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There Are Places in the World Where Rules Are Less Important Than Kindness

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There Are Places in the World Where Rules Are Less Important Than Kindness

By: Carlo Rovelli, Erica Segre - translator, Simon Carnell - translator
Narrated by: Roy McMillan
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Summary

Brought to you by Penguin.

One of our most beloved scientists, a fearless free spirit, Carlo Rovelli is also a masterful storyteller. In this collection of writings, the logbook of an intelligence always on the move, he follows his curiosity and invites us on a voyage through science, literature, philosophy and politics.

Written with his usual clarity and wit, these pieces, most of which were first published in Italian newspapers, range widely across time and space: from Newton's alchemy to Einstein's mistakes, from Nabokov's lepidoptery to Dante's cosmology, from travels in Africa to the consciousness of an octopus, from mind-altering psychedelic substances to the meaning of atheism. Charming, pithy and elegant, this book is the perfect gateway to the universe of one of the most influential physicists of our age.

© Carlo Rovelli 2020 (P) Penguin Audio 2020

 Essays Ethics & Morality Nature & Ecology Outdoors & Nature Philosophy Politics & Government Science Mathematics Middle Ages Africa
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This collection of articles is a superb insight into the impressive range of Carlo Rovelli’s scientific, cultural, artistic and philosophical interests. Beautifully written and finely performed by Roy McMillan. Highly recommended.

Rovelli is an impressive polymath

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Some parts are absolutely mind blowing and I had to skip back a listen again and again.

More physics than you’d think

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I like to read / listen to pop science books and this is one of the best in recent years. Italian experimental physicist Carlo Rovelli might not be known to many but he has some original thoughts, and how many of us can claim to have had an original thought? Firstly he sees science as a continuum from Aristole to Galileo to Einstein arguing that none of them were right or wrong but that each presented the best explanation of the physical world in the time they lived. Rovelli attempts to break down barriers between the different scientific disciplines claiming that more progress could be make if we do not pigeon as we are all ultimately attempting to measure and explain the world so we can control it. He argues, somewhat surprisingly, that psychology is the ultimate science rather than physics or philosophy. The book consists of stand alone chapters that read like well thought out articles, some of them going off piste from what you might expect, for example in one piece he argues that politically the far right is motivated through fear and in another he argues against the purpose of countries as national boundaries serve little purpose other than to divide us. He poses some existential questions such as "why does war exist?" and at times, for example the section on flying donkeys can get a little abstract. Slightly contradictorily he scoffs at some traditional medicines such as Tibetan practices as he considers these are not scientifically proven but then champions the use of LSD and other psychedelics even though there is only scant formal scientific proof of their effectiveness.
This is an engaging read / listen, and although I did not find myself agreeing with everything included, it did make me think.

How joined up science can improve the world

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loved every line of this. no matter what your position, ethics, background this is a super read!

TOK love story for your mortal soul.

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Written by a man with lot of common sense which can be rare in intelligent people. definitely worth listening too at least twice.

A case for more engineers and less intellectuals

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