The Strangest Man

The Hidden Life of Paul Dirac, Mystic of the Atom

By: Graham Farmelo

Narrated by: B. J. Harrison

Length: 19 hrs and 28 mins

Publisher's summary

Paul Dirac was among the great scientific geniuses of the modern age. One of the discoverers of quantum mechanics, the most revolutionary theory of the past century, his contributions had a unique insight, eloquence, clarity, and mathematical power. His prediction of antimatter was one of the greatest triumphs in the history of physics.

One of Einstein's most admired colleagues, Dirac was in 1933 the youngest theoretician ever to win the Nobel Prize in physics. Dirac's personality is legendary. He was an extraordinarily reserved loner, relentlessly literal-minded, and appeared to have no empathy with most people. Yet he was a family man and was intensely loyal to his friends. His tastes in the arts ranged from Beethoven to Cher, from Rembrandt to Mickey Mouse.

Based on previously undiscovered archives, The Strangest Man reveals the many facets of Dirac's brilliantly original mind. A compelling human story, The Strangest Man also depicts a spectacularly exciting era in scientific history.

©2009 Graham Farmello (P)2009 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

• 2009 Costa Book Award (Biography)
• 100 Notable Books of 2009 (New York Times)
• Books of the Year 2009 (The Economist)
• Los Angeles Times Book Prize, Science & Technology, 2010

"Farmelo proves himself a wizard at explaining the arcane aspects of particle physics. His great affection for his odd but brilliant subject shows on every page, giving Dirac the biography any great scientist deserves." ( Publishers Weekly)

"A must-read for anyone interested in the extraordinary power of pure thought. With this revelatory, moving and definitive biography, Graham Farmelo provides the first real glimpse inside the bizarre mind of Paul Dirac." (Roger Highfield, Editor, New Scientist)

Paul Dirac won 1933 Nobel Prize in physics

This is one of the best books in terms of detail and insight into the brilliant character of Paul Dirac 1902-1984. Graham Farmelo, a British Physicist, has obviously done in-depth research, and I understand he had access to many of Dirac’s personal papers. The book won the 2009 Costa book award. The book is less a scientific biography than other books on Dirac, it emphasizes more the development of Dirac’s personality and the story of his relationship with his relations and colleagues. I learned a lot about Dirac, including his work on the atomic bomb during World War II. Dirac is responsible for several of the great breakthrough in 20th century physics and mathematics. He found the fundamental insight into quantum mechanics and remains the basic understanding even today. His textbook on Quantum Mechanics remains a rigorously clear explanation of the fundamental idea of quantum theory. He also developed the Dirac equation which is the basis of particle physics. He is known for developing quantum field theory, quantum electrodynamics and the understanding the role of magnetic monopoles in electromagnetism. Dirac was the youngest theoretician to receive the Nobel Prize in Physics (1933). He also won the Max Planck Medal and the Copley Medal. He was the Lucasian Professor of mathematics at Cambridge University. The chair is now held by Stephen Hawking. Dirac’s work was so advanced we are only just beginning to prove and use his work. B. J. Harrison did an excellent job narrating this long book.

As good as a Dirac biography could be :-)

Well written and particularly well read. Enjoyable and interesting if you like the history of physics. If the history of physics is not already your thing, you may not find this an exciting volume. I really enjoyed it but would not likely listen again.

Mostly good news, a little not

Five stars for the book. Amazing. I'm an artist,not a physicist, but even without fully (or partially) comprehending the science, being exposed to it is a charge. It's that interesting.
Two stars for the narration. Harrison seems unconnected with what he's reading, imparting peculiar inflection and odd emphasis. His voice for Dirac is preposterous. Not going on my "good narrators" list. That said, there are worse, and the content was not ruined, but the whole experience should have been even better.

WOW

Dirac was historically one of the greats in Physics. Made incredible contributions. We will probably be influenced by his work for many centuries along with Newton and Einstein. Great read for those interested in science. Hi

Suprisingly entertaining

Would you consider the audio edition of The Strangest Man to be better than the print version?

When there is a good reader like Harrison and no need for pictures/ graphs audio book is allways better than a book. I enjoy the faster speed it gives me feeling I can have more enjoyment per time

What other book might you compare The Strangest Man to and why?

Any biographys of a physicist, but with Bohr's words: Dirac is the strangest.

What about B. J. Harrison’s performance did you like?

He made Dirac into such a mouse that it was entertaining but I was disappointed when I listened his lecture and realized that he was a fair lecturer

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Mind over matter - story ofa mouse that freed the lion

Any additional comments?

I am sure there are many people who will not find this entertaining, but in some places I could not help laughing.

Great Audiobook

Loved this audiobook. Great listen for those interested Paul Dirac or QM in general.

Insanely good

What a masterful writer Mr. Farmelo is! Enough said.

Listen to it. It is very long but you will laugh, you will get upset, you will not believe how removed from his environment he could become and you will miss him once he is gone. Good-bye Mr. Dirac.

Wonderful

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

This is a comprehensive discussion of the life and works of the great man, Paul Dirac. The author does an excellent job at painting a picture, and I could see, in my mind's eye, every scene.
The narrator is engaging, and I was hooked on every word. I only wish I could find another biography on a physicist of this era, done this well.
Bravo, I only depressed its over.

What did you like best about this story?

I felt like I was there as these events took place. Very engaging.

Any additional comments?

If you're looking to learn field theory, or relativistic quantum mechanics, well then this is not for you. If you want to spend some time learning about one of physics most interesting characters, and empathize with him...then enjoy.

Full of Interesting Facts, Presented Well

Dirac was a very brilliant physicist and a unique individual, and his life’s story is presented in an engaging and entertaining manner. The history and early development of quantum mechanics, and the lives and personalities of Dirac and his cohort who founded it, are described in great detail. Highly recommended to those interested in Dirac, his contributions to physics, and to the formalization of quantum mechanics following Werner Heisenberg’s groundbreaking paper of 1925.

Great book

1st rate book. Historically interesting and significant.
Great narration, production, everything was perfect.
Highly recommended!