Forewarning: this book will make you rethink everything. And I mean everything.

The very foundations of chemistry and physics are broken up like concrete during a 9.0-magnitude earthquake in this book. And this foundation matters because it is the literal basis of everything we know and experience (stop lying to yourself, those Chem 1 quantum numbers do matter).

In this book, Benjamín Labatut goes to the very depths of the Earth, exploring the greatest discoveries of modern science and the men behind them. He builds up a swirling Milky Way in your head, throwing little x’s and equal signs to circle in the mix, combining the complexities of mathematics and physics with the great expanse that is the human mind.

Labatut exposes the stark juxtaposition of some of the greatest discoveries, like Fritz Haber’s pulling of nitrogen from the air to create ammonia, yielding the first mass production of fertilizers that helped feed millions. Soon after, it was used for poison gas by the Germans in World War I, killing thousands and leaving millions with horrific memories of clawing at the flesh of their own faces and necks for relief from the burning.

“When We Cease to Understand the World“ explores the human mind and offers an important thesis: Many of the greatest discoveries were made by those who suffered great mental afflictions.

This book also explores Alexander Grothendieck, Werner Heisenberg and Erwin Schrödinger, all men who exemplified rather peculiar human behavior. Grothendieck, known for becoming a recluse at a hidden address and eating only dandelion soup for his last 20 years, wrote letters to declare publication of his work as an “abomination,” while Heisenberg and Schrödinger had inappropriate obsessions with very young girls.

While they may have created theories or equations way beyond our comprehension, these men still suffered depressive episodes and deep senses of loneliness that are all too familiar to the rest of us.

This book draws a fine line between greatness and illness and offers a lesson about what the future holds if we continue to build at an unsustainable pace.

This book is classified as a non-fiction novel, but it is important to note that some events and explorations of the mind are fictional and fabricated. However, it offers an important insight into what it might have been like to be one of these men. Labatut shows us what it’s like to be on the cusp of greatness, the edge of humanity and the brink of sanity all at the same time.

The STEM kids will find this book interesting because of its unique, very philosophical explanation of well-known topics in chemistry and physics, but the introspective, contemplative young adults will see the true message behind it: Some of the greatest discoveries have led to the greatest acts of human evil.

From quantum theory to the atomic bomb, anyone can see that the more knowledge we gain, the more humanity we lose. “When We Cease to Understand the World” teaches you the dangers of constant pursuit. So sit, smell the flowers, stop using ChatGPT and read this book. You won’t regret it.

Pick up at Union Ave Books for $17.00 today or on Amazon for $9.93.