Bodanis has taken a creative and unique approach. He takes the equation E=MC^2 and looks at it from a historical approach, or as he says, A biography of the equation itself. He lives up to this goal. He discusses the history of "e"-- how humans have viewed the concept of energy over time. He does the same for "m", and with some effort "=" and "squared" as well. He then launches into Einstein's insights, the implications of the equation, how it led to nuclear weapons, and then later, into insights into astrophysics.

It is a wonderful quick read that has as much to do with personalities, history, and culture as it does with physics... and therein lies much of its charm. There are many tiny gems tossed in. When astrophysicist Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar is taking a boat across the Arabian Sea a missionary repeatedly tries to convert him, telling him that the "Gods of India" are demons (or some such). When someone remarked on how kind Subrahmanyan was when he did not respond in anger, the young scientist replied that the missionary was trying to be helpful and nice, so why should he be rude.

Such little touches add much delightful texture to the tale.

On the downside, this is a slim volume that covers many human biographies and much physics. The brevity leads, unavoidably, to oversimplification. His portrayal of Oppenheimer leaves out how incredibly unfair McCarthy's accusations of "communism" were as well as how incredibly sesnitive Oppenheimer was as a person (see the PBS series wherein "Oppenheimer" describes his life to an audience and then takes questions from a live audience (actor staying in character) after the monologue). Worse is his portrayal of physics. His descriptions of what happens when an object approaches the speed of light, science's depiction of the "end of the universe" (which is still much debated), and blackholes are three topics wherein Bodanis misleads or is partly inaccurate.

All of that said, this book is a most entertaining read, and if a specific area grabs your imagination (and some will), this book makes it easy to dig deeper.

Steven Mlodinow

The point is that ALL energy has a mass equivalence, not just nuclear/subatomic energy. Einstein knew this, although he had trouble proving it (see Einstein's Miraculous Year). By repeatedly and incorrectly stating that only nuclear/subatomic energy has a mass equivalence, Bodanis misses the great universality and majesty of Einstein's equation. He should have shown his book to a physicist before sending it to the publisher. As for me, I'll stick to reading science books written by scientists.

Amazing story of the discovery and then application of the most powerful equation the world has known. Beautifully written by David Bodanis the book provides very good scientific understanding to the educated layman but also presents in a way that makes it difficult to put down. The chapter on the microsecond by microsecond events when the first atomic bomb were dropped are truly frightening. The chapter on Lise Meitner and her nephew on holiday in Sweeden discovering nuclear fission was a true detective story. The final chapter (Where are they now) gave some happy and sad stories to the many characters of the book. Some who did so much but may not have received credit due to their unconventional education (Faraday), gender (Payne, Meitner) or skin color (Chandrasekhar) begin to get their deserved credit. Finally, the man at the center of it all who unwillingly became a popular icon spent much of his later years trying to live up to his earlier scientific fame from the special and general theories of relativity. The book has so much more in it but I believe I will need to read it again as it contains so much!

Slim volume outlining at a popular level what E=MC2 means, how it came to be, and how its been applied in practical and theoretical physics.

Mildly fun, mildly informative. I now understand that energy equals mass, and just how simple and powerful the formula is.

I would say that this is a history book about science and scientists - not a science book. It is history "lite." The author found a cleaver and creative way to talk about science and scientists - to expose the novice reader of science to many people and historical situations that he may not have been aware of. I had previously read about most everyone who was mentioned in the book. As other reviewers have pointed out the author often oversimplifies an issue and many of his statements could be debated - and are debated. But for a lite read for a non-scientist this book is a reasonable first exposure. If you want to become more of an expert one would have to go a lot deeper. Even the history involved gets more complicated than this brief outline. But, it was fun.

If you are looking for the real biography of E=mc2, this isn't it. If you are looking for the usual glorification of Einstein and cohorts, this will do. In tune with the second objective rather than the first, there is usual absence of the long history of the equation, which stems from Newton's implication that matter and the motion of matter somehow were related. Hegel's dictum on inseparability ("Just as there is no motion without matter, so there is no matter without motion") is nowhere to be found. And like Einstein's 1905 paper, there is little or no mention of those, such as Preston, Poincaré, and De Pretto, who were important in the development of the equation. Like Einstein, Bodanis completely omits Hasenöhrl's work, which was published in the same journal a year earlier, with a very similar equation (m = (8/3)E/c2) and a very similar title ("On the radiation of the bodies in motion" vs. Einstein's "On the electrodynamics of the bodies in motion"). Like most modern physicists and cosmologists, Bodanis perpetuates the conception that matter can, with a wave of the magic wand, turn into "pure energy." One never finds out exactly what that "pure energy" is supposed to be. The fact is, that the equation merely describes the conversion of one type of the motion of matter into another type of the motion of matter. This can be done with the use of classical mechanics simply by assuming that the supposed "empty space" of Einstein contains matter capable of receiving motion released from the atom during fission or fusion. Einstein's premature rejection of the ether therefore gave scientific credence to the idea of "matterless motion," an oxymoron near and dear to the hearts and "souls" of the religiously trained and mystically inclined populace. With that background, Einstein could speculate that space was nevertheless "curved" even though it supposedly contained nothing at all. The speculation has continued to be evermore rampant and ridiculous, with the whole universe supposedly exploding out of nothing, 13 dimensional "strings," and the equally oxymoronic parallel and multi-universes. On the plus side, Bodanis has some interesting gossip about the physics establishment before and after 1905. He tries better than most to give credit for the women, such as du Chatelet, who made significant, mostly unheralded contributions mostly to the scientific end of things. I didn't mind the advertised dumbed-down aspect of the book so much as the fact that we never really found out what it was that matter was turning into. Bodanis fell for the indeterministic "pure energy" propaganda hook line and sinker. Penance for writing this book should include repeating Hegel's most important assumption out loud 100 times: "Just as there is no motion without matter, so there is no matter without motion," "Just as there is no motion without matter, so there is no matter without motion"... To see what happens when that assumption is used consistently, see The Scientific Worldview: Beyond Newton and Einstein

