Explaining Today's Physics Through History and Biography

Quantum computers, string theory, holographic universes--to the general audience, today's physics can be as mystifying as it is fascinating. But modern ideas evolved from an earlier phase of physics--Newtonian mechanics, simple cause and effect--that is in principle easier for the non-expert to grasp. I have found that writing about physics from a historical and biographical perspective is an effective way to convey modern thinking by explaining where it comes from--it is a way of carrying the reader from concepts that make intuitive sense to ideas that seem, on first encounter, utterly bizarre. Smuggling explanations into stories satisfies the reader's desire for narrative--bearing in mind that narrative can include the evolution of ideas as well as tales about intriguing and original people.