Originally published: New York : Doubleday, 2007.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 225-247) and index.

Irritable particles -- Entropy strives toward a maximum -- An enigma, a subject of profound astonishment -- How does an electron decide? -- An audacity unheard of in earlier times -- Lack of knowledge is no guarantee of success -- How can one be happy? -- I would rather be a cobbler -- Something has happened -- The soul of the old system -- I am inclined to give up determinism -- Our words don't fit -- Awful Bohr incantation terminology -- Now the game has won -- Life-experience and not scientific experience -- Possibilities of unambiguous interpretation -- The no-man's land between logic and physics -- Anarchy at last.

The remarkable story of a startling scientific idea that ignited a battle among the greatest minds of the twentieth century and profoundly influenced intellectual inquiry in fields ranging from physics to literary criticism, anthropology and journalism. In 1927, young German physicist Werner Heisenberg challenged centuries of scientific understanding when he introduced what came to be known as "the uncertainty principle." Heisenberg proved that in many physical measurements, you can obtain one bit of information only at the price of losing another. This proposition, undermining the cherished belief that science could reveal the physical world with limitless detail and precision, placed Heisenberg in direct opposition to the revered Albert Einstein. Niels Bohr, Heisenberg's mentor and Einstein's long-time friend, found himself caught between the two. Bohr understood that Heisenberg was correct, but he also recognized the vital necessity of gaining Einstein's support as the world faced the shocking implications of Heisenberg's principle.--From publisher description.