This is a very disappointing book because the author fails to do what he says he is going to do in chapter 1. He says that he is writing the book so people like Cameron Diaz (!) will be able to understand the equation. But even the delightful Cameron would have no real understanding of the science involved after reading this book - not even in a popular science kind of way.
It's actually just a story of some of the scientists who helped us to understand the parts of Einstein's famous equation, but even this story is incomplete because he virtually ignores many of the major players. Even Galileo gets only a few words!
Also, the author is not helped by his poor use of analogy. For instance, he says that as an object increases in speed its mass "swells" up. Anyone with no prior understanding of relativity would be totally confused by this comparison.
If you want to understand the theory you would do better reading another book. It's not as though popular science books on the topic are rare.

Wonderful book. A teacher of mine showed the movie in class, and I was spellbound, so I proceeded to buy the book; I was not disappointed. This book is quite captivating, and I found it difficult to put down. It splits the equation up into five different sections: E for energy, = for equals, m for motion, c for celeritas or the speed of light, and 2 for squared. Keep in mind this book is not for those wishing to learn the exact mathematical development of this formula; it is more of a history of the people and events that led to Einstein's brilliant revelation and final development of the theory. I would recommend it to anyone.

Bought as a gift for my husband. He loved it, so I read it. It's incredibly interesting and thought provoking.

I wasn't sure what to think when I picked this book up, but David Bodanis takes us on a very interesting journey to get to Einstein's famous equation, giving us a history of the various bits that go into it and showing how those bits were welded together by Einstein to unlock the secret of matter and energy. And it doesn't stop there, because like any biography, it follows the equation from its inception to the various paths it has taken throughout its life, including its use in the atomic bomb, as an answer to how the sun shines, and as a way at looking at the structure of the universe. Best of all, it is not bogged down in the nitty-gritty of science -- no math degree is required to follow the story. Very entertaining and thought-provoking

This book starts out fairly well, with a chapter apiece for every part of the equation--energy, mass, the speed of light, even the symbols for equals and squared--but quickly devolves into a generally poorly researched, incomplete, fluffy, dumbed down work.
It's mostly enjoyable, but it never explains how exactly Einstein came up with his theory--instead referring the reader to the author's website if he or she would like to know more! It never really explains how the equation became so famous (as it seems a real biography of the equation would), and it left me feeling that I'd gotten a faint grasp of the equation despite this book's clunky attempts at explaining it to me, not at all because of it.
This could have been way more interesting in the hands of a better writer, but as it is the book is informative...but condescending and hollow. I started reading it out loud to my wife, a microbiology major, and she lost interest and told me to finish it by myself. The writing is not exciting, and the most interesting science aspects of the book have been dealt with better elswewhere.
Plus, everything from the layout of the text to the padded way the author cites quotes suggests he was desperate to fill a word count, more interested in that than it doing this story justice.
The book is okay, but I don't recommend it.

This is not a book for people who are looking to learn science. It is a book for people who want to learn about scientists. Bodanis includes lots of fascinating biographical snippets, some about people, such as Emilie du Châtelet, who are entirely overlooked in most textbook histories. His book is a great introduction for those who want to fill in some of the gaps in their knowledge about the people who created modern civilization.

A well written story about this famous equation, its history, and perhaps it's future. I STILL don't fully understand it all, but hey, the author tried.

David Bodanis as a way of writing that one can enjoy. I love all his work and this book was no disappointment. A masterful mix of history and physics that makes science come alive. I can recommend all Bodanis's books.

This was a splendid documenation of the actions and thoughts of the individuals involved in the revelations of the most important discoveries in physics ever made. It was told in an exceptionally clear manner by the author. It was very obvious that his research was thorough. He also documented all his discoveries so that the reader could easily do more research.
Personally, I had a hard time putting it down even though I have read other books on the subject. It is the best technical writing I can remember.

Really havent read it yet, I just bought it for a class, but it looks boring.

Light and witty, this book was very interesting and fun to read.

Light and witty, this book was very interesting and fun to read.

