Free download or read online Fermats Enigma: The Epic Quest to Solve the Worlds Greatest Mathematical Problem pdf (ePUB) book. The first edition of the novel was published in September 8th 1997, and was written by Simon Singh. The book was published in multiple languages including English, consists of 315 pages and is available in Paperback format. The main characters of this science, non fiction story are,. The book has been awarded with Royal Society Science Book Prize Nominee for General Prize (1998), Independent Publisher Book Award (IPPY) for Science (1998) and many others. Some of the techniques listed in Fermats Enigma: The Epic Quest to Solve the Worlds Greatest Mathematical Problem may require a sound knowledge of Hypnosis, users are advised to either leave those sections or must have a basic understanding of the subject before practicing them.DMCA and Copyright: The book is not hosted on our servers, to remove the file please contact the source url. If you see a Google Drive link instead of source url, means that the file witch you will get after approval is just a summary of original book or the file has been already removed.
A half century ago, a shocking Washington Post headline claimed that the world began in five cataclysmic minutes rather than having existed for all time; a skeptical scientist dubbed the maverick theory the Big Bang. In this amazingly comprehensible history of the universe, Simon Singh decodes the mystery behind the Big Bang theory, lading us through the development of one A half century ago, a shocking Washington Post headline claimed that the world began in five cataclysmic minutes rather than having existed for all time; a skeptical scientist dubbed the maverick theory the Big Bang. In this amazingly comprehensible history of the universe, Simon Singh decodes the mystery behind the Big Bang theory, lading us through the development of one of the most extraordinary, important, and awe-inspiring theories in science. ‘ Curiosity’ is a curious thing! It’s the only quality that differentiates humans from all the other living organisms (well, at least on the surface of Earth!).
Solely driven by this ‘exclusive feature’, Man has discovered the intricate design of nature and invented his way to mimic it. If one speculates enough, he will find that all our technologies are simply based on the happenings going on around us in the nature. If you are a romantic one and like to see the nature’s creation as a Grand ‘ Curiosity’ is a curious thing! It’s the only quality that differentiates humans from all the other living organisms (well, at least on the surface of Earth!). Solely driven by this ‘exclusive feature’, Man has discovered the intricate design of nature and invented his way to mimic it. If one speculates enough, he will find that all our technologies are simply based on the happenings going on around us in the nature.
If you are a romantic one and like to see the nature’s creation as a Grand Opera, then perhaps, it won’t be too wrong to say that our technologies represent our rendition of this opera. The key to this derivation process is just raising a simple question, “ How did this happen?” and raising questions is science.
Science is a direct descendent of philosophy. While philosophy asks “ Why?”, science asks “ How?”. There are too many ' How?'
The idea is if we can gather enough answers to these questions, they will eventually lead us to the “ Why”. Finding an answer to one “How?” reveals that there are lots of other “Hows” lurking in the darkness. It’s like solving a ginormous cryptic puzzle.
The clues are right before our eyes but they are way too scattered. You pick one wrong clue, you are horribly led astray and this is a very frequent case.
Throughout the course of civilization, humans often forgot to raise questions, picked up the wrong clues and acted upon doctrinal views. These were (and still are) the obstacles in the way of finding the answers of “How”. The point today science is standing at, is achieved by walking through such an uneven path and the history is often bloody as well. Starting from the Greek philosophers’ era to the modern times, people have been wondering about the origin of everything and the idea of a 'Big Bang' seems to give us the answers, finally. Today Big Bang has become a very common concept and almost everyone you find on the streets can spend a few words on it.
Like many other science theories, Big Bang also had to fight a tough battle to survive. It might sound a little exaggerated, but Big Bang theory is said to be human kind’s greatest achievement (accumulating all the philosophical and scientific disciplines). So, one naturally can ask now how this great idea, that explains the creation’s origin, was conceived?British science writer Simon Singh produces a weighty tome on the history of Big Bang that tells the enthralling tales of the origin of the universe. There is science and there is history, a lot of history. Singh proves himself to be a great story teller who makes the highly complicated ideas very much accessible, literally to anyone. This book proves again that one doesn't have to be a science major to learn the science. You will have a good idea how scientists are calculating the enormous distances from our planet to the stars just by reading few paragraphs.
