Infinite in All Directions: Gifford Lectures Given at Aberdeen, Scotland April--November 1985

When reading Freeman Dyson (1923-2020), you have to be prepared to go with the flow. Dyson’s flow – and isn’t it grand. In _Infinite in All Directions_ (a phrase he borrows from German physicist and geophysicist Emil Wiechert, 1861-1928), he codifies his 1985 Gifford Lectures, where he says he talked about whatever he was interested in at the time. That covers a lot of ground.Dyson is a contrarian, always offering different points of view in the face of the majority report. Since he was brilliant, he’s a very enlightening read whether or not you agree with him. With Dyson – the scientist and the dreamer – you always get another side of the story. That’s reason enough to listen.As you might suspect from the title of this book, Dyson’s world was always infinite in all directions. He was a self-proclaimed evangelist for seeing the world in all its diversity and complexity. There was no Ockham’s Razor for Dyson, no emphasis on simplicity or unification. Everything was always only part of an ever-expanding whole.In this book he meanders through his thoughts on string theory, black holes, the origin of life, space science, nuclear weapons, genetic engineering, politics, and much more. He says here that he sometimes chose to support the least popular scientific idea – not because it was the best idea, but because the idea was not being given the attention it deserved. He could get away with it because he was a world-class mathematician and physicist (perhaps best known for assisting Richard Feynman in formalizing his theory of quantum electrodynamics) and because he worked with or personally knew all the giants of twentieth-century physics. If something was going on, Dyson always seemed to be there, in the background. That’s where he preferred to be – in the background, free to move on to his next project when it pleased him.If you’re interested in peering into the mind of such an individual, I recommend this book. Freeman Dyson – the scientist and the dreamer – always has something interesting to say.

As always with Freeman Dyson, this book is a provocative exploration of a set of interesting and often unusual themes in nature, thoughtfully related to the larger issues of the day. In "Infinite in All Directions" Dyson searches for meaning on the diversity of the Earth's ecosystem, the inner workings of the universe, and the place of humanity in our larger cosmological structure. Presented originally as a set of lectures at Aberdeen, Scotland, in 1985, the chapters of this book have a familiarity and sensitivity to events of the time that one might expect. This is both a strength and weakness of this book.Dyson's interest in the origins and evolution of life emerges clearly in this volume, and this discussion sparked in part by the debates over abortion and creationism is most welcome. His concern for cold war issues, especially a lengthy discussion of the place of Austria, seems someone archaic more than twenty years later.Somewhere in the middle is Dyson's admittedly important perspective and provocative essay on "nuclear winter," a theory advanced by Carl Sagan and others in the 1980s that suggested that a nuclear exchange between the superpowers would trigger a worldwide ice age. He questioned the theory with some excellent points drawn, as he said, from his background. Indeed, science may be autobiographical, Dyson writes, for Carl Sagan drew his analogies for "nuclear winter" from his studies of the cold, dry environment of Mars and the dust particles in its thin atmosphere. This is one approach, Dyson concludes, but not the only one and he drew his analogies from the London fog. "We both use the same mathematics and both work with the same laws of physics. Why then do we reach different conclusions?" (p. 262). As he notes: "If the atmosphere after a nuclear war is filled with dry soot, the temperature on the ground will fall and the Earth will experience nuclear winter. If the atmosphere is filled with wet soot, the temperature on the ground will stay roughly constant as it used to do under a London fog. The severity of a nuclear winter depends on whether the soot-laden atmosphere is predominantly dry or predominantly wet" (p. 263). Moreover, since we live on a water-dominated planet Dyson believes that such a nuclear exchange would not trigger the type of ice age that Sagan advanced.This does not mean that Dyson saw no threat to humanity in nuclear weapons. He certainly did. In fact, he spent considerable space ruminating on the choices that scientists must make in confronting such scientific questions. In all cases, the mode of science is to seek to disprove or at least modify any new theory. Doing so helps to self-correct the state of knowledge, and there is no higher calling in science. "Every new theory has to fight for its existence against intense and often bitter criticism," Dyson comments (p. 258). He then adds, "On the other hand, nuclear winter is not just a theory. It is also a political statement with profound moral implications" (p. 259). In such a situation scientists face a dilemma that cannot be minimized. They may take their normal approach as scientists and seek to disprove the theory, which Dyson believed in the case of nuclear winter would be successful, but doing so would provide the decision makers with cover for belligerent actions. As he wrote: "So my instinct as a scientist comes into sharp conflict with my instinct as a human being...What does a scientist do when science and humanity pull in opposite directions" (p. 259). He offered three possible solutions, one ignoring humanity and seeking to disprove the theory, another embracing humanity and nuclear winter as a theory. A third option, one followed by most scientists in the "nuclear winter" debate, was to privately seek to disprove but publicly to support the theory. He offered this succinct statement of this third approach: "it will not do us any good in the long run to believe a wrong theory, but it will not do us any good in the short run to attack it publicly, so let us keep silent and reserve judgment until the facts become clear" (p. 260). Dyson, like many others, chose that third option in the "nuclear winter" debate.Dyson's discussion of "nuclear winter" is an especially useful object lesson in the nature and conundrums of scientific thought and practice. Those who hold the mistaken belief that scientific understanding is objective and linear will be well served in reading this case study. Scientific understanding is infinitely more complex, convoluted, interesting, and significant than most believe. Apply this issue to the major scientific debates of the present, of which there are many, and it is apparent that there are few easy answers.As always, Freeman Dyson's work is challenging and thoughtful. "Infinite in All Directions," despite some essays that are a bit out of date, is a worthy contribution which all would profit by reading.

