Do aliens speak the language of physics? And other questions about science and the nature of reality

Whiteson and Warner build their reasoning on thought experiments about first contact. They propose to imagine beings whose science is thousands of years ahead of ours and wonder whether they could convey their knowledge to us and whether we would be able to perceive it. The authors investigate whether scientific laws depend on human perception, biology, and culture. Possible differences in sensory organs, modes of thinking, language, theories, and technologies of aliens are discussed inside. Would they perceive electrons and photons differently than humans, and do they even need a scientific theory? These questions lie at the intersection of physics, astronomy, and the philosophy of science.