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Lawrence Krauss

Beyond star trek

In Beyond Star Trek, Laurence Krauss builds upon The physics of star trek to look at the science which lies behind other science fiction. Its a bit more critical than his previous book, starting off by demonstrating the impracticalities of interstellar travel. The trouble is that it all seems a bit negative - science fiction fans will want to know how what they read about might be achieved, not about how it can't be done. Some of what Krauss had to says was more positive, such as his views on extraterrestrial life, but even here I had feeling that he didn't have a convincing argument for his ideas.

In the second half of the book Krauss's main aim seems to be to discount the possibility of the paranormal by looking at the possible physical explanations. Thus he introduces the reader to quite a bit of physics on the way. So was this an improvement? Well my feeling was that he rather lost the plot. Unfortunately what he says isn't always accurate, for instance he claims that Newton and Huygens established that light was a wave. I didn't think that he did a particularly good job at debunking the paranormal either. Hence the book might be ok for a bit of light reading, but it's not one to be taken particularly seriously.

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Paperback 208 pages
ISBN: 0060977574
Salesrank: 150340
Weight:0.37 lbs

Published: 1998 Harper Paperbacks

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Paperback 208 pages
ISBN: 0060977574
Salesrank: 342679
Weight:0.37 lbs

Published: 1998 HarperCollins Publishers

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Paperback 208 pages
ISBN: 0060977574
Salesrank: 1251665
Weight:0.37 lbs

Published: 1998 HarperCollins Canada / Harper Paperba

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Book Description
In the bestselling The Physics of Star Trek, the renowned theoretical physicist Lawrence Krauss took readers on an entertaining and eye-opening tour of the Star Trek universe to see how it stacked up against the real universe. Now, responding to requests for more as well as to a number of recent exciting discoveries in physics and astronomy, Krauss takes a provocative look at how the laws of physics relate to notions from our popular culture -- not only Star Trek, but other films, shows, and popular lore -- from Independence Day to Star Wars to The X-Files. What's the difference between a flying saucer and a flying pretzel? Why didn't the aliens in Independence Day have to bother invading Earth to destroy it? What's new with warp drives? What's the most likely scenario for doomsday? Are ESP and telekinesis impossible? What do clairvoyance and time travel have in common? How might quantum mechanics ultimately affect the fate of life in the universe?

Book Description

In the bestselling The Physics of Star Trek, the renowned theoretical physicist Lawrence Krauss took readers on an entertaining and eye-opening tour of the Star Trek universe to see how it stacked up against the real universe. Now, responding to requests for more as well as to a number of recent exciting discoveries in physics and astronomy, Krauss takes a provocative look at how the laws of physics relate to notions from our popular culture -- not only Star Trek, but other films, shows, and popular lore -- from Independence Day to Star Wars to The X-Files.

What's the difference between a flying saucer and a flying pretzel?
Why didn't the aliens in Independence Day have to bother invading Earth to destroy it?
What's new with warp drives?
What's the most likely scenario for doomsday?
Are ESP and telekinesis impossible?
What do clairvoyance and time travel have in common?
How might quantum mechanics ultimately affect the fate of life in the universe?

excellent critical thinking ****
I don't know what ever compelled me to buy this book, I try to avoid anything Trek-y. However I took away a great exercise in critical thinking. The author effectively deconstructs certain myths (and proves others could be true) using fairly solid energy-physics arguments. The same reasoning could be ported to the alternative energy market and other fields. I recommend this especially to astrophysicists and people who like to analyze technological claims.

excellent critical thinking ****

I don't know what ever compelled me to buy this book, I try to avoid anything Trek-y. However I took away a great exercise in critical thinking. The author effectively deconstructs certain myths (and proves others could be true) using fairly solid energy-physics arguments. The same reasoning could be ported to the alternative energy market and other fields. I recommend this especially to astrophysicists and people who like to analyze technological claims.