How can I have a degree in Physics from a major university and not have learned about this guy earlier. I guess Feynman's light was so bright, anyone near him was hard to see, and my professors where too busy pounding the basics in, but man oh man, this is good reading. Dyson is brilliant. If you have an interest in science that spans the entire field and want to crawl into the head of a man who has put it all together in a way that isn't accessible to most of us, then jump into it. I read it a lecture at a time, which takes about an hour. So worth the time.

Dyson expresses his interest in science and his faith. He does not see them as being incompatible, and even as someone who is not religious, and who focuses his attention on empirical investigation, I have to agree. I would consider this a good read for anyone who thinks that someone cannot be a person of science and religion, at the same time.

Physicist Freeman Dyson puts religion in the landscape of the world of physics, physical sciences and biological sciences. If you think being a scientist and a spiritual person are incomparable this book is a must read. After I heard him speak in 2000 I was compelled to read this book. I have now purchased 5 of these books. I keep giving them to friends who believe there careers in the sciences make it impossible to believe in God. Mr. Dyson will make you question that assertion.

Just read it, it's a winner. A fantastic mix of real science, the history of science, religion, philosophy and how it all blends with the human condition.

Enjoyed the book.

I am interested in physics and philosophy

Obtained this on the strength of the Prof mentioning in a magazine article that it compared Athens and Manchester as key times and places in the history of mankind. Thought provoking and worth a read.

Phantastisch gutes , unterhaltsames , intensives Buch - auch gute Englisch Kenntnisse ersparen einem keine Übersetzungs-Hilfe

著者Freeman J. Dyson氏は英国生まれ(1923年)で、米国の名だたる「プリンストン高等研究所」の教授で、現在87歳の高齢。私の記憶が正しければ、彼はアインシュタインやゲーデルが晩年同研究所で健在であった頃、彼らとともに同じ屋根の下にいた現存する数少ない物理学者の一人。ダイソン氏は大変Open-mindedな物理学者で、それを示す一つは、彼の別の本「Scientist as Rebel」に書かれた、「One in a Million」というBook Reviewに見られる：ここで彼は、ユリ・ゲラーのスプーン曲げのショーに(スプーンを持参した)自分の娘を連れて参加した経験を書き、ユリ・ゲラーの実演の後、マジシャンAmazing(驚異の) James Randi (ある時期全米マジシャン協会(?)の会長)が、予め曲げたスプーンを用意して、すり替えによるスプー曲げのからくりを実演し、ユリ・ゲラーはインチキだと主張したが、果たしてそうだろうか、と大きな疑問を表明している。この本は、著者が62歳の1985年、英国の大学で行ったGiffordレクチャーを本にしたもの。歴史のあるGiffordレクチャーに講師として招かれる人は世界的に著名な学者。本の内容は、著者がそれまでに関わった科学、工学、政治等の分野での経験に基づいて、その時点での彼の考えを表明したもの。私自身が大変興味をもった箇所を紹介すると以下の通り(私は英語の原本の方を読んだ)。(1)「生命の起源」に関する研究の現状(1985年時点)と彼の見解。著者自身、「Origins of Life」を1985年に書き、1999年にその第二版を書いている。「ダーウインの進化論」に先行するテーマは、「ビッグバン宇宙論」と「生命の起源」である。著者自身の考え(モデル)も提示したうえで、科学者は後者に関しては未だ答えを見つけていないと表明。(2)政治に関するパート(「Camels and Swords」)で興味深く読んだのは、「日本」に関する部分。著者はレクチャー・ツアーで1985年来日しているが、そのとき彼が会った日本の政治家との面談での経験を書いている。彼は、日本が当時のソ連から北方領土の返還を強く要求していることに驚いている。その際、引き合いに、昔のドイツ(プロシア時代)のケースに言及し[たぶん、ロシアにとられたケーニヒスベルグ(現カリーニングラドのことだろう。そこは数学者ヒルベルト、哲学者カントの生地)]、ドイツ人は日本ほどに獲られた領土に固執しなかった(それがドイツ人の本音かどうかは知らないが、私が原子力関係の仕事でドイツへ行った際、夕食パーティーで隣席の友にこの件の話をしたら、我々はその話はしない、それはタブーだといっていた)。ダイソン氏は日本の北方領土返還要求において、日米安保条約が障害になっているだろうと語り、この条約を通して日本が、米国の第三国との喧嘩に関わっている矛盾を語っている。もちろん、物理学者ダイソン氏は政治的には米国では反主流の考えの持ち主で、私の観点からは、ベトナム反戦運動以来著名なMITの言語学者チョムスキー氏と考えが似ている。ダイソン氏は、「日本は中立宣言をして、スイスのような国になれるはず」と語っている。（私見だが、そうならないかぎり、北方領土返還問題も、米軍基地問題も解決しないだろう。自民党にはできないことを民主党に期待したいところだが、ダメのようだ。）(3)私が大変興味深く読んだのは、最終章「Butterflies Again」。ここで著者は、「科学」と「神学」の間のノーマンズ・ランド(no-man’s-land)にある５点のテーマに触れている：(a)「生命の起源」、(b)「人間の自由意志」、(c)「科学における目的論的考えの禁止」、(e)「我々の宇宙の、用意された「設計」による誕生(the argument from design as an explanatory principle)」、(f)「我々の存在の究極的目的は何か？」。これらの問題に対して科学者がこれまでに語ったこと、著者自身の見解が、最後の６ページに要約されている。