This book caught my eye with the opening paragraphs where the author talked about reading an interview with Cameron Diaz and she said that one thing she'd really like to understand is the equation e-mc2. From that the author became inspired to write this book. I love the approach. Each chapter is devoted to part of the equation and it explains the people behind it. For example, "e" for energy. Who were the people that made some of the early discoveries and connections in the field of energy... the book takes a biographical approach and includes a lot of women who were part of the science discoveries over the years, but didn't get recognition because they are women. I am still reading it, but fascinated by the book and I know it will be one I keep going back to in my quest to truly understand what e=mc2 means. It is a relatively "easy" read because the author approaches the science through the subject of the people and their interesting lives and stories. a great read even for people who are not big science nuts (which i am not)

This book caught my eye with the opening paragraphs where the author talked about reading an interview with Cameron Diaz and she said that one thing she'd really like to understand is the equation e-mc2. From that the author became inspired to write this book. I love the approach. Each chapter is devoted to part of the equation and it explains the people behind it. For example, "e" for energy. Who were the people that made some of the early discoveries and connections in the field of energy... the book takes a biographical approach and includes a lot of women who were part of the science discoveries over the years, but didn't get recognition because they are women. I am still reading it, but fascinated by the book and I know it will be one I keep going back to in my quest to truly understand what e=mc2 means. It is a relatively "easy" read because the author approaches the science through the subject of the people and their interesting lives and stories. a great read even for people who are not big science nuts (which i am not)

This is the worst popular science book I've read. I will defer to the above reviews, by those trained in science, for specific examples of misinformation in this book, but despite that I am only trained as a diesel mechanic, I began finding statements which made me utter, "Say, whaa'?" and "I don't think so," throughout the book. By the time I reached the part where objects have "swelled" and "puffed out" as they near the speed of light, I knew I was reading buncombe, as I had been taught in high school that they instead become shorter.

The section which concerns the development of the atomic bomb is likewise botched. That it covers this topic and completely ignores Leo Szilard, the man who not only conceived of the atomic bomb but held patents on both the bomb and the nuclear reactor, shows just how worthless this book is. It is ironic that credit for America's starting work on a nuclear program is given to Einstein here, because, contrary to the book, Einstein did not write the letters that were delivered to Roosevelt. He only signed letters that Szilard had written and Szilard handed them to Alexander Sachs to be delivered to Roosevelt. Indeed, Einstein had no inkling that an atomic bomb was possible. Once Szilard explained the concept of a fission bomb to him, Einstein admitted, "Huh! That never occurred to me."

The book's account of German's progress toward a bomb is likewise distorted. On 6 August, 1945, the team of German atomic scientists, who where interned in England, were placed in a room with hidden microphones and given the news that the USA had destroyed Hiroshima with an atomic bomb. At first they were unanimous in their disbelief, but after hearing further radio reports of it, they assumed that the USA had somehow dropped an entire nuclear reactor on the city.

This, and a far more accurate account of the German nuclear program can be found in the book "Alsos" by Samuel Goudsmit (pronounced "Howd-shmid"; a fine book profiling the people who worked on the Manhattan Project is "The Uranium People" by Leona Libby; and the best overall account of the development of nuclear weapons is the magnificent "Day One" by Peter Wyden.

"E=mc2" is not only infested with misinformation, but it is hideously written. Tortured sentences, errant punctuation, dangling modifiers, and one handsome redundancy. Near the beginning of the book, Bodanis, in describing the development of the period (.) describes it as "a round circle." A round circle! You know, as opposed to some other type of circle, such as a triangular circle or a square one?

If, as he claims, David Bodanis really taught at Oxford, then all I can say is, poor ol' Oxford ain't what it usta be.

I have to agree with the aerospace engineer/math & science teacher's review and disagree with Joe Swiss who commented that the teacher "sacrificed accuracy to make an overblown criticism." Such criticsm was not overblown but dead-on. This book has the worst scientific explanations I've ever come across (I'm a history graduate student with a focus on science and technology so I have a good deal of experience in this area). His descriptions are inaccurate and misleading but with enough of a veneer of credible-sounding science to make this book a true danger to the uninformed--readers will accept it without knowing how wrong it is. Furthermore, but perhaps this is just me, his writing was incredibly irritating. The tone he used was amazingly condescending and patronizing, which really annoyed me since it was clear he, himself, had no real clue as to what he was talking about. According to his bio he is an intellectual historian--perhaps he should just stick to his own field rather than venturing into an area he has little understanding of. If someone wants to read a truly excellent scientific history that makes difficult concepts easier to grasp, I would recommend Bill Bryson's _A Short History of Nearly Everything_, a hilarious read full of fun biographies of scientists and well-described and -explained science. Bryson is also not a specialist and therefore has some errors as well, but they are rarely glaring or significant and for those with little scientific background, the basics of many fields of science will be delightfully illuminated.

The book tells a good story but don't look here for
much understanding of the equation or Einstein's
other ideas. The reader will come away with some idea
what the equation says, but this is pretty
straightforward.
What is hard to understand is where it comes from
and why it is true, and Bodanis ventures only
some pretty murky explanations here.

