Hacker Newsnew | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submitlogin

There's a book called "Structure and Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics", by R. I. G. Hughes which is split into two parts, the first describing the mathematical structure of QM and the second discussing philosophical interpretations. I haven't read "Structure and Interpretation of Classical Mechanics" so I don't know if it has anything in common besides the title, but I love SIQM. It's beautifully explained and approaches the subject from an unusual angle for an introductory book. It does have both these things in common with SICP, which was also co-written by Sussman.


I was reading old reviews of the two books here on HN a few days ago, and no, there's nothing in common besides the name.


If it was this review, it tells you nothing about the book: https//news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5706631. The Amazon reviews are a lot more informative.

That said, I agree that SIQM and SICP are totally different (again, I haven't read SICM), and I suspect the similar naming is a coincidence. In my mind, they're linked only by the name and and the qualities I mentioned before (they are two of my favourite books). I read SIQM as a physics undergraduate before I ever heard of SICP, and it has nothing whatsoever to do with computers. As a philosophy professor writing about quantum mechanics, I doubt the author was aware of the existence of SICP, let alone that he was attempting to "ride on its coattails" as the linked comment claims.

Regarding the names, SICP and SIQM use the terms "structure" and "interpretation" in very different ways. In SIQM it's structure in the sense of the mathematical structure of the theory (Hilbert spaces, operators, eigenvalues, etc) and interpretation in the sense of philosophical interpretations (eg. the Copenhagen interpretation. The title is therefore a straightforward description of the two separate sections of the book. With SICP I was never really clear on the meaning of the title, particularly the interpretation part: interpretation by a human or a computer, or is it deliberately ambiguous?

There's also a minor, but telling, difference in the titles: SIQM's title actually starts with "The".




Consider applying for YC's Summer 2026 batch! Applications are open till May 4

Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: