A Little Book about the Big Bang

Tony Rothman

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Harvard University Press

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A Little Book about the Big Bang

Language: English

Published/Copyright: 2022

About this book

A concise introduction to the greatest questions of modern cosmology.

What came before the big bang? How will the universe evolve into the future? Will there be a big crunch? Questions like these have no definitive answers, but there are many contending theories. In A Little Book about the Big Bang, physicist and writer Tony Rothman guides expert and uninitiated readers alike through the most compelling mysteries surrounding the nature and origin of the universe.

Cosmologists are busy these days, actively researching dark energy, dark matter, and quantum gravity, all at the foundation of our understanding of space, time, and the laws governing the universe. Enlisting thoughtful analogies and a step-by-step approach, Rothman breaks down what is known and what isn’t and details the pioneering experimental techniques scientists are bringing to bear on riddles of nature at once utterly basic and stunningly complex. In Rothman’s telling, modern cosmology proves to be an intricate web of theoretical predictions confirmed by exquisitely precise observations, all of which make the theory of the big bang one of the most solid edifices ever constructed in the history of science. At the same time, Rothman is careful to distinguish established physics from speculation, and in doing so highlights current controversies and avenues of future exploration.

The idea of the big bang is now almost a century old, yet with each new year comes a fresh enigma. That is scientific progress in a nutshell: every groundbreaking discovery, every creative explanation, provokes new and more fundamental questions. Rothman takes stock of what we have learned and encourages readers to ponder the mysteries to come.

Reviews

Provides an accessible and engaging overview of modern cosmology for anyone who is not especially familiar with the subject…a model of craftsmanship.
-- Sean M. Carroll New York Review of Books

Everything a cosmos-curious reader could want: a clear, concise, yet comprehensive exploration of the biggest concepts in the universe.
-- Richard Panek, author of The Trouble with Gravity

The big bang is a big topic that Rothman handles with ease and elegance. For those craving an epic story, this is the book for you!
-- Paul M. Sutter, host of Ask a Spaceman!

A delightful romp through the exciting field of cosmology. Rothman’s book covers the topic in a clear and lucid way that any science enthusiast will enjoy. Five stars!
-- Don Lincoln, senior scientist and YouTube host for Fermilab

With humor and clarity, Tony Rothman elucidates the physics and philosophy behind the big bang theory, one of science’s crowning achievements. Though an expert in general relativity, Einstein’s masterful—and highly mathematical—theory of gravitation, Rothman has the gift of being able to explain his field and its application to the study of the universe, in an eminently understandable way without equations. A Little Book about the Big Bang is a must for anyone interested in a clear account of how the universe grew up into the starry wonder we witness today.
-- Paul Halpern, author of Flashes of Creation: George Gamow, Fred Hoyle, and the Great Big Bang Debate

Modern cosmology tells the fascinating tale of the evolution of the universe. Tony Rothman is our thoughtful guide, always careful to distinguish established science from speculative theory as we explore the fundamental nature of the big bang.
-- George Ellis, author of How Can Physics Underlie the Mind?

Tony Rothman’s book beautifully explores some of the biggest questions that humanity has pondered for centuries. A Little Book about the Big Bang highlights the cutting-edge work being done by cosmologists, who in recent decades have made extraordinary progress toward revealing the secrets of our universe. Read this book—you will be inspired.
-- Neta Bahcall, Eugene Higgins Professor of Astrophysics, Princeton University

A remarkably comprehensive account of modern cosmology. Rothman emphasizes what we confidently know about the big bang, but also provides insight into the important unanswered questions in the field, taking us to where the deep puzzles lie.
-- Michael Strauss, coauthor of A Brief Welcome to the Universe

A concise examination of the origin of the universe…Lucid and informative.
-- Kirkus Reviews

Aims to guide both laymen and experts through the latest scientific thinking on the subject…Explains complex ideas clearly with useful analogies, some simple diagrams, and very little mathematics…This book may look small in size but, much like Doctor Who’s TARDIS, on the inside it is so much bigger.
-- Jenny Winder BBC Sky at Night

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Frontmatter
i

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Contents
vii

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Also by Tony Rothman
ix

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Introduction
1

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1. Gravity, Pumpkins, and Cosmology
11

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2. A Special Theory
20

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3. General Relativity, the Basis of Cosmology
29

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4. The Expanding Universe
47

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5. Cosmology’s Rosetta Stone: The Cosmic Background Radiation
63

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6. The Primeval Cauldron
76

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7. Dark Universe
93

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8. Darker Universe
105

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9. Galaxies Exist and So Do We
116

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10. The Universal Pipe Organ
126

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11. The First Blink: Cosmic Inflation
142

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12. To Inflate or Not to Inflate
156

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13. Crunches and Bounces
167

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14. Why Quantum Gravity?
176

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15. Multiverses and Metaphysics
195

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Further Reading
209

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Acknowledgments
213

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Index
215

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Publishing information

Pages and Images/Illustrations in book

eBook published on:

April 5, 2022

eBook ISBN:

9780674276314

Pages and Images/Illustrations in book

https://doi.org/10.4159/9780674276314

eBook ISBN: 9780674276314

Harvard University Press

A Little Book about the Big Bang

Overview

About this book

Reviews

Topics

Table of contents

Frontmatter

Contents

Also by Tony Rothman

Introduction

1. Gravity, Pumpkins, and Cosmology

2. A Special Theory

3. General Relativity, the Basis of Cosmology

4. The Expanding Universe

5. Cosmology’s Rosetta Stone: The Cosmic Background Radiation

6. The Primeval Cauldron

7. Dark Universe

8. Darker Universe

9. Galaxies Exist and So Do We

10. The Universal Pipe Organ

11. The First Blink: Cosmic Inflation

12. To Inflate or Not to Inflate

13. Crunches and Bounces

14. Why Quantum Gravity?

15. Multiverses and Metaphysics

Further Reading

Acknowledgments

Index

Bibliographic data