I'm no Einstein, but I do know a good book when I read one, and this one qualifies. Bodanis uses the famous equation to share biographical sketches of fascinating scientists working toward the discovery and application of the 20th century's great scientific breakthrough. With any popular science writing success can be measured by how well the author can take the obscure and esoteric come alive and show science to be what it ultimately is, a compelling human story. Without question the author succeeds.

The book has about 94,000 words, to give an idea of size. I wondered this for it seems a bit lite, which is not a criticism as it makes the book easy to read (Dickens often comes in at around 350,000, for comparison). I appreciated the many biographical ditties, Laviousier, du Chatelet, Chadwick, Fermi, the Norwegian Knut Haukelid, and others.

As for its explanations of the science, I find it competent and easy to understand. I think the unfavorable opinion of the earlier reviewer who is a math and science teacher with an astro engineering degree is too harsh, for that reviewer sacrificed accuracy to make an overblown criticism. What do I know, I majored in accounting. But I appreciate well-done popularizations of science, and this book qualifies.

I read the book twice within 6 months. For I often forget stuff. Enjoyed it both times. Hope to be a more interesting dinner guest as a result (Simon Singh's "Big Bang" is another book that does this).

Sometimes Bodanis' politics shows through, an objection when it's not a book about politics: is there an unjustified overemphasis on the contributions of women (Du Chatelet, Meitner, Payne)? Too many hedging statements about whether the Bomb should have been dropped?

An editor should have obliterated all the uses of "for" as a conjunction. I circled every irritating one of them, an average of nearly one per page. Where did the author pick up this quirky affectation? For I thought he was born in the US?

The book should get 3.5 stars but you can't do half-star ratings it seems.

This is a wonderfull science history book, with the famous equation being the common denominator of the people and topics covered. This book will educate you on mass, energy, and the speed of light individually, and then teach you how they all relate within the equation. Best of all, you will learn the personal stories of all the characters who were involved along the way. You don't need to be physics major to read this book. If you have a passing interest in the topics, you will completely enjoy the skilled writings of this author.

I don't know how David Bodanis has garnered any praise with his book as it is not only full of poor explanations, but also completely incorrect ones. Describing electricity as "crackling", mass as "squeezing" across an equals sign to be magnified into energy, and the product of fusion as "ash" is simply appalling. His explanation as to why energy is proportional to velocity squared is merely an explanation of the concept of mathematically squaring a number, and his explanation of time dilation and length contraction describes the effects in slow motion without ever addressing why it happens. Bodanis uses sources such as Goudsmit (a widely dismissed text) to depict Heisenberg as an ardent Nazi, and he completely skips Rutherford's experiment only to provide a ridiculously inaccurate description of his conclusions about atomic structure and the nucleus of an atom. I am a physics and math teacher and have a degree in Aerospace engineering and I can confidently say that David Bodanis does not understand enough about his topic to presume to write with any authority and I discourage anyone from buying it as it is misleading and a waste of money.

While working as a patents clerk in the Swiss capital Berne, Einstein submitted a three-page supplement to his special theory of relativity, published earlier that year. In those pages he derived the most famous equation of all time; e=mc², energy is equal to mass multiplied by the speed of light squared. The equation showed that mass and energy were related and that one could, in theory, be transformed into the other. But because the speed of light squared is such a huge number, it meant that even a small amount of mass could potentially be converted into a huge amount of energy. Ever since the discovery of radioactivity in the late 19th century, scientists had realized that the atomic nucleus could contain a large amount of energy. Einstein's revolutionary equation showed them, for the first time, just how much there was. However, at the time Einstein doubted whether that energy could ever be released. By 1935 he was convinced it would never be practical. At the Winter Session of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Pittsburgh, he is quoted as telling journalists: 'The likelihood of transforming matter into energy is something akin to shooting birds in the dark in a country where there are only a few birds.' Einstein was so sceptical because attempts to break open the atomic nucleus always required far more energy be put in than was ever released. Nuclear physicists like Ernest Rutherford were exploring the structure of the atom by bombarding atomic nuclei with alpha particles. Even when machines were built to accelerate the alpha particles to ever higher speeds they had only limited success in breaking apart the nucleus. In 1933 Rutherford dismissed talk of atomic power as 'moonshine'. Working at the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute in Berlin, two nuclear chemists, Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassman found that when bombarded with neutrons, uranium split into two nuclei of roughly half the size. Not only that, but further calculations showed that a large amount of energy was also released--enough from a single nucleus to move a grain of sand. The first stage of Szilard's chain reaction had been achieved.

