Physics of the Impossible Complete Book Review

In Michio Kaku's Physics of the Impossible, Michio talks about the technology impossible to us because of certain barriers. He divides his chapters into 3 types of impossibilities. Class I is impossibilities are technologies that are impossible with this decade's technology, but that do work with the laws of physics. Class II impossibilities are impossible with our understanding of the universe, and will take thousands of years to fully master. Lastly he talks about Class III impossibilities which if possible, can change our current laws of physics, they may not necessarily take thousands of years, but rather just a few centuries. This is because they are simple but just need a little bit more understanding of physics, and the materials needed to construct them.
In his Class I impossibilities he talks about: Force Fields, Invisibility, Phasers and Death Stars, Teleportation, Telepathy, Psychokinesis, Robots, Extraterrestrials and UFOs, Starships, and Antimatter and Anti-Universes.
In Force Fields, he talks about the possibilities of using magnetism and plasma(state of matter found in lightning and fire) to form an invisible protective barrier, which in media is called a force field. He then talks about changing the light around you to make yourself invisible. Both chapters showed much detail and I could understand advanced physics, the way he described it.
In Phasers and Death Stars he talks about harnessing energy from light, photons, lasers, and fusion. While we can now harness energy from lasers, he raises a doubting question: with such technology could it be possible to destroy entire planets with just a press of a button? And in Teleportation he talks about transportation to different places by rearranging our atoms somewhere else. Through  number physics it should be able to record our bodies and their exact number of atoms. it could calculate enough to rearrange the atoms somewhere else.
Next to teleportation is the next best thing telepathy. With telepathy one could "read" someone's mind and outsmart them. Different energies could pickup brainwave patterns from one person and copy it onto your brain, allowing you to view it. The recent technology of MRI machines tries to achieve this very objective.
Similar to telepathy is psychokinesis. In telepathy your read someone's mind, but in psychokinesis you can create anything you think of. This is possible with a lot of technologies, but what happens when your subconscious creates your deepest darkest fears?
Robots is the title of one of the biggest chapters in the book. it talks about creating robots smarter than us, the problem that will create, and the problems it could solve. This chapter shows you that robots aren't the evil science-fiction villain you see in movies, books, and T.V. shows.
Next he talks about extraterrestrial life forms. He talks about the possibility of their existence, the possibility of us visiting them, or the possibility of ever talking to them.
In starships he talks about new and better technologies that will help upgrade your space shuttles for better, faster, and quality travel in outer space. The last chapter in Class I Impossibilities he talks about is antimatter and anti-universes. These are atoms and universes with similar properties except an opposite charge.
In Class II Impossibilities, he talks about the possibility of items and energies that can take man at a speed faster than light. He also talks about traveling in time, while also traveling to different dimensions in the process. The last thing he talks about is other dimensions, or parallel universes, exact replica's of our universes with a few changes only.
In Class III Impossibilities he talks only about 2 things. First he talks about machines that can collect energy, create energy, support itself and help nations, perpetual motion machines. Many people have thought it was impossible but maybe, he says there are a few ways to make this possible. Lastly he talks about seeing the future, precognition. This would work if you could travel back in time or track certain unique particles which are capable of traveling back and forth in time. All in all the book is amazing, and I have read the whole thing. I hope you read it because its action packed and full of adventure.

Physics of the Impossible Class 1 Impossibilities Chapter 1: Force Fields

Okay so today I am reviewing chapter one of Michio Kaku's Physics of the Impossible(ISBN 978-0-385-52069-0), and the topic is Force Fields. Force fields are a common movie and television element. They are supposed to be simple invisible and thin barriers that can deflect different types of matter, and different types of energies. This may sound easy, but recreating this can be much, much easier. Many scientists had many different ways to recreate this. Michael Faraday discovered force fields in a magnetic sense. By placing same side magnets, or a magnet and iron fillings the magnetic connection that tries to separate or link the is a force field. In the earth there is a force field of magnetism linking the atmosphere together, to protect it from harmful radiation. This type of magnetism, electromagnetism is one of physicists four forces. The other three are gravity, weak nuclear forces, and strong nuclear forces. One type of force field many think is the future force field is plasma force fields. Plasma is hotter than gas and is like an energy, like lightning. Ady Herschovitch developed a plasma window. It heats gas to 12,000 degrees Fahrient. This prevents air from coming in.  This means the inside of a plasma window is vacuum.

