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The Elegant Universe: Resources
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General Physics
Books
Barnett, R. Michael, Henry Muehry, and Helen R. Quinn.
The Charm of Strange Quarks.
New York: Springer Verlag, 2000.
Reveals the concepts and discoveries of the Standard Model and
related elements of cosmology. Includes explanatory drawings and
photographs.
Gell-Mann, Murray.
The Quark and the Jaguar.
New York: W.H. Freeman and Company, 1994.
Relates the author's search for the connections between the
universe's fundamental laws and nature, in chapters that include the
laws of physics and fundamental particles and selection pressures in
complex systems.
Kane, Gordon.
The Particle Garden: Our Universe As Understood by Particle
Physicists.
Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley, 1995.
Includes a history of particle physics, the Standard Model, and
unification and explains the relation of particle physics to
cosmology and astrophysics.
Schwarz, Cindy, and Sheldon Glashow.
A Tour of the Subatomic Zoo: A Guide to Particle Physics
Woodbury, NY: AIP, 1997.
Introduces the ideas, terminology, and techniques of high-energy
physics and provides historical views of matter from the atom to the
quark.
Stwertka, Albert.
The World of Atoms and Quarks.
New York: Twenty-First Century Books, 1995.
Traces the history of atomic theory in physics and includes a guide
to elementary particles.
Web Sites
American Physical Society Education and Outreach
www.aps.org/educ/
Offers information on outreach activities including programs for
women and minorities. The education programs section includes a
downloadable guide that profiles current women physicists and
provides tips for girls interested in pursuing a career in physics .
Beyond the 1930s Atom
www.tufts.edu/as/wright_center/products/lessons/pdf/docs/physics.html#atom
Provides seven activities relating to the Standard Model and offers
a particle physics card game.
CERN Particle Acclerator Simulation
www.hep.ucl.ac.uk/masterclass/Acc_sim2/simulator.html
Displays an aerial photo of France and Switzerland overlaid with a
graphic showing where CERN's accelerators reside; a simulation
allows users to inject, speed up, and collide electrons and
positrons.
The NIST Reference on Constants, Units, and Uncertainty
physics.nist.gov/cuu/Constants/index.html
Lists values of universal constants such as the Planck length and
the speed of light in a vacuum; electromagnetic constants such as
elementary charge; and atomic and nuclear constants such as masses
for the electron, proton, neutron, and muon. Also includes a list of
frequently used constants.
Hyperphysics
hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/hph.html#hph
Presents a series of interactive concept maps with links to detailed
explanations relating to core concepts found in electricity and
magnetism, mechanics, relativity, quantum physics, and more.
The Particle Adventure
particleadventure.org/
Provides an interactive tour that explains what the world is made of
and what holds it together, unsolved mysteries of the universe, how
particle accelerators and detectors work, and more. Includes an
online viewable and printable fundamental interactions poster.
QuarkNet for Educators
quarknet.fnal.gov/index_tchr.shtml
Contains classroom activities for analyzing particle physics data,
building accelerator analogs, and constructing cosmic ray detectors.
Review of Particle Physics
pdg.lbl.gov/
Provides information about such topics as physical constants, the
Standard Model, quantum dynamics, particle detectors, currently
known particles, and more.
The Science of Matter, Space, and Time
www.fnal.gov/pub/inquiring/matter/index.html
Includes introductory information about the building blocks of
nature and a timeline of the discoveries that led to the development
of the Standard Model.
String Theory
Books
Greene, Brian.
The Elegant Universe.
New York: Vintage Books, 2000.
Reviews major physics theories in depth, including Einstein's
theories of special and general relativity and quantum mechanics.
Explains in detail the specifics of string theory—from its
multiple extra dimensions to its insights into black holes and
cosmology—and the latest generation of the theory, known as
M-theory. Includes many analogies to help elucidate these complex
topics.
Gribbin, John R.
The Search for Superstrings, Symmetry, and the Theory of
Everything.
Boston: Little, Brown and Co., 1998.
Offers an historical overview of subatomic particle physics, from
the discovery of the electron in 1897 to some of the unification
schemes being proposed today.
Peat, F. David.
Superstrings and the Search for the Theory of Everything.
Chicago: Contemporary Books, Inc., 1988.
Chronicles the search for unification of the four fundamental forces
and details many aspects of strings, including why different
theories call for strings to be open strands or closed loops, how
strings interact, and how strings help explain black holes.
Articles
Arkini-Hamed, Nima, Savas Dimopoulos, and Georgi Dvali. The
Universe's Unseen Dimensions.
Scientific American, August 2000, pages 62-69.
Explains the concept of extra dimensions, where they may exist, and
how they may be substantiated experimentally.
Johnson, George. Almost in Awe, Physicists Ponder 'Ultimate' Theory.
The New York Times, September 22, 1998, page F1.
Traces the evolution of string theory and explains aspects of
M-theory.
Weinberg, Steven. A Unified Physics by 2050?
Scientific American, December 1999, pages 68-75. Online at
www.sciam.com/issue.cfm?issueDate=Dec-99
Summarizes the evolution of current theories of the nature of the
universe and describes the possibility of a unified theory.
Weiss, P. Hunting for Higher Dimensions.
Science News, February 19, 2000, pages 122-124. Online at
www.sciencenews.org/20000219/bob9.asp
Reviews various theories about extra dimensions and examines
experiments designed to look for evidence of these.
Web Sites
The Official String Theory Web Site
www.superstringtheory.com/index.html
Includes basic and advanced descriptions of string theory principles
and profiles physicists studying string theory.
String Theory: An Evaluation
www.math.columbia.edu/~woit/
Takes a critical look at various aspects of string theory.
String Theory and the Unification of Forces
theory.tifr.res.in/~mukhi/Physics/string.html
Provides a basic introduction to string theory and the Standard
Model.
Superstrings
imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/science/mysteries_l2/superstring.html
Describes the basics of string theory and how it helps describe
microscopic black holes; includes pop-up glossary.
Superstrings: Einstein's Dream at the New Millennium
www.nsf.gov/od/lpa/lecture/stringtheory.htm
Offers a streaming audio lecture by Sylvester James Gates Jr.,
director of the Center for String and Particle Theory at the
University of Maryland. The 47-minute talk includes visuals and
running text. (Requires RealPlayer plug-in.)
The Symphony of Everything
www.msnbc.com/news/201650.asp?cp1=1
Presents a simple, illustrated tutorial on string theory basics that
includes information about string types, frequencies, and membranes.
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