The Strangest Man: The Hidden Life of Paul Dirac, Quantum Genius

The Strangest man by Graham Farmelo. It`s a biography of Paul Dirac, considered one of the best physicists of the 20th century. The book elucidates his obscure life and his contribution to quantum physics while not being overly jargonistic.

The Strangest Man - Graham Farmelo A biography of Paul Dirac. Very good. --------------- The Fabric of the Universe - David Deutsch What picture can we paint of the universe if we take together the best theories we have about fundamental things like time, life, virtual reality, cosmology etc. Easily the best book i've read in recent years. Consider that Deutsch is a very distinguished scientist in the field of quantum cryptography/computing. He is really good at explaining things in terms that non-physicists and experts alike can learn a lot! --------------- Roadside Picnic - Strugatzky Soviet Science Fiction book about the first and only visit of earth by aliens. The approach is very unusual since there is never any direct contact between humans and the extra terrestrial intelligence. The book is more like a study of human society and how it could develop if suddenly there was some extremely advanced technology available to us which we are too primitive to understand/control.