Books to Read: Cosmology

“The true University of these days is a Collection of Books.”
— Thomas Carlyle (1795-1881), The Hero as a Man of Letters

Cosmology Books: see this universe as one song...
	*Michio Kaku, Hyperspace: A Scientific Odyssey Through Parallel Universes, Time Warps and the Tenth Dimension(1995), Anchor, ISBN: 0385477058— This book is a popular account of the revolution rocking the foundation of modern physics, as physicists are forced to confront the existence of unseen, higher dimensions. This, in turn, may eventually settle age-old questions about time travel and parallel universes. The book was selected one of the best science books of the year by both Washington Postand New York Times.* The book begins with early attempts, by mystics, philosophers, writers, to visualize and conceptualize dimensions beyond length, width, and height. Then it soars into higher dimensions, which have “more room” in which to incorporate all the forces of the universe. It traces hyperspace development to its modern form— superstring theory defined in 10 dimensions. Then it discusses possible future applications of quantum gravity, such as settling questions about time warps and wormholes which may take us to distant parts of the universe. Avg. Review (49):
	*Brian Greene, The Elegant Universe: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest for the Ultimate Theory* (1999), Norton, ISBN: 0393046885*— Today physicists and mathematicians throughout the world are feverishly working on the superstring theory as the key to the Unified Field Theory that eluded Einstein. In this brilliantly articulated and refreshingly clear book, Brian Greene, one of the world's leading physicists, relates the scientific story and the human struggle behind 20th-century physics' search for a theory of everything. Through the masterful use of metaphor and analogy, The Elegant Universe* makes some of the most sophisticated concepts ever contemplated viscerally accessible and thoroughly entertaining, bringing us closer than ever to understanding how the universe works. Washington Postreview: “Greene does an admirable job of translating a wholly mathematical endeavor into visual terms. Throughout his work, he writes with poetic eloquence and style.” Avg. Review (28):
	*Michael Talbot, The Holographic Universe(1992), Harper Perennial Library, ISBN: 0060922583— A delight for science buffs or anyone interested in the paranormal abilities of the mind, the latest frontiers of physics, and the unsolved riddles of brain and body, The Holographic Universe* explores the ways in which our concepts of time, personality, even consciousness, are altered by defining them as holographic. Talbot explains the theory advanced by University of London physicist David Bohm and Stanford's neurophysiologist Karl Pribram that despite its apparent tangible reality, the universe is actually a kind of 3-dimensional projection and is ultimately no more real than a hologram, a 3-D image projected into space. Avg. Review (21):
	*Stephen Hawking, A Brief History of Time10th anniversary ed. (1998), Bantam Doubleday Dell, ISBN: 0553380168— A Brief History of Time,* published in 1988, was a landmark volume in science writing and in world-wide acclaim and popularity, with more than 9 million copies in print globally. The original edition was on the cutting edge of what was then known about the origins and nature of the universe. But the ensuing years have seen extraordinary advances in the technology of observing both the micro-and the macrocosmic world— observations that have confirmed many of Hawking's theoretical predictions in the first edition of his book. Now a decade later, this edition updates the chapters throughout to document those advances, and also includes an entirely new chapter on Wormholes and Time Travel and a new introduction. It make vividly clear why this book has transformed our view of the universe. Avg. Review (19):