Michio Kaku

[brentwise]

Was thinking of picking up a few of Kaku's books -- was wondering for anyone who is familiar with his stuff any suggestions on which to start with?

[ajb]

I quite like his book on Quantum Field Theory a Modern introduction. It contains a lot of material and I think would benefit by being used in conjunction with other books, like Ryder.

[DrRocket]

I quite like his book on Quantum Field Theory a Modern introduction. It contains a lot of material and I think would benefit by being used in conjunction with other books, like Ryder.

 

 

I also own that book. There are better books. Zee's Quantum Field Theory in a Nutshell, and the books of Ryder, Zeidler, Peskin & Schroeder, Weinberg, and Glimm & Jaffe leap to mind.

 

It is the only Kaku book that I own. I will never own two.

[MajorTom]

I have read:

Parallel Worlds

Visions

Hyperspace

 

My favorite was Parallel Worlds.

[ajb]

I also own that book. There are better books. Zee's Quantum Field Theory in a Nutshell, and the books of Ryder, Zeidler, Peskin & Schroeder, Weinberg, and Glimm & Jaffe leap to mind.

 

Peskin & Schroeder lots of people recommend. Other books I liked include:

 

P. Ramond: Field Theory : A Modern Primer (Frontiers in Physics Series, Vol 74), Westview Press; Second Edition edition (December 21, 2001).

 

C. Nash: Relativistic Quantum Fields, Dover Publications; Unabridged edition (February 17, 2011). (originally 1978).

 

J. Zinn-Justin: Quantum Field Theory and Critical Phenomena (International Series of Monographs on Physics), Oxford University Press, USA; 4 edition (August 15, 2002). (Warning: 1074 pages!)

 

 

It is the only Kaku book that I own. I will never own two.

 

Kaku's books on string theory are OK: Introduction to Superstrings and M-Theory (Graduate Texts in Contemporary Physics) and Strings, Conformal Fields, and M-Theory (Graduate Texts in Contemporary Physics). I have used them before, but again in conjunction with other books. He likes to cover lots of material, but does not always devote enough to details. His books are great for overviews, but I would recommend their use in conjunction with other books. (But then I always find it useful to have more than one book on a topic)

 

The two volumes by Joseph Polchinski come well recommended. I own the two volumes, but I cannot say that I quite get on with Polchinski's style. Still, I would direct the interested reader in this direction.

[Megidolaon]

So far I only read Physics of The Impossible, but it was very good. I have a lot of other stuff I'm reading now, but after that I'll get some more Kaku.

[Nicholas Kang]

I read Hyperspace before. That book inspired me to be a theoretical physicist. Now, he did publish a new book: The Future of the Mind. He introduced concepts like telepathy, telekinesis and quantum consciousness. He combined both neuroscience and physics together, giving us a brand new experience of looking at the universe.