In Pursuit of the Unknown
A journey through history and science via seventeen equations that changed the world.
Summary of 5 Key Points
Key Points
- Pythagoras’s Theorem and its impact
- Newton’s Law of Gravity and universal motion
- Einstein’s Theory of Relativity
- Maxwell’s Equation and electromagnetic waves
- Schrödinger’s Quantum Mechanics
key point 1 of 5
Pythagoras’s Theorem and its impact
Pythagoras’s Theorem, a fundamental principle in geometry, states that in a right-angled triangle, the square of the length of the hypotenuse (the side opposite the right angle) is equal to the sum of the squares of the lengths of the other two sides. This relation is algebraically represented as (a^2 + b^2 = c^2), where (c) represents the length of the hypotenuse, and (a) and (b) represent the lengths of the triangle’s other two sides. The theorem offers a precise quantitative description of the relation between the sides of right-angled triangles, and it is essential for numerous applications in mathematics, science, engineering, and various fields that require geometric computation…Read&Listen More
key point 2 of 5
Newton’s Law of Gravity and universal motion
Newton’s Law of Gravity, as described in ‘In Pursuit of the Unknown’, states that every particle of matter in the universe attracts every other particle with a force that is directly proportional to the product of their masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between their centers. This law elucidates the fundamental nature of gravity as a force that holds together the cosmos, from the smallest particles to the largest galaxies…Read&Listen More
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Einstein’s Theory of Relativity
Einstein’s Theory of Relativity, as presented in ‘In Pursuit of the Unknown’, breaks down the concepts of space and time, challenging the classical understanding of Newtonian physics. Einstein proposed that space and time are interconnected as a four-dimensional fabric known as spacetime, and that matter causes spacetime to curve, creating what we perceive as gravity. In simpler terms, objects move in the direction that spacetime curves, not because they are being pulled by a force…Read&Listen More
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Maxwell’s Equation and electromagnetic waves
In delving into Maxwell’s Equations, we encounter a set of four elegantly interrelated principles that govern the behavior of electric and magnetic fields. Maxwell’s work, building on the experiments of Faraday and others, demonstrated that electric and magnetic fields are deeply intertwined. His first equation, known as Gauss’s law for electricity, encapsulates the idea that electric charges produce an electric field, and the net flux of this field through any closed surface is proportional to the charge enclosed by the surface…Read&Listen More
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Schrödinger’s Quantum Mechanics
Schrödinger’s Quantum Mechanics invokes a wave-based view of particles, significantly distinct from the standard particle-based view. Instead of viewing particles as independent entities, they are treated as waveforms in a quantum field. This allows for properties such as superposition, where a particle can be in multiple states simultaneously until it is observed, and entanglement, where the state of one particle can instantly affect another, no matter the distance between them…Read&Listen More