Plasma Window in Lab Applications

A super-hot plasma window, high energy lasers, and a protection of material stronger than steel, like carbon-nanotubes, could sucessfully burn up or stop any thing in its path. Another possibility is still found in magnetics, in a different way. Using even more advanced technology of a Maglev(found in japan and russia mostly, travels on a cushion of air due to repeling of magnets), we could have a protective barrier out of magnetism. But maglev trains cost a lot of money for all the tracks that have to be made out of a special magnetizing substance. Instead if there were such a thing as a superconductor in room temperature, abundant amounts could be produced to "paint" ordinary tracks with, creating a magnetic track, or even a magnetic levitation road, for Maglev cars. In the future about at least 100 years from know these room temperature superconductors could be found.

Physics of the Future Chapter 8: Future of Humanity

Okay so today I am reviewing chapter eight of Michio Kaku's Physics of the Future(ISBN 978-0-385-53080-4), and the topic is Future of Humanity. This is the final chapter of the book except for an excellent story themed in the year 2100, you have to read the book yourself to find out about it. In this chapter Michio Kaku talks about 3 main types of civilization. One type consumes sunlight that the whole planet receives for energy. The second type of civilization uses all the energy of the sun. The third type of energy takes multiple suns to energize its civilization. We rank as 0.7 because we still hugely depend on other resources like coal. In atleast a 100 years we will rank as 1 with complete solar energy from what we receive on earth.
There are many classifications for different objects and inventions. For example Internet is a type 1 planetary telephone system. In a type two civilization one can control the planets weather. This would mean full control of the nature of the planet, and its magnetic fields. This type of civilization will most likely be peaceful, in civilizations far from Earth. Type 3 civilizations will have flawless almost indestructible self-replicating robots. These will help us conquer the heavens. A type 3 civilization could also mean creating energy that is strong that it will tear the space time continuum. This will create portals to new dimensions, and different times. This all would be practically impossible for atleast a century or 2.

Image of the Space time continuum in action

In the future will help and destroy the world as we know it. Science had the potential to do both. For example new guns and bombs are highly destructive science, while new treatments and wealth through science and technology help the world. Its only how we choose to use science that controls our future. Humanity will end up either in indestructible robotic bodies with their brain signals, or superhuman with newer stronger bio-material for their body parts. The other 2 that will happen are mostly are that we will either split into two or more races, ceasing civilization, or we will die out.
Perhaps we will enjoy better lives, but its only up to the technology we invent and our attitude towards it.
This book was really good, just like his other book The Physics of The Impossible. I shall review that next.

Physics of The Future Chapter 7: Future of Wealth

Okay so today I am reviewing chapter seven of Michio Kaku's Physics of the Future(ISBN 978-0-385-53080-4), and the topic is Future of Wealth. Wealth is all about luck, probability, chance, hard work and effort. Michio Kaku says that for every technology there is four stages. They are born, evolve, rise, and fall. One common example of this principle is paper. Discovery in the olden time of papyrus reed paper was so precious it was guarded, it was born. Later paper was made with trees and different methods were used to treat it to prevent it from rotting, it evolved. Later it was used in printing presses and in copier machines. Now paper is so useful, yet useless you can find it anywhere, everywhere, and it is waste also, at the same time. This makes the invention of paper fall. This works with every invented product. Same goes with electricity. It is discovered, and is precious. It is used in light-bulbs and cars and its use evolves. It is used in daily life everywhere to keep civilization going. It is so common we decorate our houses and signs with electrical flashes and lights. The Internet was born , and is now in the evolving stage, Stage II. A Dr.Pepper commercial poster shown below shows a comical version of our evolution. In it, it only shows three stages before, discovery, and after discovery.