No mathematical manipulation, no tedious calculation, nothing! You will be badly hooked on this book once you start it, I can almost bet on it! The way the book is organized also allows you to keep things in mind without much stress. The tales of the mavericks, the mad scientists, based on whose contributions the Big Bang model is established, are very inspiring and fascinating. Famous astronomer Carl Sagan’s “Cosmos” inspired many to become real life astronomers. I think it won’t be surprising if Singh’s “Big Bang: The Origin of The Universe” plays a similar role.
For aspiring astronomers, physicists, even science writers, this book will be a great head start.The Universe is quite old. The Big Bang model gives us an average age of 13.8 billion years, as of today. Once people asked how we were created and many centuries later we found that Big Bang is probably the answer. Now another question has already been raised.
“ What happened before Big Bang?” Well, this certainly will give birth to a very hot philosophical (and religious too) debate and I do not possess enough knowledge and audacity (probably the scientists do not either!) to continue this discussion. Instead, I will simply quote St. Augustine (b. 354 AD) as Singh himself did in the epilogue of the book. I am putting it here for the sheer fun of it and nothing serious!“ What was God doing before He created the Universe?
Before He created Heaven and Earth, God created hell to be used for people such as you who ask this kind of question”! The most incomprehensible thing about the Universe is that it is comprehensible. Albert EinsteinThe Universe has some of the most amazing things you could ever imagine. Black Holes, Neutron Stars, Supernovas, Quasars, Galaxies, and all sorts of oddities in between. And yet the most remarkable thing is this pale blue dot, an ordinary planet orbiting an ordinary star, orbiting the core of an ordinary galaxy - one of the more than 200 billion galaxies in observable universe.Earth, from an image The most incomprehensible thing about the Universe is that it is comprehensible.
Albert EinsteinThe Universe has some of the most amazing things you could ever imagine. Black Holes, Neutron Stars, Supernovas, Quasars, Galaxies, and all sorts of oddities in between.
And yet the most remarkable thing is this pale blue dot, an ordinary planet orbiting an ordinary star, orbiting the core of an ordinary galaxy - one of the more than 200 billion galaxies in observable universe.Earth, from an image taken by Cassini, from underneath the rings of Saturn during its flyby of the planetBut ofcourse the earth isn't ordinary. It isn't ordinary because we, human beings, evolved on this planet. A species that has been able to contemplate its place amongst the cosmos. A species, and let this sink in, has dared to understand the origins of this universe.
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A species that has come so far that its truly a miracle - perhaps the only real miracle that ever happened. Its this wondrous journey that this book aims to catalogue.Now you have to be a bit of a space romantic to understand this book.
The author obviously likes to throw in those condescending explanations that are supposed to explain it to the layman - but despite his best efforts, you can't really. There's a reason that Big Bang theory only came to be accepted across the scientific community around the 1970s - and that is because it is remarkably difficult to wrap your head around.First, to believe that something (and the universe is a lot of something) could emerge from nothing is a bit of a leap, to say the least. For many years the argument against this argument was that this was exactly what Religion would have you believe.
And the big bang wasn't some explosion in space - rather it was the explosion of space. And that is literally the start of it.
Big Bang theorists would also like you to believe that for a universe that is 13.82 billion years old, they are able to predict how things were evolving a mere 10^-43 seconds after the bang. And that is utterly mind boggling.But hey, don't let the super technical details bog you down. My suspicion always has been that the scientists who devise these theories don't understand them too well either. And that is fine. Because like everywhere else in life, it is the journey that matters. The path that has led us to this current understanding of the universe has been littered with a ensemble cast of characters, who in their own small and grand ways, have made contributions to this fascinating story.
