Product Description

This book comprises all of John Bell's published and unpublished papers in the field of quantum mechanics, including two papers that appeared after the first edition was published. It also contains a preface written for the first edition, and an introduction by Alain Aspect that puts into context Bell's great contribution to the quantum philosophy debate. One of the leading expositors and interpreters of modern quantum theory, John Bell played a major role in the development of our current understanding of the profound nature of quantum concepts. First edition Hb (1987): 0-521-33495-0 First edition Pb (1988): 0-521-36869-3

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #327738 in Books
• Published on: 2004-06-21
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 288 pages

Review
"This book is lovely and thoughtful, and it should be read by everyone interested in fundamental questions of nature." American Journal of Physics

Review
"One of the leading expositors and interpreters of modern quantum theory, John Bell is particularly famous for his discovery of the crucial difference between the predictions of conventional quantum mechanics and the implications of local causality. This book includes all of John Bell's published and unpublished papers on the conceptual and philosophical problems of quantum mechanics." Astronomical Society of the Pacific

"...should be read by everyone interested in fundamental questions of nature." -American Journal of Physics

About the Author
Distinguished physicist well known for his work on the conceptual foundations of quantum mechanics, who died in 1990.

Customer Reviews

Clear and Thought-Provoking Gems from QM Master!
I am SO glad to see that this book has been given a second printing!!! Bravo, Cambridge University Press!

This book is not destined to become a classic-- because It IS a classic ALREADY!! It is just one that hasn't been widely recognized yet.

That's only a matter of time.

Nowadays everyone and their uncle seems to be talking about Quantum Communication this and Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen that-- and I guess with good reason, for we are now starting to see practical applications of this most esoteric of physics subfields.

However, it seems that the more non-intuitve and interesting a topic is, the more obfuscation (both intended and accidental) is written about it. (I'm not just talking about laymen and mystics, but physicists too!) Or, said another way, the more people talk, the less they really understand.

Forget all the rest of the junk out there. Cut to chase. Read about the ESSENTIALS of what QUANTUM MECAHNICS really MEANS from one of the Masters of the field in about 15 short, lucid, crystal-clear essays.

There is some math here, but not much. That is the beauty and the danger of Quantum Mechanics-- because calculations are not that difficult in this field, people are lulled into thinking they really understand what it is they are calculating.

Well, most don't.

If you really want to get a grasp as to what it all MEANS-- forgetting the calculations for a moment--- you must read this book.

Feynman said that nobody really understood Quantum Mechanics.

That may be so...

But John Stuart Bell came the closest.

You can't meet him at a conference anymore (he died in 1990,) but you CAN have him tutor you personally in this short, brilliant masterpiece.

The Original Papers; The Real Deal
After reading lots of commentaries on Bell's Theorem, this book
is where you finally get to read the actual paper. Worth it.

Excellent but small caveat....
I agree with the enthusiasm shown by other reviewers (see also the first edition) for this book's treatment of interpretive issues at the foundations of quantum theory. However, chapter 9 unfortunately titled "How to teach Relativity" shows that Bell's expertise in quantum theory did not extend to special relativity, which he seriously misunderstands. Drawing on an old mistaken paper by Dewan & Beran from 1959, he describes a thought experiment of two spaceships joined by a thread and accelerating identically. Like the earlier authors, Bell wrongly believed the thread would break, showing the Lorentz contraction (again wrongly) to be a "real" effect, rather than an apparent one manifested only in another relatively moving inertial frame.
Despite the fact that, as he mentions in the book, all his CERN colleagues contradicted him, he nevertheless included this old "chestnut" with a false interpretation that can only do harm to the general understanding of STR.