During Fall and Winter terms, I was in an abusive relationship with physics. The two physics courses I took simply would not reciprocate the time, love and effort that I put into our relationship. For this reason, I was hesitant to read Michio Kaku's new book "Physics of the Future." Perhaps it was an innate desire to learn about the future of humankind that impelled me to overcome my loathing for physics and open the book. I was immediately transported to the year 2100 a time when cars will drive themselves, cancer will no longer be a problem and we can access the Internet through our contact lenses.
In "Physics of the Future," Kaku, professor of theoretical physics at the City College of New York and co-creator of string field theory, reveals his predictions for the technology that will exist in the future covering topics ranging from space travel and medicine to everyday life. What is particularly impressive is that Kaku bases his predictions on existing scientific research and interviews with 300 leading scientists. To my relief, Kaku only resorts to physics terminology when absolutely necessary, and even then he uses terms that a "physics-phobe" like me could understand. And I'm sure this book will be just as fascinating for those of you who do like physics, as the concepts Kaku explores are simply articulated but still intellectually stimulating.
"Physics of the Future" is also the perfect book for fans of science fiction, as Kaku constantly makes references to staples such as Star Wars and Star Trek. He even provides evidence that some of the technologies found in these classics, such as Luke Skywalker's mechanical hand, will exist in the future. Yes, get excited in the future we will all be Jedi! Well, not really, but Kaku does think we will be able to move things with our minds.
One word of warning: I noticed a dramatic drop in my self-motivation and productivity while reading "Physics of the Future." This most likely stems from Kaku's many examples of fields in which humans will become obsolete and robots will take over, including medicine, construction work and education. As a pre-med biology major currently taking organic chemistry, I found it hard to immerse myself in chemistry problem sets after reading that robots and computers will take over for human doctors in the distant future. I had to keep reminding myself that such innovations won't exist for many years to come, and letting a book make me fail organic chemistry is probably not the best life decision.
On the one hand, I felt overwhelmed by what Kaku describes. So many new inventions are all packed into this more than 400-page book, and it is a bit frightening to think that these innovations have the potential to create a lazy, indolent human race. It will no longer be necessary to go to a store if you want to purchase something because robot chefs will prepare all of our meals. There is the whole problem of robots going crazy and trying to kill us all, but thankfully scientists are working on that problem, according to Kaku.
On the other hand, I was fascinated by all of the technological advancements our future holds. Kaku maps out the future as this wonderful time when nearly anything is possible. With such seemingly impossible inventions, it's hard not to be filled with excitement when reading "Physics of the Future."
