In Search of Superstrings (Paperback)

Symmetry, Membranes and the Theory of Everything

John Gribbin

Since Einstein's time, a "theory of everything" – one coherent mathematical model that would encompass all the forces and particles of nature – has become the Holy Grail of physics, and its pursuit has resulted in some of the most extraordinary ideas in the history of science. One of the world's foremost popular science authors, John Gribbin provides a brief, succinct, accessible overview of the hundred-year saga of particle physics, explaining everything from the basics (how subatomic particles work) to the cutting edge research that has produced dazzling new models of the universe, among them the radical theories of "superstrings" – the hypothesis that particles are loops of vibrating "string" – and "supersymmetry."

Dr John Gribbin trained as an astrophysicist at the University of Cambridge before becoming a full-time science writer. He has worked for the science journal Nature, and the magazine New Scientist (for which he is now physics consultant) and has contributed articles on science topics to the Times, the Guardian and the Independent. Gribbin has received awards for his writing in both Britain and the United States and is currently a visiting Fellow in astronomy at the University of Sussex. His books include In Search of Schrodinger's Cat, Stephen Hawking: A Life in Science, and Science: A History.