Scientific American staff editor and writer Musser offers general readers an explanation of string theory and how it measures up against other theories about the deepest workings of nature. Coverage includes an overview of string theory; the clashing worldviews of Einstein's theory of relativity and quantum theory; the need for a unifying theory; string theory and other approaches to a unified theory; expanding concepts of reality, such as higher dimensions of space, parallel universes, novel behaviors, new interrelationships among types of matter and forces, and the idea that time and space are composed of something that is timeless and spaceless; and how string theory has been used to understand phenomena such as black holes, the big bang, and quantum theory. Annotation ©2009 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)