| ||||||||||||||||||
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Plus, get an extra £5 Gift Certificate when you trade in books worth £10 or more before June 30, 2012. Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. |
Product details
|
More About the Author
Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
As an astrophysicist by training and subsequently a science journalist for Nature and editor for the New Scientist, John Gribbin is well equipped to give an overview of the remarkable growth and development of ideas over the last decade or so concerning the origin of the Universe. Space exploration and associated new technology have produced so much new data that it is hard for the general reader to keep pace with it all.
Gribbin is an expert guide who knows how to explain complex ideas in simple terms without being carried away with inappropriate analogies and without being condescending. Not unreasonably, the reader does have to make an effort as well. Sensibly, Gribbin does however gradually build up his story from the basics, such as The Second Law of Thermodynamics. The discovery of the depths of the galactic space, the realm of nebulae which Gribbin evocatively calls "the cosmic landscape" and the idea of an expanding universe follow. The history of modern cosmology from Einstein's "Theory of General Relativity", the measurement of the age of the Universe and other developments lead up to the possibility of the "Big Bang".
Like all good stories, the excitement is maintained by the way it is told, with the introduction of historical and personal details of the scientists involved. Gribbin's own history allows him to provide something of an insider's view, which few other non-academic writers have. For instance, he can write of a visit to Cambridge in 1967 to hear Wagoner, Fowler and Hoyle present some results relating to the Big Bang, at which Gribbin recalls "the penetrating questions asked ...by an unknown Cambridge research student, Stephen Hawking".
The problems of the Big Bang theory and the attempts to resolve them, the discovery of background microwaves, quarks, black holes andcosmic string theory fill the latter third of the book. As Gribbin says despite rumours that the Big Bang theory is "terminally flawed", it is "very much alive and well". Not only do we have a good idea about how the Universe began but we have- as Gribbin shows in this new and revised edition of a book first published in 1986--"a fair idea of how it will end". Chapter notes, a bibliography and excellent index help negotiate one's way. --Douglas Palmer
Review
'Witty, entertaining and learned, his book is the work of an expert raconteur' Economist
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I read this after reading "Brief Hisory of Time" and I'd say it's good because it's easier to understand and complex ideas are put into simple language so it is absolutely clear what is being said. It's not too complicated and I'd recommend this book to any non-physicist who wants to know more about Cosmology.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is a fine book explaining the theorys (up till the time of publication) that were prevelant at the time and the steps it took to get to them. For me it also blended the world of the large, i.e. stars and galaxies, with the world of the small, protons and electrons. Very entertaining read and will spark your interest in other scientists and their work. My only critisism is that the current edition removes an awful lot of the particle physics that was present in the first edition and this section in the original book was the most interesting and a great introduction to the subject leading on to more technical books.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
John Gribben always writes good books. Hie style is so good because he is a good writer as well as a good scientist. He simplifies matters without losing their magnitude and builds up ideas which keep you in touch. The book can be enjoyed by the whole reading public irrespective of their knowledge of this kind of science. It's a very good treatment of the matter, coming at it from a number of angles and tying these up neatly. While doing this enough questions are left open to stimulate your interest further. This is an elegant dissection and treatment of a difficult subject which loses nothing.
At the end of the book, you can put it away, full enough of the topic to be satisfied. Or, you may well be driven on to look for even more about this amazing subject.
At the end of the book, you can put it away, full enough of the topic to be satisfied. Or, you may well be driven on to look for even more about this amazing subject.
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Listmania!
|
|
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
