Stories Behind the Atom

By Leila Sattary

Atom by Piers Bizony is the official tie-in with the BBC programme of the same name. It tells the story of the development of the science of the atom, from its conception through the atom bomb to the present day. Told from the point of view of the scientists, it is a story riddled with rivalry, jealousy, missed chances and moments of genius.

The book begins with the bold statement that if the world were to end, the only information we would ensure would be passed on to future generations would be the science of the atom. Bizony creates vivid mental pictures throughout to describe the science. "If all the atoms in your body could be squeezed down to get rid of the empty volume inside them, then you would weigh the same, but be as small as a grain of sand."

Bizony's story begins in a time when even Max Planck’s parents warned him it was a fruitless endeavour to start physics research. But the quantum door had yet to be opened. Nature had a surprise up her sleeve - something jerky and unpredictable and truly ‘weird.’ The quantum nature of science turned everything that we thought we knew about reality upside down.

Atom goes into many fascinating details that the TV series did not have time to cover, although it doesn't linger on the latter parts of the series, such as string theory and modern contemporary physics. Bizony concentrates instead on the stories of the physicists - Pauli the arch-critic, Schrodinger the womaniser, and the three way battle of quantum theories between Schrodinger, Bohr and Heisenberg. Life long bonds, broken friendships and an array of interesting anecdotes punctuate the story, making Atom an enthralling read for both non-specialists and physicists who always wondered about the history of the famous names.

Piers Bizony, (2022), Atom, Icon Books Ltd, ISBN: 1840468009

This book is available from the Null Bookshop. Just click here to buy (or here to pay in dollars).

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