You've got to get some statistical mechanics on this list. One would have a very difficult understanding quantum field theory without at least some experience considering phase transitions in more familiar settings.
I used to be an experimental particle physicist, so I've certainly got some bias here, but I really think learning particle physics and the Standard Model is worth while. Halzen and Martin is a VERY good textbook and an excellent preparation for studying quantum field theory.
Yes, it is expensive. But it is very well written and thorough.
Also, I think it's always important to mention in these conversations that most physicists don't take string theory seriously. From the outside, it looks like the exciting frontier of modern physics. But that's more about Brian Greene's skill in marketing himself than string theory's explanatory value.
That being said, the Fabric of the Cosmos is a good layman's survey of the modern physics landscape:
Feynman's Statistical Mechanics is a pleasant read: http://www.amazon.com/Statistical-Mechanics-Lectures-Advance...
I used to be an experimental particle physicist, so I've certainly got some bias here, but I really think learning particle physics and the Standard Model is worth while. Halzen and Martin is a VERY good textbook and an excellent preparation for studying quantum field theory.
http://www.amazon.com/Quarks-Leptons-Introductory-Particle-P...
Yes, it is expensive. But it is very well written and thorough.
Also, I think it's always important to mention in these conversations that most physicists don't take string theory seriously. From the outside, it looks like the exciting frontier of modern physics. But that's more about Brian Greene's skill in marketing himself than string theory's explanatory value.
That being said, the Fabric of the Cosmos is a good layman's survey of the modern physics landscape:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fabric_of_the_Cosmos
Just bear in mind that Greene makes a lot of claims that aren't experimentally justified in chapters 12 and onward.