A contrarian scientist wrestles with the big questions that modern physics raises and what
physics says about the human condition Not only can we not currently explain the origin of the
universe it is questionable we will ever be able to explain it. The notion that there are
universes within particles or that particles are conscious is ascientific as is the
hypothesis that our universe is a computer simulation. On the other hand the idea that the
universe itself is conscious is difficult to rule out entirely. According to Sabine
Hossenfelder it is not a coincidence that quantum entanglement and vacuum energy have become
the go-to explanations of alternative healers or that people believe their deceased
grandmother is still alive because of quantum mechanics. Science and religion have the same
roots and they still tackle some of the same questions: Where do we come from? Where do we go
to? How much can we know? The area of science that is closest to answering these questions is
physics. Over the last century physicists have learned a lot about which spiritual ideas are
still compatible with the laws of nature. Not always though have they stayed on the
scientific side of the debate. In this lively thought-provoking book Hossenfelder takes on
the biggest questions in physics: Does the past still exist? Do particles think? Was the
universe made for us? Has physics ruled out free will? Will we ever have a theory of
everything? She lays out how far physicists are on the way to answering these questions where
the current limits are and what questions might well remain unanswerable forever. Her book
offers a no-nonsense yet entertaining take on some of the toughest riddles in existence and
will give the reader a solid grasp on what we know-and what we don't know.
