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Big Bang: The Most Important Scientific Discovery of All Time and Why You Need to Know About It [Hardcover]

Simon Singh
4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (59 customer reviews)

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Book Description

4 Oct 2004

The bestselling author of ‘Fermat’s Last Theorem’ and ‘The Code Book’ tells the story of the brilliant minds that deciphered the mysteries of the Big Bang.

Albert Einstein once said: ‘The most incomprehensible thing about the universe is that it is comprehensible.’ Simon Singh believes geniuses like Einstein are not the only people able to grasp the physics that govern the universe. We all can.

As well as explaining what the Big Bang theory actually is, the book will address why cosmologists believe that it is an accurate description of the origin of the universe. It will also tell the story of the scientists who fought against the establishment idea of an eternal and unchanging universe. Simon Singh, renowned for making difficult ideas much less difficult than they first seem, is the perfect guide for this journey.

Everybody has heard of the Big Bang Theory. But how many of us can actually claim to understand it? With characteristic clarity and a narrative peppered with anecdotes and personal histories of those who have struggled to understand creation, Simon Singh has written the story of the most important theory ever.



Product details

  • Hardcover: 532 pages
  • Publisher: Fourth Estate; 1st edition (4 Oct 2004)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0007152515
  • ISBN-13: 978-0007152513
  • Product Dimensions: 23.6 x 15.8 x 5 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (59 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 207,530 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

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Review

Praise for ‘Fermat’s Last Theorem’:

‘To read [‘Fermat’s Last Theorem’] is to realise that there is a world of beauty and intellectural challenge that is denied to 99.9 per cent of us who are not high-level mathematicians.’ The Times

‘This is probably the best popular account of a scientific topic I have ever read.’ Irish Times

‘Reads like the chronicle of an obsessive love affair. It has the classic ingredients that Hollywood would recognise.’ Daily Mail

Praise for ‘The Code Book’:

‘Singh’s account combines readability with a more meaty level of technical analysis than any other I have seen. His powers of explanation are as dazzling as ever.’ Guardian

‘A great book.’ Observer

‘Singh as the knack of making the frightening world of number theory seem like child’s play, there is more than enough here to interest the mathematically squeamish.’ Daily Telegraph

‘[Singh tells] these stories with infectious relish…He alternates between explanation of how ciphers are constructed and are cracked, and tales of the skulduggery surrounding them.’ Sunday Times

About the Author

Simon Singh is a science journalist and TV producer. Having completed his PhD at Cambridge he worked from 1991 to 1997 at the BBC producing Tomorrow’s World and co-directing the BAFTA award-winning documentary Fermat’s Last Theorem for the Horizon series. In 1997, he published Fermat’s Last Theorem, which was a no 1 best-seller in Britain and translated into 22 languages. In 1999, he published The Code Book which was also an international bestseller and was the basis for the Channel 4 series The Science of Secrecy.


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Our universe is dotted with over 100 billion galaxies, and each one contains roughly 100 billion stars. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
40 of 40 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars A genuinely mind-expanding read! 13 Feb 2006
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
This book manages to make some of the most complex science in human history accessible and understandable. I haven't studied science for 20 years but with some perseverance I managed to learn an incredible amount from this book. Also it is full of incident, and human drama, and humour, and all kinds of entertaining anecdotes which sweeten the pill when you have to wade through 500 pages of physics! Not only did I learn about the Big Bang theory (which I now realise is no more a "theory" than radio waves or electricity) but I found myself genuinely understanding for the first time lots of physics I had supposedly already "learned". And not just physics: geography, astronomy, history... It's not an easy read, but well within the grasp of most educated people: a book that repays your effort and then some.
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23 of 23 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely brilliant 13 Aug 2005
Format:Paperback
This book by Simon Singh is absolutely brilliant and equally as enthralling as his other books. He has the knack of explaining complex things in simple and understandable language, and the summaries at the end of each chapter are excellent and useful. The book is long but each page is fascinating. You don't need any knowledge of science, physics or astronomy to appreciate it, just an enquiring mind. I can thoroughly recommend this book to everyone.
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15 of 15 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Big Bang 1 April 2006
By J. Otto
Format:Paperback
Particle physicist, Simon Singh, carries you on an interlectual journey through the creation and evolution of the universe. This is a powerful and insightful book into understanding science, and gives an elegant interpretation of the Big Bang theory - the explosive birth of the cosmos. Don't be fearful if your grasp of physics and mathematics is less than you would wish. The author's explanations are in simple to understand logic. Singh also gives the reader an engaging insight into the lives of scientists through the ages, and how the thinkining and religeous beliefs of the day, in many cases, was the enemy of enlightenment. Some of these great thinkers were ahead of their time and tragically became martyrs, others heroes in their own lifetime. Singh's book tells how science and the Big Bang theory have revolutionized our understanding of the cosmos. It will stretch your mind and your imagination. A must for every home library.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars Bang
The theory of the Big Bang is very hard to really understand. This book tries to explain how the theory came about and in my mind does a good job. Read more
Published 9 days ago by JHvW
5.0 out of 5 stars The best Physics book I've ever read
This book is fantastic. The easy story teller's style is incredibly engaging. The physics simply becomes part of the story. Read more
Published 11 days ago by Miss S Clarke
5.0 out of 5 stars For all you science wannabes!
I bought this for my grown up son who loves the TV show. He found it very interesting, informative and easy to read.
Published 3 months ago by AS
5.0 out of 5 stars Top Class
This is the second of Singh's books that I have read. It is a brilliant piece of work.

As with `Fermat's Last Theorem' he has written a highly informative, accessible... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Daniel Kolasinski
5.0 out of 5 stars More enthralling than Dickens
The five star reviews this book has received are absolutely correct. It is a fairly easy to read book about how the universe began and evolved but it is not dumbed down at all. Read more
Published 11 months ago by Jacmar
4.0 out of 5 stars Good read but not objective
I must admit I enjoyed the read. The style is very fluent. However the title is a little misleading as the majority of the book is taken with an engaging history lesson of... Read more
Published 12 months ago by G. Brooks
4.0 out of 5 stars a thrilling novel
i bought this book for 90 pence on amazon plus postage and packing and wolud gladly pay at least two pound plus p@p,no really from the first chapter to the end i found this read... Read more
Published 13 months ago by zargos
4.0 out of 5 stars Big Bang - Big Book!
Only half-way through so far, but this comprehensive book has provided an excellent history of astronomy and cosmology just about up to the present. Read more
Published 15 months ago by John
5.0 out of 5 stars Simply the best!
I dont think I really have much to add to the 41 other positive reviews except to say that this is my favourite science book so far. Read more
Published 15 months ago by xanadu
5.0 out of 5 stars Makes the Reader Feel Like a Genius
This is a marvellous, lucid book that discusses one of science's greatest discoveries, the Big Bang. Read more
Published 16 months ago by F Henwood
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