Review copyright 1996 by Sonja Hyde.
Sonja is a Canadian journalist and Web designer who'll be moving to
London to do stand-up comedy when she completes her MA at Indiana
University.
The Physics of Star Trek
by Lawrence M. Krauss
New York: BasicBooks, 1995. 188 pages.
US $20.00 (hardcover)
![[Image of Book Cover]](st.gif)
When asked how the Heisenberg compensators
at the heart of the Star Trek transporter technology work, Michael Okada,
Technical Advisor to Star Trek replied, "Very well, thank you."
For Lawrence M. Krauss, author of The Physics of Star Trek, that just
isn't good enough. Krauss, a physicist and astronomer at Case Western
Reserve University, has written a book to explain exactly which Star Trek
technologies can be made to operate in our universe and which cannot.
Krauss explains how warp speed and transporters cannot conceivably
be implemented. After detailing the physics behind the technology, he
informs the reader that the transporter "would require us to heat up
matter to a temperature a million times the temperature at the center
of the Sun, expend more energy in a single machine than all of humanity
presently uses," and if that was not enough, "to build telescopes larger
than the size of the Earth."
Physical laws would permit the Enterprise to be powered by matter-
antimatter reactions, as the series suggests. So, Krauss points out the
physical risk of carrying such fuel and the cost and storage of the fuel on
the ship. In the process we learn about how little anti-matter exists in
the universe, and its fundamental role in the Big Bang and the creation of
the universe. It is the poetry of this universe, our universe, which is
rivetting.
Although the book is promoted on its explanations Star Trek
technologies, it does much more. The book uses the classic television
series and its spin-offs as a springboard to tackle all aspects of
astronomy from curved space and worm holes -- tunnels joining
disconnected parts of the universe -- to how humans can truly expect to
investigate the universe.
Perhaps as fascinating as are the impossibilities of Star
Trek is the extent to which the creators of the series have got it
right. Krauss happily points out the physical-correctness of Star
Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country when, in zero-gravity, drops of
blood are spherical.
Krauss talks about the creation of the universe and related phenomena
in a manner so concrete and manageable, he could be talking about the
creation of a wonderful souffle. And Krauss shares with us the recipe with
the delight and enthusiasm of a true gastronome. His light tone and chatty
style, used to elucidate the most advanced ideas of astrophysics make the
book a fascinating read.
Like a friend telling you about an exciting adventure, Krauss uncovers
the cutting edge of astronomical research as readers follow him in awe.
From Newton to Einstein to Hawking and everyone in between, readers
never feel they are learning about the laws of physics, only that they are
discovering wonderful phenomena.
Readers looking for jaw-dropping astronomical concepts will find
The Physics Of Star Trek a gripping book. Excessive enthusiasm
for classic or recent Star Trek series is not required. If nothing
else, the book may well make fans out of its readers.
Back to the
Planet's surface.