The first female theoretical physicist to gain tenure at Harvard, where she is currently a Professor, Lisa Randall was also the first tenured woman in the Princeton physics department, and the first tenured woman theoretical physicist at MIT. In Warped Passages, she takes readers into the incredible world of warped, hidden dimensions that underpin the universe we live in. She describes, in clear, bright prose for the non-specialist, how we might prove the existence of a fifth dimension beyond the four known dimensions of time and space, while examining the questions that they still leave unanswered. With the book, Randall demystifies the science, and beguilingly unravels the mysteries of the myriad worlds that may exist just beyond the one we are only now beginning to know.

Randall's entire body of influential work in theoretical high-energy physics has changed the way scientists think about and research the universe. She gained her renown by investigating possibilities for particle physics and cosmology when there are more than three dimensions, finding that extra dimensions could have astounding implications, such as the possibility of a fifth dimension of infinite extent that is nonetheless invisible. This work overturned the canonical belief, held since 1920, that extra dimensions, should they exist, must be rolled up to a very small size. She has also shown how "warped" five-dimensional space-time could naturally explain the extreme weakness of gravity relative to other forces, which remains a major puzzle in conventional particle physics.

Lisa Randall was recently named to the TIME 100, a list of people who are shaping our world. A recipient of an Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Fellowship, a National Science Foundation Young Investigator Award, and the Klopsted Award from the American Society of Physics Teachers, Randall was also featured in Newsweek's 2006 "Who's Next" issue. She is that rare breed of scientist who not only makes rigorously tested and groundbreaking discoveries—she also works hard to make those maddeningly complex theories understandable for the average citizen, to whom these debates and findings could have a huge impact.

The universe has its secrets. Extra dimensions of space might be one of them. If so, the universe has been hiding those dimensions, protecting them, keeping them coyly under wraps. From a casual glance, you would never suspect a thing. Lisa Randall is out to expose those secrets. In her lectures she provides listeners with a new understanding of the universe—what it is, how it developed, and where it is headed. With a focus on the idea of extra dimensions, she tackles some of the big questions in physics and astronomy, showing how the existence of these dimensions would solve some of the major mysteries in the relationship between particle physics and cosmology—connections that are difficult to understand with only three dimensions. She also explores how we might actually conduct experiments to prove the existence of these dimensions. Randall is a brilliant communicator and, via her infectious enthusiasm, is able to make the most sophisticated concepts in string theory, holography, supersymmetry and cosmology accessible and entertaining. She is an outstanding choice for any campus group hoping to draw a mixed audience of specialists and non-specialists alike.