In the summer of 1939, Szilard explained these new developments to Einstein who feared that the Nazis might use this to create a nuclear bomb. Together they drafted a letter, signed by Einstein, to President, Franklin Roosevelt. The letter was delivered a few weeks later and after reading it the President provided funding for research that would pave the way for the Manhattan Project and lead, ultimately to the construction of the first atomic bomb. After signing the letter, Einstein played no further part in the development of the bomb. With the first atomic explosion over Hiroshima, the power of e=mc² had been graphically demonstrated to the world. Just 0.6 grams of mass, converted into energy, had been enough to destroy an entire city. Einstein always saw e=mc² as a purely theoretical insight and refuted any responsibility for the bomb, but he did feel some responsibility for the letter he'd written to Roosevelt. A letter he would come to describe as 'the one mistake' of his life. Einstein saw nuclear weapons and the nuclear arms race as a threat to the future of civilization. In his final years he devoted much of his time and energy to issues dealing with the world's future--advocating pacifism and campaigning for the control of nuclear weapons, not by individual nations, but by a world government. The last document he signed, just a week before he died, was a manifesto drawn up by Bertrand Russell, renouncing war and nuclear weapons. As Russell said: 'Einstein was not only a great scientist he was a great man. He stood for peace in a world drifting towards war.' But while the bomb proved e=mc² to be the ultimate equation of destruction, only after his death has the role of Einstein's equation in the creation of the universe become clear. Just as mass can be turned into energy in a bomb, the pure energy generated in the Big Bang condensed into the matter that makes up our world. Almost a hundred years ago, with just six short pen stokes Einstein unlocked one of the most powerful truths about the universe. A truth that would change our world, both for good and evil.

Consider this book the best kind of remedial education -- enlightening, envigorating and understandable.

For those of us who were either intimidated or turned off by physics in school, this book offers a helpful primer on some of the most important 20th century (and earlier) developments in physics. Are relativity, uncertainty and subatomic particles just a black hole in your universe of knowledge? Don't know why they are important to you? By the end of the book you'll understand the concepts and know why they're significant to regular folks like you and me. A bonus: In traveling through the history of the famous equation, you'll get a rich understanding of the history leading up to Einstein's equation and its subsequent applications and development.

In explaining the equation by parsing each of its elements, Bodanis makes a difficult intellectual exercise enjoyable. This book represents science history at its best. I'm looking forward to Bodanis's next work!

The recent PBS special that featured the book's premise whetted my appetite for the original story that I found totally refreshing in the book. As is typical, a screen adaptation leaves one hungry for more and the book's author goes far beyond my hopes for the whole story.

A delightful read, done in three sittings as I could hardly put the book down. No heavy math, but wonderful recollections of high school physics classes, blended with history that reads like a mystery novel.

I then purchased several more copies to give to scientist friends proficient in fields unrelated to physics that they might be introduced to the shared process of discovery, and the personal foibles of prima donnas plaguing every field of endeavor.

Again, an absolutely delightful read!

I had this book for a while. PBS had a show E=MC2 (based on the book) and I really enjoyed it -- I decided to read the book.

I have a good background in physics and relativity. This book was thoroughly enjoyable, touching more on the people and their relationships than the science (although the science is presented in a way which is relatively easy to understand (IMHO).

Its seems the TV special concentrated on more history before 1905, the book seemed to concentrate on post-1905 (with lots of discussion of WWII and the manhattan project).

Three features of the book I really liked are:
1) a substantial section of notes (not merely footnotes) but more thorough explanations on a lot of the topics
2) A "what happened to..." section which told all major players stories after the period discussed in the book
3) A heavily discussed "further reading" which gives a discussion on all the secondary sources (and plusses and minusses).

Well worth reading if you're interesting in the subject -- also watch the episode on PBS.

Contrary to popular belief, E=mc^2 is not the basis of atomic bombs. Recall that like charges repel. In a uranium nucleus, there's a whole bunch of like-charged protons barely being held together by the strong nuclear force. If a uranium nucleus is struck by a neutron, chances are those spring loaded protons will break their bonds and fly apart with enormous energy, joined by some liberated neutrons. These neutrons may then strike other uranium atoms and trigger a so-called chain reaction in an atomic bomb. This flying apart of nuclear material is the main source of the boom in a-bombs.

Still, as you will learn in this clear, well written, entertaining book, E=mc^2 has very profound consequences. It would be the basis for the perfect energy source: a matter/anti-matter reactor in which a little m (mass) gets turned into a lot E (energy) via mc^2 where c is the speed of light, a relatively large number at 186,282 miles per second.

Alex Alaniz

1. Please see the reviews of my own strong science fiction book: Beyond Future Shock about the near-terms perils and promise of advanced bio/nano technology in a world still roiled with Middle Age religious conflict and ever growing extreme wealth gradients.

2. I have REVIEWED many books from undergraduate to graduate in: PHYSICS, MATH, ECONOMETRICS, and HISTORY among other areas.

A good 30 percent of the standard edition is missing in the ISIS Large Print edition. How disappointing.

The Walker and Company edition (pub 2000) has 337 pages. The text proper is 219 pages. The remaining 118 pages contain the Appendix (pp 221-235), Notes (pp 237-299), a Guide to Further Reading (pp 301-318), Acknowledgments (pp 319-323), and the index.

The large print edition contains only the text and acknowledgments sections. The link for the Table of Contents on the large print Amazom page is incorrect - it shows the ToC from the standard print edition, _not_ the large print edition.
Additionally, over 20 illustrations and drawings are missing in the large print edition.

The Notes and Guide to Further Reading contain much material, nearly 100 pages. If you enjoy reading David Bodanis you'll be missing a third of the book if you get the Large Print Edition.