Not for Trekkers *
As a good and honest physicist totally rooted in the established Einsteinian relativism, Laurence Krauss ticks off each foolish error made by the science fiction writers of Star Trek, Star Wars, X Files, Independence Day, and others. He gives little hope for a future among the stars. We are imprisoned by our science and all of us Trekkers need to be shaken into reality. Granted Laurence tries to soften the death sentence with a few speculations about worm holes, time travel, and parallel universes, but fundamentally, his point is this: we must face up to doomsday with proper understanding. According to him, we will most likely die here on earth, possibly bequeathing some non-living organic matter into space that might serve as the seeds of another life form. I see him smugly snickering behind his hand as he watches the Star Trek future from his comfy couch of conventional physics, believing in unproven physics such as shrinking meter sticks, time dilation, and infinite mass at the speed of light.

Not for Trekkers *

As a good and honest physicist totally rooted in the established Einsteinian relativism, Laurence Krauss ticks off each foolish error made by the science fiction writers of Star Trek, Star Wars, X Files, Independence Day, and others. He gives little hope for a future among the stars. We are imprisoned by our science and all of us Trekkers need to be shaken into reality. Granted Laurence tries to soften the death sentence with a few speculations about worm holes, time travel, and parallel universes, but fundamentally, his point is this: we must face up to doomsday with proper understanding. According to him, we will most likely die here on earth, possibly bequeathing some non-living organic matter into space that might serve as the seeds of another life form. I see him smugly snickering behind his hand as he watches the Star Trek future from his comfy couch of conventional physics, believing in unproven physics such as shrinking meter sticks, time dilation, and infinite mass at the speed of light.

His convincing arguments against ESP, time travel and aliens visitations are based on reality *****
As a lifelong science fiction fan and one well-schooled in science, I enjoy the stories while acknowledging the holes in the scientific aspects. In this book, Krauss does an excellent job of explaining the scientific realities in the context of some of the wonders we see on the screen. Star Trek, in all of its many manifestations, is the primary focus. He also discusses the "X-files" television show and the movie "Independence Day." One of the interesting points concerns the alien ships in "Independence Day." The mother ship was so massive that its mere presence would have had a significant affect on the rotation of the Earth and its orbit around the sun. This would have caused a dramatic climate change, which all by itself could have defeated the human race. Krauss also explores the potential for ESP and telekinesis based on our current understanding of physics. While he acknowledges that we almost certainly do not know of all the forces operating in the universe, he uses the conservation of energy to predict how powerful the motive force for ESP would have to be. He puts forward convincing arguments that the energy expended in carrying out such actions is large enough that it could not escape detection. This is a strong argument against ESP, because that means the only argument in favor is to claim the existence of a force that cannot be detected by our current instrumentation. That is a very difficult argument to make, but it is an even more difficult one to refute. This is one of those books that I started one afternoon and finished the next day, reading nothing else in between. As Carl Sagan used to say, "Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence." If we assume that the laws of physics are universal and we understand them to a high level of accuracy, then his arguments are overwhelmingly convincing.

His convincing arguments against ESP, time travel and aliens visitations are based on reality *****

As a lifelong science fiction fan and one well-schooled in science, I enjoy the stories while acknowledging the holes in the scientific aspects. In this book, Krauss does an excellent job of explaining the scientific realities in the context of some of the wonders we see on the screen. Star Trek, in all of its many manifestations, is the primary focus. He also discusses the "X-files" television show and the movie "Independence Day."
One of the interesting points concerns the alien ships in "Independence Day." The mother ship was so massive that its mere presence would have had a significant affect on the rotation of the Earth and its orbit around the sun. This would have caused a dramatic climate change, which all by itself could have defeated the human race.
Krauss also explores the potential for ESP and telekinesis based on our current understanding of physics. While he acknowledges that we almost certainly do not know of all the forces operating in the universe, he uses the conservation of energy to predict how powerful the motive force for ESP would have to be. He puts forward convincing arguments that the energy expended in carrying out such actions is large enough that it could not escape detection. This is a strong argument against ESP, because that means the only argument in favor is to claim the existence of a force that cannot be detected by our current instrumentation. That is a very difficult argument to make, but it is an even more difficult one to refute.
This is one of those books that I started one afternoon and finished the next day, reading nothing else in between. As Carl Sagan used to say, "Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence." If we assume that the laws of physics are universal and we understand them to a high level of accuracy, then his arguments are overwhelmingly convincing.