You could always go read the wikipedia article on Big Bang, and it'd tell you as much about the theory as you could ever hope to learn anyway.The part where Simon Singh succeeds, is in telling the story of this theory. About the wonder of discovery, and the sheer delight that comes with it. For anyone who has ever loved and romanticized the universe, this book is a must. For those of you who haven't, there's still a lot more to be found than just drab details.
Oh, and there's a reference to pigeon shit being referred to as white dialectic material. I found that quite funny. Full of fascinating historical anecdotes and character sketches, 'Big Bang' was fun as well as informative from start to finish. I struggle with physics books because my mind often has trouble grasping concepts at different scales from our own, but Singh writes and explains so well that I was not just able to understand but was able to teach it to my kids afterward! I now look at the skies differently as a result of reading this book, and my knowledge of the history of physics is a lot richer.
Full of fascinating historical anecdotes and character sketches, 'Big Bang' was fun as well as informative from start to finish. I struggle with physics books because my mind often has trouble grasping concepts at different scales from our own, but Singh writes and explains so well that I was not just able to understand but was able to teach it to my kids afterward! I now look at the skies differently as a result of reading this book, and my knowledge of the history of physics is a lot richer. Strongly recommended for anyone who likes science fact and history books. My wondering thrust me to a world of infinity. Confusion reached its nadir and I gasped to know it all.
Remembering 'Don't Panic', I started to organize my thoughts. I gathered the first step towards solving any of my bewilderment would be to understand the theories of how it all began - the universe, the time, the life. I turned to Stephan Hawking's widely unread bestseller 'A Brief History of Time'. Though it answered some of my questions, in turn posed many more than before. I realized that My wondering thrust me to a world of infinity. Confusion reached its nadir and I gasped to know it all.
Remembering 'Don't Panic', I started to organize my thoughts. I gathered the first step towards solving any of my bewilderment would be to understand the theories of how it all began - the universe, the time, the life. I turned to Stephan Hawking's widely unread bestseller 'A Brief History of Time'. Though it answered some of my questions, in turn posed many more than before. I realized that to move further I have to take a peep into Mr Einstein's mind.
Since my small mind is too simple to comprehend any complexities, I rather chose 'Relativity Simply Explained' by Martin Gardner. With vivid illustrations, the author tried to make me appreciate both the special and general theories of relativity, the concepts of space-time, the twin paradox, et al.
But again, I was not thoroughly convinced about my understanding. I oscillated between 'Oh! Now, I got it' and 'You lost me again.'
Desperate to get rid of the pricking confusions, I searched for a good source. In my favourite old book store, I found this book lying in one corner with 'Big Bang' written over its cover and below it an Indian name 'Simon Singh'. Reluctantly I put it in my book-cart.
And as I read through I became more and more convinced that this is by far the best book on this topic I had come across. The ease with which Singh has explained the concept of 'Time is personal' made me a big fan of the book. It not only clarified many of my doubts, but also fed me lots of food for thoughts. In the course of explaining the theories of universe, the book with a very illustrious way takes the reader through the history of the evolution of these ideas.
With humourous anecdotes related to famous scientists it amuses the reader while explaining the most complicated fundamentals.What I find the best about this book is - it doesn't try to be too technical with physics mumbo jumbo, rather it tries to explain each concept in a layman's way without discussing a single mathematical equation. Probably the author realized the essence of this Einstein saying - 'If you can't explain something to a six-year-old, you really don't understand it yourself.' The book mightn't have answered all my questions, but it did take me through Copernicus to Hoyle in a lyrical manner.
Reading it, the model of big bang has come alive in my mind. It definitely opened a window to cosmos. Today's sky looks so different and intriguing than yesterday's. This translates to a short history of the cosmos. A complex theory like that of big bang builds on a lot of knowledge, so the author begins with the ancient greeks and move forward from there.
The book is written with humour, insight into human nature and endless fascination about the universe. There is enthusiasm in every sentence. However, the book ends with the final proof that there really was an explosive start to the universe, which somehow feels a bit anti-climatic. 'Wasn't there more?' This translates to a short history of the cosmos. A complex theory like that of big bang builds on a lot of knowledge, so the author begins with the ancient greeks and move forward from there.
