What Einstein's E=mc 2 is to relativity theory, Heisenberg's uncertainty principle is to quantum mechanics—not just a profound insight, but also an iconic formula that even non-physicists recognize.

Heisenberg's uncertainty principle tells us that it is impossible to simultaneously measure the position and momentum of a particle with infinite precision. In our everyday lives we virtually ...

The 20th century was a remarkably productive one for physics. First, Albert Einstein's theory of general relativity helped us view gravity not as a force but as a distortion of space. Then Max Planck, ...

Werner Heisenberg, one of the greatest physicists of the 20th century, played a central role in Germany’s atomic bomb program during WWII. But a scientific mistake he made effectively derailed ...

Later, Heisenberg even implied that he and others had deliberately falsified the maths to sabotage the bomb project. The latter idea was popularized in the journalist Thomas Powers’ 1993 book ...