F. David Peat Takes Readers 'From Certainty to Uncertainty' of Twentieth Century

In his new book, "From Certainty to Uncertainty," physicist F. David Peat explores the intersection of science with art, literature, philosophy and society.

When most people think of science, it's as something foreign, something that only affects the obvious parts of their daily life--computers, medicine, and nutrition. Most don't realize that scientific discoveries reverberate through every aspect of our culture--from the obvious (like mathematics) to the less obvious (like art and literature). In fact, science was an early influence for Henry Ford, James Joyce and Pablo Picasso, men who blazed three disparate trails but who all credited science with impacting their work.

In his new book, "FROM CERTAINTY TO UNCERTAINTY: The Story of Science and Ideas in the Twentieth Century," physicist F. David Peat shows us how, during the twentieth century, scientific discoveries affected every aspect of daily life. He also explores how discoveries like Quantum Theory, Chaos Theory, and the General Theory of Relativity took society from a state where we thought we had the world around us figured out (certainty) to the startling realization that our knowledge was, at best, incomplete--and would probably remain that way forever (uncertainty).

Peat explores how these theories of uncertainty produced a ripple effect in society. For example, he shows how the Impressionist Movement has direct ties to science. The invention of paint in tubes allowed Impressionist artists to paint in the open air without fear of the paint evaporating--an example of the constant link between art, science, and technology. But that is just the tip of the iceberg.

"It is probably no coincidence that Monet's wish to return to direct visual experience, Cezanne's doubt as to what his sensations were telling him, and Cubism's attempt to integrate different possible viewpoints in time, should coincide with a general change of Western consciousness whereby, as we have seen, doubt, relativism, and a lack of certainty entered in many different ways," writes Peat.

Peat also asserts that there is still much in the universe that we do not know ... and says that is not such a bad thing. Using examples ranging over the last hundred years, he shows how the current century might be one of even greater discovery. And in drawing on the lessons we can learn from history, Peat also speculates on how we will manage our lives in the future.

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F. David Peat completed his PhD at the University of Liverpool. He was engaged in research in theoretical physics at the National Research Council of Canada, and is a Fellow of the World Academy of Art and Science and a Corresponding Member of the European Academy of Arts, Science and the Humanities. He is author of more than twenty books including "The Blackwinged Night: Creativity in Nature and Mind" and "Infinite Potential: The Life and Times of David Bohm." His ideas and writings can be found at www.fdavidpeat.com and www.paricenter.com.

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The Joseph Henry Press is an imprint of the National Academy Press, publisher for the National Academies--National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, Institute of Medicine, and National Research Council.