During the last 30 years Kip Thorne has had the joy of participating in a great quest. The quest to understand Einstein's general theory of relativity and its predictions about the universe, and the quest to discern where and how Einstein's theory fails and what then replaces it. This quest has lead him through the labyrinths of exotic objects: black holes, white dwarfs, neutron stars, singularities, gravitational waves, worm-holes and yes, even time machines. The quest, with its hundreds of participants scattered over the globe has led him to appreciate the international character of science, the different ways that scientific enterprise is organized in different societies, and the inexorable manner in which science bas been intertwined with political currents, especially the Soviet/American conflict. This book is the author's attempts to share these insights with lay readers, and the scientists who work in fields other than his. A book of many interlocking themes held together by a thread of history; the history of the development of our times about curved space and warped time, and most especially black holes.
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First Sentence
Please forgive a father who is so bold as to turn to you, esteemed Herr Professor, in the interest of his son. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
Please forgive a father who is so bold as to turn to you, esteemed Herr Professor, in the interest of his son. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
Kip Thorne worked long on this book (originaly published in 1993), but the result is worth his and the readers effort. Both history of science and popular science - written by someone who participated in some of the discoveries it describes - this tells the tale of the mathematical discovery of black holes, the opposition to the idea of a lot of eminent scientists (Einstein among them), and the gradual realisation that black holes do realy exist. Thorne ponders on several of the ramifications black holes have on our understanding of the universe, not in the least the possibility of time travel. However, science fiction readers will be disapointed to learn why time travel through black holes probably is scientificaly impossible. A very enjoyable and thoughtprovoking text; as with all good books, you loath the moment when you reach the last page. A pity Thorne is a careful, slow writer. An update that brings the subject to the present would be most welcome. (The science in this book is not too difficult, especialy if your interested in this sort of subject. I myself studied history and my physics and mathematics background is poor to say the least. The reader with a physics or mathematics background will find lots of technical detail in the many notes.)
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
This book, written by the great cosmologist Professor Kip Thorne, leads us through some of the wonders and paradoxes of the universe.
If you want to escape from your world, you can do no better than join him. He takes us step by step through the various discoveries that have led to this understanding of the universe in which we have evolved, in our own little corner, on this little planet.
Reading is like living in a movie, so brilliantly and with such passion, does he describe this epic search for truth.
The factual information he gives about the universe and reality itself as we proceed, provides a riveting tableau of our surroundings and universal history.
If you are interested in what lies beyond the horizon of Earth, this book is a must!
If you want to escape from your world, you can do no better than join him. He takes us step by step through the various discoveries that have led to this understanding of the universe in which we have evolved, in our own little corner, on this little planet.
Reading is like living in a movie, so brilliantly and with such passion, does he describe this epic search for truth.
The factual information he gives about the universe and reality itself as we proceed, provides a riveting tableau of our surroundings and universal history.
If you are interested in what lies beyond the horizon of Earth, this book is a must!
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By Rama Rao
Format:Paperback
Kip Thorne is an eccentric author who reveals scientific enterprise of quantum gravity and black holes research in a simple language. This book is rich in history, and classical (Newtonian physics and theory of relativity) and modern physics (quantum mechanics) are presented in non mathematical form. We get rare first hand insights of scientific styles and temperament, and his personal involvement in various aspects of black holes research and his interaction with scientists all over the world especially those from former Soviet Union and the impact of communism on black hole research. The first part of the book describes theory of relativity, concept of spacetime fabric of the universe and curvature of spacetime in presence of matter (stars, galaxies, etc.) to generate gravity. The author gives us a good historical background to build his case for black hole concept. Theory of relativity predicts the existence of black holes but Einstein refused to accept it and so is Arthur Eddington another leading exponent of theory of relativity. The idea of black holes remained in academic obscurity among few who believed in it and it progressively became clear that dying giant stars undergo implosions in which nuclear force the strongest of all four forces of cosmos buckles under gravitational force creating a blackholes. Black holes have been discovered in the center of dying giant stars and in centers of galaxies, and efforts are underway to detect the black hole gravitational waves carried to earth from distant parts of the universe and to seek the secret of what is inside a black hole: a route to another universe?... Read more ›
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This book was my actual first read on physics. That was about 3 years ago, and I haven't stop reading physics since then. Teacher could very well learn from his explaining, just as they would learn by reading ANY Asimov's book. If you like this one, read Brian Greene's The Elegant Universe, never have I read a better explanation of the velocity of light and its consequences!
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful
By Russell Shaw
Format:Paperback
This book is a very readable account of the history of reasearching the very limits of our world - the large (cosmic) and the small (quantum). From Einsteins work on Relativity to the latest research into the physics of black holes and worm holes, this account takes us through the emotions all reasearchers have in their work. The elation of new discoveries and heartache of errors uncovered. From the early years of the big players in the US and USSR - through to thier "grand-child graduates" moving the boundaries of mathematics and physics to new depths. Kip has written a enthralling account behind the mathematical and physical discoveries surrounding the limits of cosmology - black holes, worm holes, and ... time warps(!). From the sci-fi prologue (what is the science and what is the fiction ?), I found this book very difficult to put down. For the lay reader there is very little mathematics and a lot of very good descriptions of all the concepts introduced. An excellent book and highly recommended.
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Amazing
This book is truly amazing, a great introduction to ideas such as special relativity. Whilst some of the ideas may be a tad out of date the general picture painted by the book is... Read more
Published 6 months ago by Hiccup
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Definitely one of my favourite's
One of my favourite books and also one of the most influential. I read this in my teens, about 12 years ago, in the same summer that I read Hawking's Brief History of Time. Read more
Published 12 months ago by Edward A. Thomson
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