Product Description

In the last few years, scientists have begun to answer some of the most fundamental questions about the origin and early evolution of the universe. This book presents a fresh, engaging, and highly readable introduction to these ideas. Using novel, down-to-earth analogies, author James Lidsey deftly steers us along a journey back in time to the very origin of the universe. We are introduced to the fascinating ideas scientists are currently developing to explain what happened in the first billion, billion, billion, billionth of a second - the ‘inflationary’ epoch. Along the way we stop off to review the latest ideas on superstrings, parallel universes, and the ultimate fate of our universe. Lucid analogies, clear and concise prose, and straight-forward language make this book a delight to read. It makes accessible to the general reader some of the most profound and complex ideas about the origin of our universe currently challenging the world’s best scientists.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1893481 in Books
• Published on: 2000-09-18
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 160 pages

Review
‘The Bigger Bang provides a concise and well written overview of cosmological theory. The book is short and can be quickly read but it covers a wide range of topics, including issues at the forefront of current research. It can be profitably used as an introduction to cosmology for students, interested lay persons and researchers in other fields.’ Fred Adams, Physics World

‘James Lidsey takes readers on a cosmic journey and concludes that the bang might have been much bigger than previously thought.’ Valerie Jamieson, Times Higher Education Supplement

Customer Reviews

A review of the Physics involved in the Big Bang and beyond
Having been an avid fan of John Gribbin, Paul Davies, Hawking and the like, this was an outstanding read. It is eloquent, beautifully written, and surprisingly short. However, in a well organised sequence of chapters, it covers the subject of the big bang in extraordinarily fascinating detail.

The book starts with a short review of our universe. The author goes on to explain nuclear fusion in stars, the expansion of the universe, space, time and gravity, particles and forces. The book then shifts up a gear to cover grand unification, higher dimensions and superstrings, the Big Bang and beyond, inflating and eternal universes. The book finishes with the reader left in thought concerning the role of black holes and possible scenarious for the birth of our universe.

The book is a good night time read since the reader can cover many chapters without being bogged down in unnecessary mathematical detail. The author uses fascinating original analogies and explains difficult concepts with ease. His book gave me access for the first time to understanding how the forces of nature can be explained in terms of higher dimensions and an appreciation of unification.

I would highly recommend this book to undergraduate and A level student alike, as well as to the lay reader wanting a deeper insight how physics explains one of the most tantalising problems of our age, namely how our universe began. James Lidsey must be congratulated on an extremely well written and accessible book on a difficult subject.

Highly recommended
In this short book (160 pages), Professor James E. Lindsey of the University of London attempts to explain the latest (published in 2000) thinking in cosmology and quantum physics. Using everyday English and simple to understand analogies, he makes all of the most complex theories and concepts relatively easy to understand. I found this book to be well within my ability to understand, and yet highly informative. If you are interested in modern physics and cosmology, then I highly recommend this book to you.