Our Mathematical Universe
My Quest for the Ultimate Nature of Reality
by Max Tegmark · first published 2014
68% recommend30% neutral2% critical
Why HN recommends it
Readable tour of modern physics and cosmology, from quantum mechanics and inflation to a multiverse classification, building to the claim that the universe is math; suits curious non-physicists.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
"Max Tegmark leads us on an astonishing journey through past, present, and future, and through the physics, astronomy and mathematics that are the foundation of his work, most particularly his hypothesis that our physical reality is a mathematical structure and his theory of the ultimate multiverse. In a dazzling combination of both popular and ground-breaking science, he not only helps us grasp his often mind-boggling theories (his website gives a flavor of how they might boggle the mind), but he also shares with us some of the often surprising triumphs and disappointments that have shaped hi
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…some light coming from them to our little blue planet. Absolutely crazy. How many such techniques we haven't even discovered or technology is not there to observe such things? I really enjoyed reading Our Mathematical Universe by Max Tegmark that explores such things.
on “Earth’s magnetic field is acting up” ↗You might be interested in Our Mathematical Universe by Max Tegmark. He tries to argue that, fundamentally, the universe is "just math." In other words (glossing over enormous complexity here) if the basic axioms of math are true, the universe must exist.…
on “Physicists Debate Hawking’s Idea That the Universe Had No Beginning” ↗I found the book "Our Mathematical Universe" by Max Tegmark, a physicist, a pretty good read. His idea is basically that the universe isn't explained by math, it IS math. To get to what he means by that he provides a good review of theoretical…
on “On Mathematical Beauty in Physics” ↗Read Tegmark's "Our Mathematical Universe". All will be revealed, or not (depending on whether you open the box or not).
on “Why Some Physicists Are Saying Consciousness Is a State of Matter (2014)” ↗…distracted before, and now I am able to focus a ton. 6. Feeling Good. This classic is again a must read. Even if you are not depressed, it will help build your mental immunity against future depression. 7. Our Mathematical Universe by Max Tegmark. A very interesting book that makes the claim that our universe is actually just mathematics. No physical reality exists because physics and mathematics are interchangeable. There were…
on “Ask HN: What was the best book you read in 2016?” ↗…- not seeing the entire picture. MWI accounts for it appearing that way while in actuality the wave function never collapses. Max Tegmark gives a pretty accessible description of this in his book - Our Mathematical Universe, and Eliezer Yudkowsky does a decent job with a general explanation here (though he avoids talking about MWI): http://lesswrong.com/lw/pd/configurations_and_amplitude/ I think the Copenhagen interpretation…
on “Lost Causes of Theoretical Physics (2003)” ↗The article mentions Max Tegmark; if you thought this content was interesting I highly recommend reading Tegmark's book Our Mathematical Universe. A totally mind expanding read.
on “Why Earth's History Appears So Miraculous” ↗…Max Tegmark to have very good explanations regarding origin and nature of the universe, quantum mechanics, and just interesting stories / facts from the life of physicists. [0] http://www.amazon.com/Our-Mathematical-Universe-Ultimate-Rea...
on “At Multiverse Impasse, a New Theory of Scale” ↗- Our Mathematical Universe (http://www.amazon.com/Our-Mathematical-Universe-Ultimate-Rea...) - The Martian (http://www.amazon.com/The-Martian-Novel-Andy-Weir-ebook/dp/B...) - Zero to One (http://www.amazon.com/Zero-One-Notes-Startups-Future/dp/0804...)…
on “Ask HN: What are your recommended books from 2015” ↗Our Mathematical Universe by Max Tegmark is an extremely relevant book. I'm only about half way through it but it's been very engrossing. It's so far been a pretty concise overview of our current understanding of physics and supposedly…
on “Odds are we're living in a simulation, says Elon Musk” ↗Max Tegmark! I love his book "Our Mathematical Universe". This video was a lot of fun to watch--I'll have to watch it a few more times before I understand it though :P
on “Connections between physics and deep learning [video]” ↗Max Tegmark keeps saying interesting things lately. Controversial for sure, but interesting. His book 'Our Mathematical Universe' (related to the article you've linked) is thought-provoking, and I would label it a must read if you're interested in what's going on at the outer edges of fundamental science. The chapters are clearly…
on “Volta: Advanced Data Center GPU” ↗> I wonder sometimes if you could make a religion out of all this https://www.amazon.com/Our-Mathematical-Universe-Ultimate-Re...
on “Entropy Maximization and intelligent behaviour” ↗Our Mathematical Universe - Max Tegmark Being and Nothingness - Sartre Chaos - Gleik Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman! - Feynman
on “Ask HN: What books have made the biggest impact on your mental models?” ↗- The Beginning of Infinity by David Deutsch - Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari - Our Mathematical Universe by Max Tegmark - Statistical Rethinking by Richard McElreath
on “Ask HN: What books have made the biggest impact on your mental models?” ↗