Ruelle, French professor of theoretical physics and author of several graduate-level mathematics and physics texts, here demonstrates the advanced ability to teach the general reader with conversational grace. The pace of his ''walk among the scientific results of the twentieth century'' does not rely on ''great men'' nor yet on historicity but on good structure. Ruelle guides the reader through Godel's theorem, quantum mechanics, strange attractors and a half-dozen of the most exotic modern theories. All the while his twin themes, mathematical chance and chaos theory, bound alongside like two dachshunds on a leash. If these themes wander into less fruitful speculations about the mathematical function of sex, for example, nonetheless Ruelle's ''walk'' has clarity and delight. To his credit, he does not spare the reader all of the number theory and notation. Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.