I hope this is not a trend in large print editions.

The fame of relativity will dwindle but Einstein's equation (E = mc2) will remain for ever because it reflects deep hidden truth. It must be noticed for the historical record that this essential equation was obtained from surprisingly successful model of the structure of universe in Eugene Savov's book Theory of Interaction the Simplest Explanation of Everything. Savov also simply derived the principle of uncertainty in his framework, something that Einstein's relativity cannot do.

Bodanis' book takes a more historical approach to Einstein's famous equation, and tailors his book toward the reader with a humanities background than a science and engineering background.
The pop-culture references and historical asides make the book enjoyable to read, but offer a relatively superficial look at this equation itself. There is little in-depth discussion of Einstein's original paper in which this equation is part of, for instance.
For those interested in the history of science, this book will offer a good read. If you expect to be able to discuss this equation cogently in a physics class after reading this book, look elsewhere.

The author of E=mc2: A Biography of the World's Most Famous Equation, David Bodanis, has a writing style that is both engaging and informative. Not only does Bodanis manage to thoroughly explain the equation E=mc2 in a straightforward matter, but he also explains the history, and the results, of the equation itself. All the terms of the equation, energy, the equal sign, celeritas, and even squared, are described. The development of the equation and its various results are explained as well: the discovery of the atom, the details of the Bomb Race of World War Two, and the theory of black holes and stars. Bodanis felt the need to write this story because, "Everyone knows that E=mc2 is really important, but they usually don't know what it means...There are plenty of books that try to explain it, but who can honestly say they understand them?" This book is worth a read if you're interested in learning what E=mc2 really means, and don't want to become bored. Bodanis has taken a different approach to the equation; he doesn't write about the theory of relativity or Einstein, but writes about the equation itself.

A lot of my favorite books address a subject that I am aware of but unfamiliar with. When one of these books is done well, it ends up being a great reading experience where the pages keep turning and you come to understand an important topic of which you previously had no real comprehension.

E=mc2 is just such a book. Bodanis approaches the topic with the layperson in mind and tells a really interesting story about the history of each character (including the equal sign) in the equation and finishes with a truely gripping, instant by instant description of the first milliseconds of the first atomic bomb detonating over Hiroshima.

You finish the book with new understanding and with a new respect for the power held in this simple equation. Highly recommended for anyone who is interested in understanding the meaning behind the equation they've heard a thousand times.

I'm one of those people who enjoys knowing how things work. I loved physics in college. Although I didn't choose to further my studies in physics formally, I have continued to read texts and treatises on the subject. THIS is one of the best books you can read to start you off.
While it is a bit simple with regards to the actual physics concepts, the history (another subject I enjoy immensely) is extremely interesting, and it puts the subject into perspective. It also offers the opportunity to begin a basic understanding of how Newtonian physics and relativity both play a part in our lives.
This book isn't about formulas or complicated diagrams. It's a lot of fun to read, and if your knowledge of physics is cursory, you'll get a lot out of it.

In this book, the first truly comprehensive history of the world's most famous equation, Davis Bodanis does more than just write a biography--he tells one heck of a story.
This book encompasses all parts of the equation--energy, mass, and so forth--along with a history of the equation itself. He writes in such a way that is is acessible to everyone, even a person, like me, who just happens to be in ninth grade. It is a truly wonderful book largely because of how he writes it. He talks about the race to develop a bomb after the equation was developed, the controversy surrounding those who helped it to develop, and the suspense that is present in every day history. At the same time, he also writes about scientific fact in a clear, engaging style. If you're looking for an interesting book about the equation everyone knows and no one understands, look no further! This is the book for you.

To write such a readible book on such a complicated subject is no mean feat.Bodanis has pulled it off in spades.
One should not shy away from this book because they might think it is too difficult for them to understand.Even though I finished studying engineering 40 years ago;I found it a very easy read,and anyone with a High School background would have no trouble with it.
Bodanis shows how a handful of scientists discovered the source of energy and how mankind could use it;all in a short span of about 25 years.Even with the great advancement we have already seen we are only at the beginning of learning what the universe is all about and what still awaits mankind in the future.
After reading this book,one is left with the thought "You ain't seen nothing yet!"It is also interresting how Bodanis has shown that these geniuses were ordinary people in many ways and how they struggled with the establishment and personal relationships;just as the rest of us do.
If you can think of trying to explain to a person who was seeing his first machine in the 1800's;a spinng wleel for instance,and then imagine his wonderment if told about a spaceship;you get the sense of what lies ahead from our present endeavors in space exploration.It boggles the mind!
Also,about a third of this book is jam-packed with references for future readings.
While very enjoyable on its own,this book is worth keeping as an excellent reference.Check it out;you'll be glad you did.

This book took a very unique perspective explaining the world's most famous equation. He explains every part of the equation (even the history of the = sign). For example, for E (energy) he explains what it is, the history of it's discovery and use, etc. and how it fits into Einstein's equation. He does the same for mass (m) and the speed of light (c) and even explains why c has to be squared. It is not difficult to understand, he thouroughly explains everything and at the same time isn't too lengthy or boring. I borrowed the book from the library initially but loved it so much that I bought a copy to keep for myself. It was absolutely wonderful!