Beyond star trek by Lawrence M. Krauss *****
Very entertaing book. Anyone with a love for science and Star trk will enjoy this book. Highly recommended

Beyond star trek by Lawrence M. Krauss *****

Very entertaing book. Anyone with a love for science and Star trk will enjoy this book. Highly recommended

Not as good as the original ***
This book expands on the theme of the "Physics of Star Trek": namely drawing upon the science of today to ponder the validity and feasibility of the sci-fi science. Like its predecessor though somewhat to a lesser extent, this book suffers from a lack of vision by adhering to today's understanding of science (see my review for that book). The end result is still a readable and nice introduction to important questions in modern physics using science fiction as an example. I found this book somewhat less interesting than its predecessor. For one thing there is some repetition with "The Physics of Star Trek". Further, the most interesting issues have already been addressed in the earlier book, leaving the crumbs to this one. So, if you have read the first book, you might not be as excited by this one. Nevertheless it is still an enjoyable read. A word of caution, despite the "Star Trek" in the title, there is very little Star Trek in this book. Instead, the author expands the comparison to cover other cinematic shows like "X-files" or "Independence Day" (the "Beyond" part of the title). While this is OK and does not diminish the interest of the book, pure Star Trek fans who buy this book expecting to read about Star Trek will be disappointed.

Not as good as the original ***

This book expands on the theme of the "Physics of Star Trek": namely drawing upon the science of today to ponder the validity and feasibility of the sci-fi science. Like its predecessor though somewhat to a lesser extent, this book suffers from a lack of vision by adhering to today's understanding of science (see my review for that book). The end result is still a readable and nice introduction to important questions in modern physics using science fiction as an example.

I found this book somewhat less interesting than its predecessor. For one thing there is some repetition with "The Physics of Star Trek". Further, the most interesting issues have already been addressed in the earlier book, leaving the crumbs to this one. So, if you have read the first book, you might not be as excited by this one. Nevertheless it is still an enjoyable read.

A word of caution, despite the "Star Trek" in the title, there is very little Star Trek in this book. Instead, the author expands the comparison to cover other cinematic shows like "X-files" or "Independence Day" (the "Beyond" part of the title). While this is OK and does not diminish the interest of the book, pure Star Trek fans who buy this book expecting to read about Star Trek will be disappointed.

Beyond Star Trek doesn't go far enough ***
I read Krauss' previous work "The Physics of Star Trek" which was very enlightning and held my interest. It was written from a layman's point of view and stuck to the task he set out to accomplish which was to show how the things we see in Star Trek could or could not happen. But in this work, Krauss goes farther to tackle discussions of the realities of physics when applied to components from other Sci-Fi story lines. In my opinion, this work falls short in its task of disprooving many of these components. His extensive discussions of ESP and of faster than light travel tend to become narrowly focused on assumptions that he disproved at the onset. Many of his discussions never deviate from one possible explanation and he seems to dismiss entirely discussions of possible unknowns that may make other explanations possible. I believe that he's taken on too much at once in this latest work. But on the plus side, his writing is good and his arguments are more or less sound and they progress well. His philosophical thoughts (at albeit rare times throughout the book) on science's bigger questions I found to be refreshing. And staying true to Sci-Fi fans everywhere he seems to operate on the assumption that anything could be possible while sticking to his classical physics training that dictates scientific methodologies and study.

Beyond Star Trek doesn't go far enough ***

I read Krauss' previous work "The Physics of Star Trek" which was very enlightning and held my interest. It was written from a layman's point of view and stuck to the task he set out to accomplish which was to show how the things we see in Star Trek could or could not happen.

But in this work, Krauss goes farther to tackle discussions of the realities of physics when applied to components from other Sci-Fi story lines. In my opinion, this work falls short in its task of disprooving many of these components. His extensive discussions of ESP and of faster than light travel tend to become narrowly focused on assumptions that he disproved at the onset. Many of his discussions never deviate from one possible explanation and he seems to dismiss entirely discussions of possible unknowns that may make other explanations possible. I believe that he's taken on too much at once in this latest work.

But on the plus side, his writing is good and his arguments are more or less sound and they progress well. His philosophical thoughts (at albeit rare times throughout the book) on science's bigger questions I found to be refreshing. And staying true to Sci-Fi fans everywhere he seems to operate on the assumption that anything could be possible while sticking to his classical physics training that dictates scientific methodologies and study.

