What is life? The Physical Aspect of the Living Cell. By Erwin Schrödinger. Audiobook Part 1

Erwin Schrödinger is perhaps the most underappreciated thinker and scientist, not just of the 20th century, but of all time. While most lay persons will recognize names such as Newton, Einstein, Feynman, Sagan & Hawking, most know of Schrödinger only via his cynical thought experiment, Schrödinger's cat, but have no knowledge or understanding of the man himself, or of his incredible contributions to the enterprise of science. His eponymous wave equation underlies the foundation of our current understanding of how the universe operates at the most fundamental level: quantum field theory. Furthermore, Schrödinger was among the first to realize (along with others, such as Einstein) that the consequences of his equation required some sort of explanation, and could not simply be dismissed as frivolous or unnecessary, which is how the adherents of the so-called Copenhagen interpretation viewed his concerns. It was Schrödinger who set the stage for future inquiry into the nature of quantum mechanics, a process that led others, such as Hugh Everett, to develop far more sound and rigorous explanations of quantum phenomena, mainly in the form of the many-worlds, or relative state understanding of quantum mechanics.

But Schrödinger was far more than a theoretical physicist. While an atheist, he had an affinity for the nature of spirituality, and developed a keen interest in Eastern philosophy. He was also quite a worldly man, and aspects of his personal life, such as having concurrent relationships with multiple women, attracted the ire of many academics of his day.

This little book arose from a course of public lectures, delivered by a theoretical physicist to an audience of about four hundred which did not substantially dwindle, though warned at the outset that the subject-matter was a difficult one and that the lectures could not be termed popular, even though the physicist’s most dreaded weapon, mathematical deduction, would hardly be utilized. The reason for this was not that the subject was simple enough to be explained without mathematics, but rather that it was much too involved to be fully accessible to mathematics.