Entertaining science history - but, eh, is it scientifically valid? No mention of the Lorentz Equations (Einstein did not just invent relativity - instead, he made the step of seeing it as real, not en equation). And protons get "larger" when they approach the speed of light? Oh?? Does he not mean SMALLER but HEAVIER? He seems to be confusing mass with size - a pretty fundamental error for a book about science. This rather spoils the book for me - he is really very inaccurate in his explanation of the effects of relativity.

But - the stories are fun and -as fasr as I know the facts -accurate. If he were a bit more scientific he'd get 4 or 5 stars.

Enjoyable book devoted to the world's most famous equation. As simple as it is, few truly understand what Einstein uncovered in 1905 -- that is, that energy and mass are one and the same.

This book does a pretty good job of explaining the mathematics and physics both before, during, and after the period during which Einstein developed his special and general relativity theories. The personal histories of the players involved are just as fascinating as the concepts being explained.

This book is written for the lay person, so those with a hard science background may be frustrated by the "simple" explanations, but I found them very readable. A substantial end notes section (~100 pages) also provides background material, and the author's web site (davidbodanis.com) has even more detail. The extensive and excellent biography at the end of the book make me wish for more time so that I could explore depth each of the areas touched upon in the book!

Worth the read!

The simple equation having only 5 symbols is deep in meaning. It took the genious of Einstein to put the equation together way back in 1905 - - - What E found was: Energy equals mass when you accelerate mass to the speed of light squared. That's 670,000,000 mph times itself.
C stands for 'celeritis' in latin and it means, 'swiftness.' C squared is 448,900,000,000,000,000 mph!
No speedometer exists on Earth that can travel that fast! WOW!
Einstein knew that energy could naturally transform itself into mass under specific and unique condtions.
The equation was published in 1905 and essentially remained dormant and untested until the war.
Then it became a horrifying reality that Einstein himself wished he never uncovered all those years ago.
Other scientists converged their great minds together in a think tank called the Manhatten Projet, and the world changed for the worse --- upon their nuclear discoveries.
Did Fat Boy really need to do what he did?
NEVER! THe controversy broils to this day.
It is so strange to contemplate that in the pool of the most intelligent men on Earth, not a one of them was smart enough to forsee the evil that they created.
Like the saying goes, "You can lead a man to wisdom, but you can't make him think."
None of them thought about what this nuclear power could do when left in terrorist grips.
This book tells the story behind the famous little equation.
Einstein did play a part in developing nuclear arsonel, even though he later denied he encouraged it.
Please see his letter to President FDR on pages 117 - 18.
The reader is left to draw thier own conclusions on that.
Regardless of the controversy, I read this book and must give it my highest recommendations to all who ever wondered what this equation means. It's deep but not complex.
It's complex but not inaccessable by average minds.
What's really chilling is reading what is not said in between the lines of this book.
Could we have avoided the discovery of the Atomic bomb?
Imagine our world without it.....and to think, the Germans weren't all that close to uncovering the secret behind the destruction.
This is a good book about E = mc 2.
Read it and learn that all discoveries have a dark side.

In this slim and easy-to-read volume, David Bodanis gives us a meandering history of relativity. First, he looks at each of the individual pieces of the equation (even the equals sign gets its own chapter). Then, he builds up a discussion of other relevant work that led to Einstein's famous equation. He next discusses its applications. The book closes with an immense amount of back matter, including the footnotes and suggested further reading on the topic.

This book is not for physics students who are already intimately familiar with the requisite mathematics and physics. It is intended for a general audience that probably can't remember calculus (or was never introduced to it in the first place). Bodanis engages in a bit of handwaving to make the more difficult parts easier to accept; in general, he acknowledges this. I can't fault him for this decision, although the mathematician in me occasionally found it a bit frustrating.

Make sure that you read the footnotes! It's not necessary to flip back and forth between the main text and the footnotes, but at least read them when you've reached the end of the chapter. Scan past the ones that are simply listing the source material, and read the ones that are longer. There's a lot of great information to be found in those footnotes that doesn't quite fit into the main text. Some of it tells you a bit about what was going through the author's mind when he wrote his book, other material elaborates on what is in the book.

Also, read through the list of suggested readings. It's like getting book recommendations from a well-read friend. The suggestions are thorough, insightful, and often entertaining.

This is a mildly eccentric book on Relativity. David Bodanis claims at the start that he won't be talking about physics and Einstein --- he's just going to tell you about The Famous Equation. But once he's done with the first chapter, which goes through the basic principles of the equation step-by-step, he gets into physics and Einstein. He loses his focus quickly, but he's always entertaining.

Bodanis loves colorful anecdotes about physicists, the art of discovery, contributions by neglected scientists (primarily women), and the prospect of the Nazis building an atomic bomb. It's this last topic that weakens the book. Frankly, the Nazis never came close to building an atomic bomb. Yes, they would have had a Fat Man or a Little Boy if they built reactors and had heavy water and understood the physics and had a team of scientists working on it and they tested it. But they didn't have any of it. "Might have" doesn't cut it.