Thoroughly engrossing and enlightening. *****
Beyond Star Trek provides criticisms and real scientific reviews of current sci-fi movies and TV shows. Krauss explains what is possible and what is not in popular science fiction stories of late. He also delves into the possiblities (or IMpossiblities) ESP, time travel, and other theories. Very entertaining.

Thoroughly engrossing and enlightening. *****

Beyond Star Trek provides criticisms and real scientific reviews of current sci-fi movies and TV shows. Krauss explains what is possible and what is not in popular science fiction stories of late. He also delves into the possiblities (or IMpossiblities) ESP, time travel, and other theories. Very entertaining.

Science Made Fun? Whodda Thunk It ****
As a person who avoided all science in school, I surprised myself by buying this book, and then ENJOYING IT! This book is great at examining science fiction, and showing how some of it may turn into science fact. And it lets you sleep more soundly if you were really concerned about alien invasions. Even sound smart when someone mentions that Schroedenger's Cat puzzle you could never figure out in school. A MUST read.

Science Made Fun? Whodda Thunk It ****

As a person who avoided all science in school, I surprised myself by buying this book, and then ENJOYING IT! This book is great at examining science fiction, and showing how some of it may turn into science fact. And it lets you sleep more soundly if you were really concerned about alien invasions. Even sound smart when someone mentions that Schroedenger's Cat puzzle you could never figure out in school. A MUST read.

A solid follow-up to the very popular "Physics of Star Trek" *****
Written with the layperson in mind, Dr. Krauss's follow-up to his enormously popular "The Physics of Star Trek" helps explain the science in science-fiction. The author uses simple analogies to give perspective to what we see on television and the movies. While this book is an easy read for someone without a PhD in astrophysics, it contains more "hard science" and has a less lighthearted tone than the first book. Nevertheless, I recommend it highly.

A solid follow-up to the very popular "Physics of Star Trek" *****

Written with the layperson in mind, Dr. Krauss's follow-up to his enormously popular "The Physics of Star Trek" helps explain the science in science-fiction. The author uses simple analogies to give perspective to what we see on television and the movies. While this book is an easy read for someone without a PhD in astrophysics, it contains more "hard science" and has a less lighthearted tone than the first book. Nevertheless, I recommend it highly.

Not bad for a sequel, but could have been stronger. ****
This book is not a bad read, but unfortunately it will be compared to Krauss's previous book, The Physics of Star Trek, which was a much stronger book. His sequel leaves something of the impression that he used most of his best material in the earlier volume. This book lacks the number of illustrations from the world of sci-fi and instead has more theoretical and technical exposition, much of which may be over the head of the lay reader. Also, readers (X-Files fans in particular) may be disappointed with the way in which the author seems to dismiss the possibility of such things as ESP and clairvoyance. Krauss goes to great lengths to explain why such phenomena are not probable or plausible, according to the laws of physics. But it is precisely because such things seem to operate outside the realm of physics that they have such interest and appeal. If anything, this book points to the limitations of physics and empirical science as a whole. Some things may simply lie outside the purview of science. Krauss tries to give scientific explanation to things which may more correctly belong to the field of the metaphysical, the supernatural, or the spiritual. In doing so, he demonstrates that science does not hold all the answers.

Not bad for a sequel, but could have been stronger. ****

This book is not a bad read, but unfortunately it will be compared to Krauss's previous book, The Physics of Star Trek, which was a much stronger book. His sequel leaves something of the impression that he used most of his best material in the earlier volume. This book lacks the number of illustrations from the world of sci-fi and instead has more theoretical and technical exposition, much of which may be over the head of the lay reader.

Also, readers (X-Files fans in particular) may be disappointed with the way in which the author seems to dismiss the possibility of such things as ESP and clairvoyance. Krauss goes to great lengths to explain why such phenomena are not probable or plausible, according to the laws of physics. But it is precisely because such things seem to operate outside the realm of physics that they have such interest and appeal.

