognized. Those who made really outstanding discoveries let alone all the turn-of-the-century spinsters in the backrooms of Harvard used as early "computers" They did the tedious job of measuring the distance to the stars but were not allowed to take more advanced math classes or even marry if they wished to keep their jobs. (Poor spinsters, they always seem to get the short end of the stick!)

Good suggested reading list which I will now become obsessed with. Have I found another WWI?

One of my favorite books of all time. I've become more and more interested in learning about physics and how the world works, and this book plays into that perfectly.

Bodanis breaks down what E=mC2 really MEANS perfectly. He has a gift for describing this really complex theories so the average man can understand them. Near the middle of the book, he breaks down the exact chemical reactions that take place during the detonation of a nuclear bomb as well as exactly how the Earth came to be as we know it today. It was really quite extraordinary to read.

I would recommend this to anybody with an interest in Science.

My days in school never travelled at the speed of light. Teachers at my school had an innate capacity to ignore the mathematical and concerning details. Therefore, the translation of E=mc² would be

Education = Magical Childhood Collapse

We all have heard of the phrase "match made in heaven". But we limit its use mainly to couples. That very same phrase is applicable for this book too. Yes... Mr. Bodanis made a match out of 'History' and 'Science'.

History has always been a constant thorn in my life. There isn't any other subject that I have hated more than History (Civics is not too far away in the second spot). But I was relieved from the daily nightmares of History classes once I passed my secondary education. Phewww.... sigh of relief. Right? No... Then came another headache in the form of Physics in my junior college. I could say I have spent a considerable chunk of time on deciding which subject I hated most. Physics or History? I am still searching for an answer.

And then, years later (7 years to be precise), came a normal day in my PG course (a week or so back). My professor (who also happens to be my mentor) walked into the classroom and started talking about his struggles and how he hated thermodynamics and then the topic took a turn on to his PhD thesis. One thing lead to another which lead him to asking all of us if we have read the book E=mc2. Of the 13 students in my class, I can say I would be among the precious few who read books (mostly fiction, but a book is a book). No one raised their hands (not at all a surprise). Then he pointed at a few of us and made us sweat in shame by asking if we have ever gone through his library collection (which, btw, can be accessed by anyone of his students). I am not new to being shamed in class (for the right or the wrong reasons). But this hit me where it was supposed to hit not because he opened my eyes on how precious little I have read. But because there was a person of interest (for me) in the class and being mocked in front of that person was a dent in the mischievous plan that I am weaving. And that's how I took this book from his library at the very next week.

Going by the cover I was taken back to my nightmares during secondary education and junior college. History and Science? That too together? Double nightmare time. But I still wanted to see what was so special about this. I read one page...Hmm...Interesting. Read the second page...Hmm...looks good. Then I kept on reading and turning pages. Before long I read half of the book. I didn't want to finish the book in a day. So I kept it aside and did ration reading (a phrase coined by me which means reading only a particular number of pages per day). I finished it within three days and I was left wondering why the author had to bring the book to an end.

The word 'Biography' is truly made meaningful in this book. This books gives a detailed account on the birth, ancestry and adulthood of the equation. Are you wondering what BS am I talking? Why don't you find it out for yourself?

Another book which blended History with science was 'Cosmos'. But that dealt with astrophysics mainly. And that branch of physics is something that I wish that I majored in. So, even if the book would have been a drab (which is far from the truth) I would still have enjoyed it. That makes this one all the more spectacular. Bringing two different areas, which I hate from head till toe, together.

The only science book that I have read so far which didn't have any pictures and yet made sense to me what the author was saying. The way of writing followed in this book by linking scientists and different timelines together is something of a marvel.

P.S. I have to thank Cameroon Diaz from the bottom of my heart. Once you read the first paragraph from the book, you would understand why.

Approachable, interesting, entertaining, engrossing . . . And this book is about an equation! Absolutely fantastic. Thank you, David Bodanis!

very nice. i might now understand something about e=mc2. at least i'm convinced that the author understands it ;).

if i understand it correctly, i now know why it's so hard to lose weight. you have to burn energy equal to the amount of mass you want to lose x the speed of light squared!

i can't recommend this book though, i will keep looking for another book on this subject at this level, because the author includes x-rated information for absolutely no reason. not graphic, but repulsive and disgusting all the same. not the way i want my kids to get their science education. i will not try any more books by this author. too bad though, all his books are available in the bargain bin! although maybe that is an indication of their value.

Some books can give you a high, one of the most imaginative, happy highs. And it goes to a completely different level when it comes from finally understanding what you believed was not your cup of tea.

Thank you Afshan, for E=mc2 had shattered all my notions of physics and has reintroduced me to the subject that I had given up on long ago.

The book, as expected, is loaded with history, facts, and numbers. But, it also has people, their experiences, their lives and times, their thoughts, their stories..everything from the perspective of E=mc2. The book is a treasure box of anecdotes, pictures, small details, and simple yet effective writing style.

If the same style of breaking complex ideas into simplest forms could be adopted in academics, people like me would have had happier school days with no particular dislike for a subject.

Thanks once again, Afshan! This is one of the best birthday gifts ever.

Bodanis does a fine job of guidance through the thicket, determined not to resort to equations and to find everyday analogies illustrating the substance of the E=mc2 insight--which is apparently that energy equals matter (just as the equation says!). That equivalence was previously unknown to science, although probably every schoolkid today accepts it in the age of atomic power and the image of the Hiroshima bomb. How very small objects of mass can turn into such prodigious energy is revealed in the power of the c2 speed-of-light multiplier: in terms of mph, 450,000,000,000,000,000.

Good book. Some of the insights even stick for the casual reader.

This book is absolutely fantastic. I enjoyed it even more when I realized that there were additional notes at the end of the book - I highly recommend following up on them at the end of each chapter.

Anyway, the book: I loved how Bodanis managed to make all the "science stuff" understandable and interesting without ever feeling like it was "dumbed-down" or patronizing. The best part is the Bodanis is a great storyteller. I felt bogged down a bit with all the names, but it was really interesting to realize how much politics, religion, romance, wars, and family relationships played into some of the most incredible discoveries of the 19th and 20th centuries.

I recommend this book to readers of all ages and backgrounds, and will definitely be reading it again.