All these new technologies, while bringing greater also bring greater value and great wealth to human society. They also produce knowledge that will remain with us forever. In the future an imaginative, scientific and creative mind is wealth. These minds will create inventions that bring the rise of human evolution. In the future many countries will have amassed massive amounts of wealth while others won't. With more and more technology creative brains will become wealth. This is because newer, improved inventions will hold value in the world, and in companies. The people you see around you could either be inventors, with creative brains, and lots of knowledge. They could also make the population of laborers and workers. But without creative inventing minds, we will cease to exist. This is a common problem coming from the next generation. People who are smart want to do little and settle into rich lives, with huge loads of wealth sitting idle and growing with interest. We need to work for better inventors and scientists in the world, because they are both our only chance, and our only wealth. 

Physics of the Future Chapter 6: Future of Space Travel

Okay so today I am reviewing chapter six of Michio Kaku's Physics of the Future(ISBN 978-0-385-53080-4), and the topic is Future of Space Travel. Many space programs search the heavens for planets that can support life. They do this with robot rockets, and telescopes. But they dream of sending humans that far into space. The closest life supporting planet to Earth is Europa. Actually, Europa is a moon of Jupiter. Friction from gravity lets the ice on Europa melt into water.

Europa at a Surface Level Animated Image

Scientists also want to go on a mission to Mars. There is 2 problems with it. One weightlessness means loss of muscle and bone. This will make a person very weak to do any task on Mars. By spinning the shuttle really quickly, artificial gravity can be created, but will take a lot of energy. Another problem is it will take more than 2 years for the whole trip, so permanent Mars bases will have to be created.  This is called terraforming or the turning of a lifeless place into something habitable.
Another possibility is melting the ice on Mars to create huge pools of water. Small plants like algae could live in this and naturally over a course of a decade, terraform mars into iron-rich nutrient soil. This would be enough to support small plants. Over a course of time the plants will produce oxygen out of the carbon-dioxide which would be our breathable air.
Private businessmen and billionaires have worked on create a couple of personalized spaceships for vacation in the highest atmosphere. They start out on an airplane, going on till there is not enough air for the airplane to fly on. Then the spaceship lifts off. This process conserves necessary fuel for the trip back.
Another idea uses a space elevator. This elevator would take you to space, just a little bit below the moon's orbit. To make an elevator strong enough to resist gravity and be higher than the strength of steel there has been one possible choice to make the cable wire out of. Carbon nanotubes. When you have carbon like charcoal or coal, and you compressed it into a cube lattice structure, it becomes diamond, super hard in its structure. But when you arrange the carbon into small circular nano sized tubes they become even stronger. This is one of the unique abilities of carbon. The process of doing this work is however, very tedious. In the end it will be worth it.

Carbon Nanotubes Thinner Structure than A Human Hair

Physics of the Future Chapter 5: Future of Energy

Okay so today I am reviewing chapter five of Michio Kaku's Physics of the Future(ISBN 978-0-385-53080-4), and the topic is Future of Energy. There are many types of energies constantly being discovered, used and developed. At first there were only nonrenewable resources like coal and oil which polluted the environment. Then renewable resources like Solar Energy, and Wind Power were discovered. Many different sources of energies are being discovered to keep the human population always in constant supply of energy. Human need more energy than ever as time progesses. In the times before engines, railroads, and the discovery of oil, there were only 3 major sources of energy. Horsepower, wind and coal. Horse power meant animals or our feet, or cart driven vehicles that took us places. Coal gave us fire, warmth, and means of cooking. Wind powered our sails and our windmills which started factories, and to replace wind in some places they used water wheels. After engines were discovered, electricity, and solar power came. Overuse of nonrenewable resources made oil prices high. This forced us to go for alternative energy sources. Solar energy utilizes the power of the sun for electricity. It produces very little or no waste. This is useful in deserts, and the equator. This works by having light photons kick out an electron onto the panel, which produces electricity. The most common material used in solar cells is selenium because it is not a metal or a metalloid, but rather just is a non-metal with special properties. Solar power can work in the roof of your house or on the roof of a car, either way providing you with electric energy.

