Our Cosmic Habitat [Paperback]

It's some two years between Our Cosmic Habitat and Sir Martin Rees' explanation why the universe is the way it is, thanks to Just Six Numbers. Six physical constants express our universe--a universe big enough and long-lived enough to engender consciousness. If the numbers were other than they are, we wouldn't be around to know about it. Our Cosmic Habitat is a smoother read, as Rees works his explanations inwards, from the physical world towards the numbers at its heart. But Rees offers more than a revamped description. The clue to the book's real value lies in the title. Our universe is a habitat. If you want to understand how a habitat works, you have to sweep away the trivia and the accidents, the merely local conditions, and uncover the underlying rules. And it isn't easy.

Could it be that those six numbers could be very slightly different, and still give rise to a conscious universe? If, as Rees speculates, there may be many universes, spawning other universes, all the time, then maybe those six numbers of his merely reflect the rough conditions necessary for the existence of a world such as ours. If he is right, this has massive implications for the kinds of answers physics can at present offer. Sweating over the precise relations between these difficult numbers in the hope of uncovering a "unified theory" will turn out to be as futile as trying to predict the precise arrangement of a snowflake, a column of tap water, the whirl of a thumbprint.

But this, it seems, is the perennial peril of science. One moment you're attaining an objective vision of underlying processes. The next, you're asking the equivalent of why, of all the bars in all the world, she had to walk into yours... --Simon Ings --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Martin appeared in the Sunday Times 16th February as author of the A Little Night Reading column his paperback writers column for The Guardian Saturday Review, was published on March 29th. An article by Martin was article of the week on www.firstscience.com. The book is mentioned as further reading in a number of articles/reviews of his new book published with Heinemann. Martin appeared on the Fi Glover Program, BBC Radio 5 on Thursday 27th February and a special National Science Week program for BBC Radio Cambridge on March 19th hewas interviewed in more depth by BBC Radio Cambridge on Sunday 6th April. Review have appeared in The Sunday Times and Focus with a notice in Nature re the publication of the paperback. He provides an excellent introduction to thesubject, moving deftly from the extremely large to the very small...SUNDAY TI

… a pleasingly concise and always intriguing tour d’horizon --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Probably the clearest and most easily understandable account of our Universe available. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

the book is concise and shines with the dry wit and street-wisdom of a veteran in the field --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Lay readers will appreciate Rees' clear, uncomplicated prose, even when dealing with tough stuff that leaves most physicists tongue-tied. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Our universe seems strangely 'biophilic,' or hospitable to life. Is this providence or coincidence? According to Martin Rees, the answer depends on the answer to another question, the one posed by Einstein's famous remark: 'What interests me most is whether God could have made the world differently.' This highly engaging book centres on the fascinating consequences of the answer being 'yes'. Rees explores the notion that our universe is just part of a vast 'multiverse,' or ensemble of universes, in which most of the other universes are lifeless. What we call the laws of nature would then be local bylaws, imposed in the aftermath of our own Big Bang. In this scenario, our cosmic habitat would be a special, possibly unique universe where the prevailing laws of physics allowed life to emerge.

"This book is original, stimulating, and charmingly modest while sketching some grand ideas. There may be better guides to thinking about the universe than Martin Rees, but not on our planet!"--Robert P. Kirshner, Harvard University and Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics

"Our Cosmic Habitat is certain to be widely quoted and widely read. It is beautifully written, using inspiring and stimulating analogies. While the book is intended for the nonscientist, it provides an accurate guide to the best current thinking about the nature and constitution of our universe. If I wanted to give a gift to a person I would like to become a close friend, this is the book I would choose."--John N. Bahcall, Institute for Advanced Study

"In this book, Martin Rees, one of the leading figures in theoretical astrophysics, offers the reader his unique perspective on the field and introduces many of the most exciting new results and ideas in astronomy."--David N. Spergel, Princeton University

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Sir Martin Rees is Royal Society Research Professor at Cambridge University, and holds the title of Astronomer Royal.