CASTI DOES IT AGAIN! A REVIEW OF '"ONE, TRUE, PLATONIC HEAVEN: A SCIENTIFIC FICTION ON THE LIMITS OF KNOWLEDGE"' (Which I just finished reading)

John Casti has in my opinion, emerged as the most articulate, humorous and sophisticated science writer in the world in recent years. Writing on topics as diverse as Artificial Intelligence, Mathematics and Complexity, Biology and Genetics and the Philosophy of Science, he now has taken the boldest step as of yet, an effort to debate the limits of knowledge itself. As in his earlier book, "The Cambridge Quintet", Casti weaves together a fictional set of discussions between famous scientists set in the 1940s at the Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton, the "one, true, platonic heaven", a place where the most austere and profound theorists in the world could come and think. Participants include such luminaries as J. Robert Oppenheimer (who was director of the institute then), Kurt Godel, Freeman Dyson, John von Neumann and the great Einstein himself. The discussions take place at diverse locations and times; in the common room during tea time, between Einstein and Godel during walks from the institute to the house, and at a party hosted by the great mathematician John von Neumann. The topic? What are the limits of our knowledge, in Physics, in Mathematics, in Social Sciences, in Philosophy. At the background are minor discussions of matters involving whether Kurt Godel should be made a permanent member, and whether von Neumann should build the first ever computer in the Institute. There's also a cameo appearance by T. S. Eliot, who was an invited member for a year. I have to admit that this book is not as profound as The Cambridge Quintet. However, Casti has an uncanny knack for constructing life size figures of famous scientists, and making the discussions relevant, articulate and accessible. There are of course, a few cliche lines coming from each of the scientists, but then since the discussions are fictional, who knows what all of them would have actually said. In the end, there is no concrete conclusion, as there cannot be any about such a profound topic. But I closed the book feeling sure only about one thing, that we must continue the quest for the limits of knowledge, even if we don't know what they are at this moment. This is surely an example where, for once, the journey is infinitely more interesting and important than the destination.