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This is the first book-length treatment of the history of attempts to bring quantum mechanics and gravitation together. It goes beyond a mere technical examination of the problems, by also looking at social and cultural factors involved in the changing fortunes of the field.
List of contents
- 1: On Writing a History of Quantum Gravity
- 2: The Problem of Quantum Gravity
- 3: 'Prehistoric' Quantum Gravity
- 4: The Shock of the New
- 5: Just Another Field?
- 6: Forming the Canon
- 7: Quantum Gravity as a Regulator and Resource
- 8: Geon Wheeler
- 9: Institutionalizing Quantum Gravitational Research
- 10: Quantum Gravity on the Rise
About the author
Dean Rickles received his PhD from the University of Leeds in 2004, under the supervision of Steven French, with a thesis on conceptual issues in quantum gravity. He took up a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Calgary in 2005 (split between health sciences and philosophy), on the application of complex systems theory to population health. He joined HPS at the University of Sydney in 2007, receiving a five year ARC Australian Research Fellowship in 2008 and then a four year ARC Future Fellowship in 2014. He is now Professor of History and Philosophy of Modern Physics at the University of Sydney, where he also co-directs the Centre for Time.
Summary
This is the first book-length treatment of the history of attempts to bring quantum mechanics and gravitation together. It goes beyond a mere technical examination of the problems, by also looking at social and cultural factors involved in the changing fortunes of the field.
Additional text
Since the early years of the twentieth century, leading physicists have struggled to find some way to combine quantum theory with general relativity. In this thought-provoking study, Dean Rickles charts the early decades of this quest, unearthing forgotten gems and clarifying competing efforts. A fascinating historical study of a still-unfolding intellectual adventure.
