Product Description

From the zeros of the mathematician to the void of the philosophers, from Shakespeare to the empty set, from the ether to the quantum vacuum, from being and nothingness to creation ex nihilo, there is much ado about nothing at the heart of things. Recent exciting discoveries in astronomy are shown to shed new light on the nature of the vacuum and its dramatic effect upon the explanation of the Universe. This remarkable book ranges over every nook and cranny of nothingness to reveal how the human mind has had to make something of nothing in every field of human enquiry.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #224383 in Books
• Published on: 2001-07-05
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 400 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
From our modern perspective, it is easy to deride the wranglings of medieval scholars over the numbers of angels that could dance on the head of a pin and whether Nature abhorred a vacuum. But as John Barrow reveals in this timely and important book, new discoveries in science have shown that these scholars were right to suspect that Nothing has hidden depths. It is a concept shot through with paradoxes: even innocent-looking phrases like "Nothing is real" flip their meanings as we ponder them, like those illusions that look like a vase one moment, and opposing faces the next. Nothing is fertile too, as Barrow shows with a stunning trick that allows every number one can think of to be built out of nothing at all. But his book is about far more than mind games. Arguably the most important discovery of 20th century physics is that there is no such thing as nothing: even the tightest vacuum is teeming with sub-atomic particles popping in and out of existence according to the dictates of quantum theory. Now many astronomers suspect that such "vacuum effects" may have triggered the Big Bang itself, filling our universe with matter. Indeed, the very latest observations suggest that vacuum effects will dictate the ultimate fate of the universe. As an internationally respected cosmologist, Barrow does a fine job of explaining these new discoveries. The result is a book that is required reading for anyone wanting to understand why there will be much ado about Nothing among scientists in the years ahead --Robert Matthews

Review
"The startling story of the West's intellectual struggle with the concept of zero is told with admirable elegance and clarity." -"New Statesman"

Customer Reviews

A very interesting, but sometime hard reading book.
The book describes many different aspects of 'nothing'. The first part of the book describes how 'nothing' came to be, how the ancient people developed the ideas of 'nothing' and how they reacted to 'nothing.' I found this part of the book a bit slow, as I was really wanting to read about the scientific issues. The author then proceeds to describe the development of 'nothing' in science, ideas about the vacuum. After this short history lesson he then goes on to describe some thought demanding mathematical concepts. But he does not dwell too long on this and then begins to talk more about present ideas about vacuums and the grand unified theory amongst other things.

I am in the final year of high school I am studying maths and physics at a high level and I found at times the descriptions were hard to follow. Having said this you get out of the book what you put in and the topics discussed are very interesting. It is written after Steven Hawking's 'A Brief History of Time' and adds to some of the ideas talked about in there but I would still suggest that you should read 'A Brief History of Time' as well.

I liked this book at times, yes, it was a hard read and I had to go back and read bits again to get a good understanding but it was rewarding in the knowledge gained for it.

A Mixed Bag
An interesting book that possibly tries to do too much in too little space. Almost half of the book is about history. The history of the vacuum and of zero. It's interesting in itself but felt at odds with the rest of the book that dealt with more modern scientific theories and conjecture about vacuum states, possible universes and so on. As I was more interested in the latter, the former was a little tedious as I waited to get to the "interesting bits". However, if you are interested in the history, John Barrow gives a very readable account.

The second part was very interesting but heavy going at times. Some theories or hypotheses were explained well, others just wouldn't sink in. You have to be wide awake to get the best out of it or maybe just read the words at face value, without trying to get a full understanding about each subject.

So, a book roughly of two halves, each of which may have warranted a whole book each. I'd certainly like to have read more thorough explanations of many of the ideas about scalar fields, and vacuum energy states. Worth a read but I think it's going to take a second read for me to get the most out of this book.

Alright
Only John. D. Barrow could write a lot about nothing but otherwise still an interesting read