Atomic Physics and Human Knowledge (Dover Books on Physics)

The concepts and subject matter in this book are very complex but are explained in a fundamental way that is more understandable than some of his contemporaries and even more modern writers on these subjects. The uncertainty principle is more clearly explained than most physicists can manage and entropy is also explained in a clear manner. The quantum action theorized and attributed to Max Planck is also clearly explained along with its significance in quantum physics. The fact that the book is compiled from lectures is evident when reading it but I think it lends a certain amount of clarity to the subject matter because Bohr was excellent at lectures and therefore the book conveys his grasp of the subject matter and he was speaking on these occasions at organizations which did not consist of physicists so he had to assume the listeners/readers didn't have degrees in physics. The philosophy of science and the methodology of scientific observation is also very interesting to me because as a man of pure science Bohr seemed to have a surprisingly broad base of knowledge extending well beyond physics and he seemed to relish different viewpoints that may be counter intuative to most scientists. His recollections of various discussions he had with Albert Einstein are also a very good part of this book which I found to be interesting and insightful. Several of the lectures covered the same topics and were a little repetitive but with the complex nature of the subject matter it actually reiterated subjects that due to their complexity need to be read more than once to even come close to grasping. Overall a brilliant book.

This book is not appropriate for the casual reader. However, the book is indispensable for anyone seeking an introduction to the epistemological challenges created by quantum mechanics for classical, mechanistic understanding of physics.

I bought this book in order to have a “conversation” with one of my “most adored” physicists of all time: Niels Bohr, and I was not disappointed.

I must re-read this book several times to digest and absorb the scope and content of Bohr's effort.It must have taken years for him to organize his thinking so comprehensively!

Bohr is probably the worst science writer I have ever tried to understand. While I knew the meaning of every word he used, the way he strung the words together was for the benefit of his reputation with other physicists and NOT for the layman. Approach it at your peril. Quantum physics is weird enough without playing games with the language. Oh, for the lucidity of Richard Fyenman.

Not the easiest read but fascinating.

Niels Bohr, as so many of his contemporaries have said, can be abstruse in any language.

Great lectures by a great man. It would be interesting for everyone fond of physics and science in general = )

Delivered on time . No problems.

What heavy going! Bohr must be the worst writer in the history of the written word - I have never seen such convoluted sentences. However, English was not his first language so I suppose we can forgive him. Once you get past that and get to the actual physics, things take on their own level of complexity of course. I am ploughing through and I believe it to be worth the time and effort spent.

This is a rather dated book and physics has moved on in many respects, but it provides a useful history and introduction to quantum physics and how that has the capacity to challenge many assumptions inherent in classical physics. It is clearly written and gives generous praise to other scientists who have contributed to Bohr's thinking. Bohr attempts to show how this 'new' physics might impact on other branches of science.

Several addresses delivered by Bohr are gathered in this book. Also, there is a nice chapter on epistemological discussions with A. Einstein concerning atomic physics. The closing chapter is an article on "Physical science and the problem of life". The discussions are manly philosophical and Bohr presents how the physical progresses of the early 20th century have affected some concepts about man, the world and the relation between them. I would say that some previous basic knowledge of quantum mechanics makes the book (specially the chapter of discussions with Einstein) a bit more profitable. Great book!