This book gives a broad synthesis of conceptual developments of twentieth-century field theories, from the general theory of relativity to quantum field theory and gauge theory. The author gives a historico-critical exposition of the conceptual foundations of the theories revealing a pattern to the evolution of these conceptions. Theoretical physicists and students of theoretical physics will find in this book an account of the foundational problems of their discipline that will help them understand the internal logic and dynamics of their subject. In addition the book will provide professional historians and philosophers of science, and especially philosophers of physics, with a conceptual basis for further historical, cultural and sociological analysis of the theories discussed. The book also contains much material for philosophical (metaphysical, methodological and semantical) reflection. Finally, the scientifically qualified general reader will find in this book a deeper analysis of contemporary conceptions of the physical world than can be found in popular accounts of the subject.

曹天予（1941- ），剑桥大学科学史和科学哲学博士，美国波士顿大学哲学系教授。曾是英国剑桥大学三一学院和牛津大学万灵学院的研究员；并在美国哈佛大学、麻省理工学院和伦敦经济学院做过访问研究；史密森学会的高级研究员，普林斯顿高等研究院自然科学院和史学院的成员。主要研究方向为当代理论物理学中的概念问题及其历史演变。发表论文50多篇，并编有《量子场论的概念基础》（剑桥大学出版社，1999年）和第20届世界哲学大会会议文集中的第10卷《科学哲学》（哲学文献出版社，2001年）。