Spooky Action at a Distance

August 10, 2015
In this accessible and imaginative book, science journalist Musser (The Complete Idiot’s Guide to String Theory) introduces readers to the “mother of all physics riddles”: nonlocality—the weird entanglement between particles in different places, which could help scientists better understand black holes, unified field theories, and other phenomena. Experimental evidence has long suggested that distant particles could indeed be connected, but in the early 20th century, many theoretical physicists thought that accepting nonlocality was like using magic to explain physics. Einstein held that it violates his theory of relativity, calling it “spooky action at a distance.” Nearly a century later, there’s still no good explanation for how nonlocality works. Musser explores nonlocality’s possible role in black holes and wormholes, quantum teleportation, cosmic background radiation left over from the Big Bang, and even the existence of free will. Along the way, he introduces some of the scientists who have worked on nonlocality, including black hole expert Charles Misner, cosmologist Steve Giddings, and physicist John Stewart Bell, whose groundbreaking eponymous theorem makes nonlocality an “unavoidable” aspect of the universe. Clarity and humor illuminate Musser’s writing, and he adroitly captures the excitement and frustration involved in investigating the mysteries of our universe. Illus. Agency: Susan Rabiner Literary Agency.