Click to Enlarge

Solar power can power cars. So can electricity. Hybrid cars use electrical batteries with a gas powered car to power a car. This is also as useful as fully electrical cars. Nuclear energy is another source of energy. This source of energy splits atoms to create massive amounts of energy. It is renewable but the factory it is being made in must be cooled after the process or else it will explode, sending highly reactive particles in the air. It produces too much waste, another problem. Nuclear energy is also used to make atomic bombs. One common Branch of nuclear energy is fusion power. This involves the splitting of uranium atoms. In the sun fusion power turns 2 hydrogen molecules into helium to creat energy. Magnetism will provide electricity in the future. Many energies will be discovered but it will take a while for it to be completely implemented. 

Physics of the Future Chapter 4 : Nanotechnology

Okay so today I am reviewing chapter four of Michio Kaku's Physics of the Future(ISBN 978-0-385-53080-4), and the topic is Nanotechnology. He says an atom is largely empty with only a small grain of sand being a nucleus if an atom was a football field. That should mean we could pass through a wall in theory. In reality our bodies will "Touch" the wall. This is because your finger actually will repel the wall at a nano scale. So what we feel and touch is really repelling away from us slightly. Same thing happens to a couch. When you sit on it, you are actually hovering a few nanometers above it. When atoms get too close to each other, they will repel, or in the case of elements like sodium and chlorine, bond to make a compound molecule, NaCl, Salt. This supports what is known as the quantum theory. So the quantum theory tells you why atoms can combine to create compounds rather than actually breaking up into tinier chunks, and disintegrating. Nanotechnology is as you probably already know robotics and scientific technology in a small nano sized particle. This technology can be used to destroy cancer cells specifically from the inside of someone's body. This technology could remove surgery that involves with cutting skin and flesh from the outside.

One of nanotechnologies greatest advantages is carbon nanotubes. Carbon nanotubes are as you can probably infer, carbon atoms in a tightly packed tube. The structure of a carbon nanotube makes it even stronger than a diamond.  Many scientists have claimed that the technology now known as carbon nanotubes will replace steel in structures, and silicon in computers. One reason for that is because unlike silicon it can easily resist high amounts of heat and can introduce parallel processing. Our brain works on a system of parallel processing. Information is broken into small chunks and processed at different areas at the same time, allowing a thought to be quick, fast, and proper. With carbon nanotubes, such a computer is possible. These computers are called quantum computers, for their better quality in processing. Evolving of our brain has allowed us to get better and better over a few million years, but computers only have and probably only need few decades to adapt to this technology. This means a robot or a computer will be one step closer to being like a human. Another type of computer being made thanks to nanotechnology is DNA computers.l Using a artificial DNA structure for better memory and storage of info, data will be processed in DNA codes, like our brain and body processes it. This will make robots and computers even more closer to being like a human. This technologies will only be perfect by at least 2060 or 2070 at least.

Physics of the Future Chapter 3 : Future of Medicine

Okay so today I am reviewing chapter three of Michio Kaku's Physics of the Future(ISBN 978-0-385-53080-4), and the topic is Future of Medicine. In the future of medicines he says many things will happen including recognition of someone by their DNA completely. In the future of medicine DNA scans can model a person's entire face, and body. Another future medicine is growing organs for quicker transplants. Using special biodegradable acids they have already been able to make plastic molds of certain organs, that when treated with certain growth factors grow into the mold, and the mold then disintegrates. A recent discovered and studied technology is stem cell technology. Stem cell technology takes a few stem cells from an embryo. Since stem cells can change into any type of cell, it is useful. With a few stem cells a scientist can research to grow a body part inside someone quickly, to the right age and size. They can also cure disease. But when a stem cell continues growing, it will become cancer, which must be prevented. Embryonic cells normally prevent this by sending chemical signals to stop further reproduction. Once that is made possible to scientists stem cell technology could be really useful.

