Jim Baggott

Science Writer, Cape Town, South Africa

Jim Baggott is an award-winning British science writer based in Cape Town, South Africa. His new book Discordance: The Troubled History of the Hubble Constant will be published by Oxford University Press in October 2025.

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Written by Jim Baggott

A scientist standing a large metal tunnel with hexagonal gold mirrors at the end of it.

essayCosmology

The Big Bang’s big gaps

The current theory for the origin of the Universe is remarkably successful yet full of explanatory holes. Expect surprises

Jim Baggott

Abstract colourful illustration showing various sections of a face and a black cat with lines and geometric shapes, from the perspective of someone peeing into a box.

essayPhysics

The cat that wouldn’t die

The weird paradox of Schrödinger’s cat has found a lasting popularity. What does it mean for the future of quantum physics?

Jim Baggott

Abstract artwork featuring geometric shapes, primarily red and black triangles, against a white background. Russian text is interspersed, with a red triangle pointing rightward and a large white circle on the right. Various smaller shapes and text elements are scattered around.

essayQuantum theory

Quantum dialectics

When quantum mechanics posed a threat to the Marxist doctrine of materialism, communist physicists sought to reconcile the two

Jim Baggott

Black-and-white photo of a man looking at a projector screen displaying scientific diagrams and symbols.

essayHistory of science

Calculate but don’t shut up

The cliché has it that the Copenhagen interpretation demands adherence without deep enquiry. That does physics a disservice

Jim Baggott

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essayPhilosophy of science

How science fails

For the émigré philosopher Imre Lakatos, science degenerates unless it is theoretically and experimentally progressive

Jim Baggott

An unlit candle beside a lit one reflected in a mirror creating the illusion both are lit, on a table with a dark background.

essayPhilosophy of science

But is it science?

Theoretical physicists who say the multiverse exists set a dangerous precedent: science based on zero empirical evidence

Jim Baggott

Vintage photo of Albert Einstein and Niels Bohr in hats and suits walking down a street with trees and buildings in the background.

ideaHistory of science

What Einstein meant by ‘God does not play dice’

Jim Baggott