Timeline (Book Review)
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Time is linear. Of course it is. This is something that every schoolboy and girl knows. Causes precede effects and time is linear. Or is it? Well, if modern physics is to be believed, the answer is a resounding 'No.' This isn't Newton's physics, it's a whole new world where reality truly is stranger than fiction and common sense simply doesn't apply.
It's a world known as quantum mechanics—a world where effects can precede causes and time is but an illusion. And while the principles upon which it is built are revolutionary, it's not as new as you might think. Quantum mechanics was born when Max Planck offered his explanation of blackbody radiation in 1900, and then received early contributions from Albert Einstein, Niels Bohr, and the person who may be its most famous proponent, Erwin Schrödinger. From quarks to cats, leptons to quantum foam, it's a land that even Lewis Carroll never dreamed of. It is, as Edward Witten once noted, "21st century physics that fell accidentally into the 20th century." And everything we take for granted in the modern world, including microwave ovens, TVs, and computers, owes its very existence to it.
Another thing that owes its existence to quantum theory is Michael Crichton's new novel Timeline. The introduction takes you on a quick tour of this branch of science, citing several recent news items that have shaken the foundation of our view of the universe. All of this serves to set up the premise that an ambitious company headed by a megalomaniacal CEO searching for an untapped niche in the market might make use of time travel, as it were, to capture the future... or the past.
But don't worry, Timeline isn't a textbook for the armchair physicist. It's really a 14th-century action thriller that takes you on a roller coaster
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