You Know How Networks Work, Want To Know How Everything Else Works? Here's Some Books

I know, this is not about networking but I received few great feedbacks to my posts about the matter so I decided to share with you the materials I used to write it. It’s not about networking, but it is about everything.

QUANTA?!

I was writing about quantum cryptography and quantum key distribution process few months ago (which are network related). When I started to write those articles I was not aware that it will take me more that two months to write something close to understandable about quantum world. As it came out, like many times before, I was in unknown unknowns with that part of physics. I needed to start from scratch and learn some basics about quantum physics so I could understand and finally write about the application of quantum theory to computer network encryption process.

I went through few very interesting and not to extensive books and articles which helped me to get the basic info about quantum physics. Quantum physics basically describes how everything in the universe works starting from small to huge things and stuff that can not be described as things like different energy states etc. Things work differently if you zoom inside atoms and the way stuff is working down there will blow your mind.

I am not the right person to give you a lecture on how physics work, I just wanted to share with you some of the best books and articles on the web that I found about the topic.

This here is a short list of sources that can help you understand how the world actually works without blowing your mind to hard.

BOOKS

It’s Not Rocket Science – Ben Miller

Being physicist and comedian at the same time, he gives you some basic quantum physics ideas in plain english. Extremely simple and funny in the same time.

Quantum: A Guide for the Perplexed – Dr. Jim Al-Khalili

Jim made a wonderful job with this book. A number of great images together with clear explanations and examples that are usually really hard to visualise is making this book a must read if you know about Quantum World as little as I do.

QED: The Strange Theory of Light and Matter – Richard P. Feynman

All books from Dick are great and fun to read. When somebody knows the matter well as Dr. Feynman did you can be assured of good explanations, great examples and funny stories all in the same time.

Light: A Very Short Introduction – Walmsley, Ian A.

It’s short and makes a great introduction about the light and the way light is actually happening.

The Hunt for Vulcan: …And How Albert Einstein Destroyed a Planet, Discovered Relativity, and Deciphered the Universe – Thomas Levenson

A inspiring story going from Isaac Newton to Albert Einstein describing how some of the greatest scientist worked and learned.

Quantum Weirdness: Einstein vs. Bohr – Andrea Diem-Lane

If you want to see how big brains were thinking, this short piece is a great material to read. Of course, it will be needed that you go through at least the Guide for Perplexed before going through it.