The Language of Symmetry

In 2023, ten leading Oxford University professors, representing diverse disciplines across the arts, humanities, and sciences, explored the concept of dynamic symmetry. Their focus centred on a key aspect: the symmetry between order and chaos and its manifestations across various fields of study. This interdisciplinary collaboration culminated in the publication of The Language of Symmetry, which coincided with an eponymous event at the British Museum hosted by Benedict Rattigan and Denis Noble. 

‘The Language of Symmetry takes the reader on a fascinating interdisciplinary tour of the various different ways in which both classical symmetry and the order-chaos dichotomy are understood to apply in hugely diverse contexts… The book makes it abundantly clear, and in an engaging manner, that a synergy and even an interdependency between order and chaos underlies many aspects of the Universe.’  Peter L Read, Emeritus Professor of Physics, Oxford University

‘This is, without doubt, a stimulating and challenging book. It presents novel (even outrageous) concepts and produces evidence to support them. It challenges some of our mostly deeply embedded notions of how nature works at all levels… A brave attempt to elevate the ideas of order, disorder, and stochasticity to the level that they deserve. This is a book to be read and re-read slowly and to be thought about deeply.’  Ken Peach, Emeritus Professor of Physics, Oxford University

‘A remarkable book that releases an intellectual depth charge. It will go bang but there will need to be time and exposure to know what submarines it hits and what flotsam and jetsam float to the surface as a result… There is an almost comic degree to which a tiny book review can’t convey what has been achieved here.’  QUAD: The Oxford Alumni Journal 

Given the field's swift progression, many ideas presented in this book have already been expanded upon or refined by subsequent research. For the most current discourse on dynamic symmetry, including the latest scholarly articles and interdisciplinary applications, visit the OXQ  website.