The second half of this book is made up of biographies of scientists and extensive footnotes. Bodanis makes good use of the notes, giving you plenty of sources and a lot of additional information. His personal interests are on full display here, as he mentions whatever concept or story that the footnoted information triggers in his mind. It's fun to read, although it does tend to wander.

I recommend this book to anyone who's read a little bit about Relativity. It's a useful refresher, an eccentric view of the topic that will keep your interest. If you've never read about Relativity, try Gribbin and White's biography of Einstein first --- or, better yet, Richard Wolfson's book on Relativity (which is still the best).

It is easy to think of technology in the context of hard science and with the intellect. Bodanis gives lay readers an appropriate level of insight about how math and science evolved through several hundred years to propel our species toward the elegant equation that changed the world. This historical journey enlivens many forgotten but critical thinkers who made it possible for a restive patent clerk to make the essential creative leap into the intellectual unknown. But this book accomplishes something else, even greater. The author's brilliant chapter describing in micro-second details the detonation of the atomic bomb over Hiroshima creates a powerful, sobering perspective of this fearsome technology and dispassionately reminds all of us of the threats looming. The author uses his beloved science to bring into searing perspective the human face of thermonuclear war. The power to manipulate the atom has the capacity for good in medicine and other human advancements, but it is also a power capable of planetary destruction. It is wise for lay readers to understand E=MC2 beyond science. Our survival is at stake.

So, Einstein, you think you know everything, huh? (Then you should sit in on my physics class, because we could use someone who knows what's going on.) But enough joking...Unlike most perceptions of scientific writing, Bodanis tackles a fascinating topic with vigor, interest, and enthusiasm: It shows. This is perhaps the most suitable starting-off point -- or even for a seasoned physics verteran -- to learn about the progression of science, leading up to (and including) the "world's most famous equation."

I read this book before taking any physics courses, and before taking an intermediate chemistry course. In other words, I had literally no science background to speak of, other than a few high school courses and my own interest. I received this book as a gift, and was immediately enthralled. Needless to say, this is one of the few books that has joined the ranks of being re-read a few times.

Bodanis, in this book, follows the progression of what eventually leads Einstein to develop his special theory of relativity, or - as us plebians may know it - E = MC ^ 2. Rather than dwelling on this equation itself, Bodanis instead takes the readers through the history leading up to (and including) this equation. He discusses the scientific work of Lavoisier, Voltaire, and other scientists throughout the scientific englightenment, throwing in clever anectdotes and genuine scientific information. Bodanis includes the relevant information -- relaying to the reader how, exactly, each scientific finding influenced Einstein's later discoveries. However, this is all done without being stodgy or boring -- there is the proper amount of wit and enthusiasm, making this a most enjoyable read.

The other aspect of this book which I enjoyed immensely was the articulation of world events, however superficially. When Einstein had developed his theory of relativity, and was teaching in Germany and Austria, he eventually fled. Bodanis does not ignore the importance of the German scientist exodus during World War II. He ties together loose ends, and makes this book into more than just an equation: He shows how the scientific community was impacted, and the scenario that built up to the development of the theory of relativity.

All said, this is an exciting romp through something which is generally, er...not seen as so exciting. For those interested in scientific history, fact, theory, or even science's impact on the world -- this book is sure to be enjoyed. There is an incredibly broad reader base that will enjoy this book.

Bodanis personalizes the famous equation so that even i could understand its significance. Bodanis tells personal stories of famous characters associated with the equation including WWII secret missions and anti-semitism. Bodanis does a good job making the equation understandable. This book has made me look up at the sun with whole new understanding.

E=MC2 is an excellent book describing Einstein's famous equation, the equation that has changed the whole world. The book begins by describing each letter in the equation starting with E; the E in the equation stands for energy. The M in the equation stands for mass, and the C2 in the equation stands for the speed of light, (which is approximately 670,000,000 mph) and C2 which is 670,000,000 x 670,000,000, which is (approximately 448,900,000,000,000,000 mph).
In 1905, Albert Einstein found out that mass times the speed of light squared equals the amount of energy within an object. In other words mass is energy and energy is mass, just in a different form. This means that if you have a ball of mass, it is really a ball of energy and vice versa. An example of E=MC2 in use can be found in a smoke alarm were there is usually a small piece of americium, a radioactive material that turns it's own mass in to usable energy for the smoke alarm. This lets the smoke alarm operate for weeks without running low on batteries. The equation was also used to make the devastating atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima, and is used in several medical devices today.
After the book describes how the equation works and what it means it goes into greater depth describing how the equation has changed our world. It includes a chapter on Norway and the heavy water plant that almost enabled the Germans to make an atomic bomb in WWII, and includes some extremely interesting facts about black holes and the future of our universe. The book also gives lots of information about pioneering scientists including Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar, who discovered black holes, Michael Faraday who played a big role in discovering the relationship between electricity and magnetism, and of course Albert Einstein who discovered the E=MC2 equation. These are only a few of the scientists covered in the book.
I think this is an incredible book filled with interesting information, well written, easy to read.