I've always been fascinated by modern physics, but too often explanations in physics books either (a) give simplified explanations that don't hold up under closer scrutiny, or (b) use so much specialized vocabulary and mathematics that they might as well be in Greek. The following four books are the ones I've found to be well-written exceptions:
The Einstein Paradox, and other science mysteries solved by Sherlock Holmes, by Colin Bruce, Perseus Books, 1997. Bruce presents 12 new short stories staring Sherlock Holmes as he solves cases that loosely follow the progress of physics through the last century, from a case of a mysterious sniper on a train (explaining Einstein's Relativity) to one of the best descriptions of the EPR paradox I've seen in a case involving gambling fraud.
QED: The Strange Thory of Light and Matter, by Richard Feynman, Princeton University Press, 1985. Feynman was a brilliant teacher as well as physicist, and here he beautifully explains quantum electrodynamics, the theory that won him a Nobel prize. Based on a series of lectures he gave at UCLA that were designed specifically for a nontechnical audience.
Yay on you thinking Schrodinger's Cat was decent, because I think I was probably the one that recommended it to you. I haven't actually read it in twenty years, but it was the book that convinced me that quantum physics was uber-cool, and in combination with Feynman's autobiographical books, convinced me that I wanted to be a particle physicist. But I forgive it for that. It's probably hand-wavey (I read it when I was, what, 12?), but a lot of quantum physics is hard to put into English - the equations make perfect sense, but describing what's happening in "real life" is tricky. And pretty much anything by Feynman is great. But I worship Feynman.
Posted by: Perlick at September 14, 2005 5:26 PM