‘The Nature of Physical Reality’ by Subhash Kak, New York: Peter Lang, 1986; pp. 153. Book Review by Stanley Krippner

Abstract

This engaging book is part of the American University Studies series. As such, it attempts to present a summary of sciences current understanding of the physical world, and to point out that humankind’s questioning across the ages has had a continuity, especially concerning the problem of paradox and reality. The author, a professor of information theory at Louisiana State University, finds these same questions articulated in the Rig Veda, the Upanishads, and in Greek literature. He also observes at least two types of answers: the atomists’ belief that all knowledge can be reduced to a set of concepts and particles, and the intuitionists’ belief that reduction is impossible. The intuitionists hold that our understanding of the universe reflects the nature of our minds; hence the best approach is one that seeks ways to describe complex systems behavior.