Atomic Theory and the Description of Nature
by Niels Bohr · Atomteori og Naturbeskrivelse
Assigned by 1 of the 9 reading lists, catalogue entry only
- Written
- 1929-1934
- Language
- Danish
- Length
- Short · 119 ppunder 120 pages
- Difficulty
- Formidable5 of 5 for a first-year reader
We recommendAtomic Theory and the Description of NatureCambridge University Press, 2011A reissue of the 1934 English text, which is the version the Great Books set reprints.
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Four lectures and essays from the late 1920s, with an introductory survey, in which Bohr sets out what quantum mechanics means for the idea of describing nature at all. Because any measurement disturbs what it measures, the classical concepts of position and momentum, or of particle and wave, cannot be applied at once, and Bohr proposes complementarity: mutually exclusive descriptions that are each necessary and together exhaust what can be said. He extends the idea speculatively to biology and psychology. Programs often pair it with Discussion with Einstein on Epistemological Problems in Atomic Physics, which records his long argument with Einstein.
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The catalogue entry above is complete: the dates, the form, the themes and every program that assigns Atomic Theory and the Description of Nature are verified against each program's published list.
What is missing is the part that takes real work: the summary, the key passages, and a recommended translation. The edition named below is the one most programs assign, so the buy links are useful already.
