The Second Kind of ImpossibleThe Second Kind of Impossible
the Extraordinary Quest for a New Form of Matter
Title rated 3.3 out of 5 stars, based on 5 ratings(5 ratings)
Book, 2019
Current format, Book, 2019, , Available .Book, 2019
Current format, Book, 2019, , Available . Offered in 0 more formatsWhen leading Princeton physicist Paul Steinhardt began working in the 1980s, scientists thought they knew all the conceivable forms of matter. The Second Kind of Impossible is the story of Steinhardt's thirty-five-year-long quest to challenge conventional wisdom. It begins with a curious geometric pattern that inspires two theoretical physicists to propose a radically new type of matter--one that raises the possibility of new materials with never before seen properties, but that violates laws set in stone for centuries. Steinhardt dubs this new form of matter "quasicrystal." The rest of the scientific community calls it simply impossible. The Second Kind of Impossible captures Steinhardt's scientific odyssey as it unfolds over decades, first to prove viability, and then to pursue his wildest conjecture--that nature made quasicrystals long before humans discovered them. Along the way, his team encounters clandestine collectors, corrupt scientists, secret diaries, international smugglers, and KGB agents. Their quest culminates in a daring expedition to a distant corner of the Earth, in pursuit of tiny fragments of a meteorite forged at the birth of the solar system. Steinhardt's discoveries chart a new direction in science. They not only change our ideas about patterns and matter, but also reveal new truths about the processes that shaped our solar system. The underlying science is important, simple, and beautiful--and Steinhardt's firsthand account is an engaging scientific thriller.
Title availability
About
Subject and genre
Details
Publication
- New York : Simon & Schuster, 2019., ©2019
Opinion
More from the community
Community lists featuring this title
There are no community lists featuring this title
Community contributions
Community quotations are the opinions of contributing users. These quotations do not represent the opinions of Washington County Cooperative Library Services.
There are no quotations from this title
Community quotations are the opinions of contributing users. These quotations do not represent the opinions of Washington County Cooperative Library Services.
There are no quotations from this title
From the community