Emeritus Fellow Professor Frank Close publishes CHARGE: Why Does Gravity Rule?

Emeritus Fellow in Physics, Professor Frank Close, has published CHARGE: Why Does Gravity Rule? with Oxford University Press.

The book explores one of physics’ deepest puzzles, as it uncovers why the electric charge of the electron and proton cancel out exactly, making atoms electrically neutral, and delves into how and why gravity shapes the cosmos.

Professor Close guides readers ‘into the subatomic world of quarks, electrons, and neutrinos, exploring colour and flavour charges, and the patterns that hint at deeper unities’, asks us to question our current understanding of matter and discusses exciting experiments that are testing theoretical possibilities.

Jim Al-Khalili, author of The Joy of Science and The World According to Physics, described CHARGE as ‘a little gem of a book’, adding that ‘no one describes the building blocks of matter more clearly and delightfully than Frank Close.’ New Scientist stated that the book ‘restores cooperation to its rightful place in the evolutionary story’, calling it ‘fascinating and timely’ in ‘The Best New Popular Science Books of 2024’.

Professor Close became a Fellow in Physics at Exeter College in 2001, and is the author of several books, including the highly acclaimed Lucifer’s Legacy: The Meaning of Asymmetry (2000), and his recent work, Elusive: How Peter Higgs Solved the Mystery of Mass (2022). His other books include Antimatter (2018), Eclipse: Journeys to the Dark Side of the Moon (2017), A Very Short Introduction to Nuclear Physics (2015), Neutrino (2011), Nothing (2009), and Particle Physics (2004).

You can discover more about CHARGE: Why Does Gravity Rule? and purchase a copy here.

Read an interview with Professor Close about his new book here.