If anything, this book points to the limitations of physics and empirical science as a whole. Some things may simply lie outside the purview of science. Krauss tries to give scientific explanation to things which may more correctly belong to the field of the metaphysical, the supernatural, or the spiritual. In doing so, he demonstrates that science does not hold all the answers.

BEYOND BEAM ME UP SCOTTY........ ****
Author Laurence Krauss is Chairman of the Department of Physics at Case Western Reserve. He is also the author of several other books including THE PHYSICS OF STAR TREK. This book explores such topics as alien invasions, time travel, quantum reality and more in movies like X-Files, Star Wars, Indepedence Days and in other aspects of popular culture and life today. Divided into 15 chapters at 190 pages (including index) it's a fairly easy read or maybe you'd like to listen on the audio version from Amazon. It would have been great to include a glossary since those of us that don't have a physics graduate degree might enjoy glancing at that prior to reading the text. As science fiction quickly becomes science fact, this book belongs on any techie's shelf.

BEYOND BEAM ME UP SCOTTY........ ****

Author Laurence Krauss is Chairman of the Department of Physics at Case Western Reserve. He is also the author of several other books including THE PHYSICS OF STAR TREK. This book explores such topics as alien invasions, time travel, quantum reality and more in movies like X-Files, Star Wars, Indepedence Days and in other aspects of popular culture and life today. Divided into 15 chapters at 190 pages (including index) it's a fairly easy read or maybe you'd like to listen on the audio version from Amazon.
It would have been great to include a glossary since those of us that don't have a physics graduate degree might enjoy glancing at that prior to reading the text. As science fiction quickly becomes science fact, this book belongs on any techie's shelf.

Nice, but first book was much better ***
I am a big fan of books that use science to critically examine the (im)possibilities of Science Fiction. Lawrence Krauss did an excellent job in his 'Physics of Star Trek' book, but I am much less pleased by this sequel. Because this book is not focussed on one SF series, it lacks the structure of the first book. Krauss seems to pick out at random some elements of science commonly used in science fiction and again at random refers to some movies or books using them. While his analyses are usually sound and well written, they lack the thoroughness of the analyses in the first book. Where in the first book he examined every conceivable scientific road to make an SF phenomenon / machine work before considering it impossible, he now seems to stick to one or two explanations and when these don't work he discards the phenomenon / machine (e.g. faster than light travel or ESP). This leaves the reader with a lot of "Yes, but.." and "What if"'s. In addition, I found the very frequent referrences to other esteemed scientists who are all geniuses and are all performing ground breaking science becoming irritating after a while. A book like this should focus on the science at hand and not the people that perform it. Of course scientists deserve due credit for their achievements, but people shouldn't be presented like they are the best thing that has happened to this world since the invention of toilet paper. Such praise is always subjective and does not belong in a book that attempts to be objective.

Nice, but first book was much better ***

I am a big fan of books that use science to critically examine the (im)possibilities of Science Fiction. Lawrence Krauss did an excellent job in his 'Physics of Star Trek' book, but I am much less pleased by this sequel.

Because this book is not focussed on one SF series, it lacks the structure of the first book. Krauss seems to pick out at random some elements of science commonly used in science fiction and again at random refers to some movies or books using them.

While his analyses are usually sound and well written, they lack the thoroughness of the analyses in the first book. Where in the first book he examined every conceivable scientific road to make an SF phenomenon / machine work before considering it impossible, he now seems to stick to one or two explanations and when these don't work he discards the phenomenon / machine (e.g. faster than light travel or ESP). This leaves the reader with a lot of "Yes, but.." and "What if"'s.

In addition, I found the very frequent referrences to other esteemed scientists who are all geniuses and are all performing ground breaking science becoming irritating after a while. A book like this should focus on the science at hand and not the people that perform it. Of course scientists deserve due credit for their achievements, but people shouldn't be presented like they are the best thing that has happened to this world since the invention of toilet paper. Such praise is always subjective and does not belong in a book that attempts to be objective.