Another technology is adding selective genes to make someone smarter in the sense of better pattern recognition, and someone stronger by changing the control on how much muscle mass can there is at a certain time. Many things prevent us from actually doing it, including smarter people means more sensitive to environment, or stronger people, will gain more muscle mass than the arm could support. With these preventing factors out of the way important technology can be made possible for us. For example many dream of being immortal. But in reality, are you going to be old and disease ridden, but immortal in pain? Or, are you going to be  happy youthful immortal person with no disease, or pain, like every other example there will be many problems to face before people can enjoy the benefits of our medicine in the future. Another part of future medicine is bringing back an extinct species by reviving their DNA. While it may sound fun to see them in a zoo, many will argue they have rights, or don't just belong there. So while we might look forward to all of these medicinal, and biological improvements, we will have to face all the problems before we truly achieve our goal.

Physics of the Future Chapter 2 : Future of AI

Okay so today I am reviewing chapter two of Michio Kaku's Physics of the Future(ISBN 978-0-385-53080-4)), and the topic is Future of AI. In this chapter he talks about robots and their developments.
Robots are said only to follow programming, and can't recognize patterns yet. It will take many years before they are smarter than a mouse. However since a robot can follow commands in its programming it can appear realistic enough as a human. For example Honda's ASIMO (Advanced Step in Innovative Mobility) is a robot that resembles a boy wearing a helmet and a backpack. Its about 4 feet tall, can walk like  a human and do many other things. It can run, climb stairs, and even can talk. The only thing that makes you realize its all programming is it takes a long time to recognize objects, and needs constant new programs to run on. Even walking for ASIMO has to be programmed before, so that it won't trip over any objects.
Another obstacle is common sense. Robots can tell what words mean, in definition. But when it comes to a phrase like "Rewards are better than Punishments", a robot can't understand the deeper meaning, or message behind it. Normal robots look at an object and divide it up into simple shapes. If a robot wouldn't do that but rather recognized the whole object as one item it will be even more intelligent than we are.Other robots can be programmed to excel at one task but at others will fail, like chess playing robots. Chess playing robots can beat even the best players, but in subjects like English, or Science will fail. Robots only have 2 obstacles preventing them from being even more intelligent than we are. The first, as you already know is recognizing what objects in the room are instantly. For a robot it will take more than an hour before an a object, like a sofa is no longer just a jumble of circles and squares.

ASIMO weighs 119 Lbs

In the future he says, robots will be hidden out of our view, and will appear like small animals and insects. They will perform the uneasy tasks, or tasks that we find unpleasant. Other robots will be life like and be able to do a job without any script, but will be limited to only a certain number of tasks. This category will include: robot surgeons and robot cooks.

Physics of The Future Book Review Chapter 1: Future of The Computer

Okay so today I am reviewing chapter one of Michio Kaku's Physics of the Future(ISBN 978-0-385-53080-4)), and the topic is Future of the Computer. He talks about Internet Glasses a future necessity. Internet glasses were supposed to fit on your eyes like glasses or contact lenses and when tapped or manipulated by a handheld device you could view the internet and control the mouse function. I would like to wear those glasses. They seem like Google glasses, a product of Google which lets you have a computer in glasses. The only difference is to tell the Google Glasses what to do you simply speak and it recognizes your voice with vocal commands to follow directions. This is much better than a hand held device. The only problem is the Google glasses look like this on a wearer:

Hello

Hello and welcome to my blog. I will write my book reviews here on many different books. I will start out by reviewing 2 books of Michio Kaku, Physics of the Future and Physics of the Impossible.