This Is An Outdated Book! **
I don't care how respected this professor Krauss is or how many awards he has won, the physics information he presents in "Beyond Star Trek" is already out of date. In the past year, a mathematician named Oyiba has come up with equations for a Grand Unified Field Theory--with math that has been approved by Harvard and MIT professors--which would make most of the observations about the possibility for warp drive, telekenesis, ESP etc which Krauss makes obsolete. Although Krauss' observations about the ships in "Independence Day" are accurate, as are most of his long explanations about gravity and the electromagnetic field that can incidentally be found in any good high school or college textbook, or his projections for the energy and cost it would take for a ship to go to Mars, his most essential claims are the ones which are already being found obsolete. Basically, Krauss claims that the energy required to travel faster than light, move matter by telekenesis etc. would have to be equivalent to some tens of thousands of suns--which would be true were it not for this new Unified Field Theory which would make such things possible with very little conventional energy at all. He also smugly asks such silly questions as why a UFO would want to make sharp 90 degree right turns (answer: why don't you ask them?). In an era when books like "The Day After Roswell", written by the late (and highly decorated) Pentagon official Col.Philip Corso--with an introduction by Strom Thurmond, no less!--come out stating flat-out that most of our recent technology was indeed back-engineered from UFOs, you gotta wonder that something fishy is going on, and now that scientists and mathematicians like Oyiba are presenting us with information which would confirm our real X-Files, I think that one should read a book like "Beyond Star Trek" with as skeptical an eye as its author. In case you doubt me, I suggest you look up Oyiba's work (which is out there and for which he should be winning a Nobel prize or something).

This Is An Outdated Book! **

I don't care how respected this professor Krauss is or how many awards he has won, the physics information he presents in "Beyond Star Trek" is already out of date. In the past year, a mathematician named Oyiba has come up with equations for a Grand Unified Field Theory--with math that has been approved by Harvard and MIT professors--which would make most of the observations about the possibility for warp drive, telekenesis, ESP etc which Krauss makes obsolete. Although Krauss' observations about the ships in "Independence Day" are accurate, as are most of his long explanations about gravity and the electromagnetic field that can incidentally be found in any good high school or college textbook, or his projections for the energy and cost it would take for a ship to go to Mars, his most essential claims are the ones which are already being found obsolete. Basically, Krauss claims that the energy required to travel faster than light, move matter by telekenesis etc. would have to be equivalent to some tens of thousands of suns--which would be true were it not for this new Unified Field Theory which would make such things possible with *very little* conventional energy at all. He also smugly asks such silly questions as why a UFO would want to make sharp 90 degree right turns (answer: why don't you ask them?). In an era when books like "The Day After Roswell", written by the late (and highly decorated) Pentagon official

Col.Philip Corso--with an introduction by Strom Thurmond, no less!--come out stating flat-out that most of our recent technology was indeed back-engineered from UFOs, you gotta wonder that *something* fishy is going on, and now that scientists and mathematicians like Oyiba are presenting us with information which would confirm our real X-Files, I think that one should read a book like "Beyond Star Trek" with as skeptical an eye as its author. In case you doubt me, I suggest you look up Oyiba's work (which is out there and for which he should be winning a Nobel prize or something).

Hollywood lookout! *****
This is an excellent book to help combat some of the myth and misinformation propagated by Hollywood. Anyone interested in how to discuss science with non-scientists should read this book.

Hollywood lookout! *****

This is an excellent book to help combat some of the myth and misinformation propagated by Hollywood. Anyone interested in how to discuss science with non-scientists should read this book.

Good science, not much sci-fi ****
This is an enjoyable, informative science book, wide-ranging from ESP(which he doubts)to quantum mechanics to the likelihood of ETs. All these things are common subjects of science fiction, yet unlike Krauss' earlier book, The Physics of Star Trek, in here he seldom refers to specific sci-fi stories. the first chapter ridicules the lack of science behind the film "Independence Day," but afterward it is mostly a book of science essays. It maintains a fairly complex level of discussion, yet is accessible to us non-scientists.

Good science, not much sci-fi ****

This is an enjoyable, informative science book, wide-ranging from ESP(which he doubts)to quantum mechanics to the likelihood of ETs. All these things are common subjects of science fiction, yet unlike Krauss' earlier book, The Physics of Star Trek, in here he seldom refers to specific sci-fi stories. the first chapter ridicules the lack of science behind the film "Independence Day," but afterward it is mostly a book of science essays. It maintains a fairly complex level of discussion, yet is accessible to us non-scientists.