The book is written with humour, insight into human nature and endless fascination about the universe. There is enthusiasm in every sentence. However, the book ends with the final proof that there really was an explosive start to the universe, which somehow feels a bit anti-climatic. 'Wasn't there more?' Of course there's more, just not in this book. Nonetheless, a terrific read for any lay reader with a sound curiousity about the world we live in and where it came from. Simon Singh is one of my favorite authors.
He quickly rose to this rank after I read The Code Book, loved it way more than I ever expected, and afterward devoured every other book of his I could find. He has the unique ability to write nonfiction in a way that is as readable and intriguing as fiction, while simultaneously providing the complete context of the topic he has set out to explore.What I think is so commendable about Simon Singh is that he starts wayyyyy at the beginning of the story Simon Singh is one of my favorite authors. He quickly rose to this rank after I read The Code Book, loved it way more than I ever expected, and afterward devoured every other book of his I could find. He has the unique ability to write nonfiction in a way that is as readable and intriguing as fiction, while simultaneously providing the complete context of the topic he has set out to explore.What I think is so commendable about Simon Singh is that he starts wayyyyy at the beginning of the story in history- generations before the thought may ever occur to anyone- so that he can tell the entirety of the meaning of the topic. To me, that is the perfect way to learn about a subject. And the fact that he can do so on a nonfiction topic- spanning hundreds of years in his telling, dipping in and out of cosmology, mythology and physics- and still keep it readable goes to show how adept he is at these types of books. I'm not normally a nonfiction reader because I seem to have a short attention span for anything that comes off as too dry to me, but I was actually crushingly disappointed when I later realized I had read through all of his books available.Big Bang itself taught me a lot about a topic I thought I knew fairly well after all the times it had been mentioned in school.
It turned out there was a lot that I was missing and I found it fascinating to read a more complete history.I actually brought Big Bang home with me one Christmas for 'light reading.' A 500+ page book on The Big Bang Theory and the origin of the universe truly did feel like light reading to me. Of course, it ended up sparking some interesting conversation with a family member who doesn't happen to believe that the Big Bang occurred.Finally, I also have to say that my favorite, nerdiest insult I have ever heard came from this book:'One of the fiercest critics of the Big Bang model was the Bulgarian-born Fritz Zwicky, infamous among cosmologists for his eccentricity and recalcitrance. He had been invited to Caltech and Mount Wilson in 1925 by the Nobel Laureate Robert Millikan, and Zwicky repaid the favour by announcing on one occasion that Millikan had never had a good idea in his life. All of his colleagues were targets of his abuse and many of them were subjected to his favourite insult - 'spherical bastard.' Just as a sphere looks the same from every direction, a spherical bastard is someone who was a bastard whatever way you looked at them.'
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-Big Bang by Simon Singh, Chapter 4: Mavericks of the Cosmos, page 278Come on! A book that throws in little asides like that while teaching you about history is more than worth the read. I definitely recommend this book to anyone even slightly curious about this topic. I really enjoyed this book, especially after reading Singh's work on the history and proof of Fermat's Last Theorem. Singh is the perfect lay writer of science and science history. His prose flows quickly and he selects wonderful examples that explain more obscure topics.
His books, and writers like him, should be assigned reading in high schools, and even middle schools, to expose kids to the wonders of science that often come across as boring and useless in typical science classes. These types I really enjoyed this book, especially after reading Singh's work on the history and proof of Fermat's Last Theorem. Singh is the perfect lay writer of science and science history. His prose flows quickly and he selects wonderful examples that explain more obscure topics. His books, and writers like him, should be assigned reading in high schools, and even middle schools, to expose kids to the wonders of science that often come across as boring and useless in typical science classes. These types of work would be a great boast to STEM, and even the arts (STEAM), showing the importance, beauty and value of writing, communicating, and philosophizing.I guess people would assume I'd give this five stars. If I didn't know about the Big Bang and physics, I most likely would have.
My rating is more a mark of how I felt about the book. It was too beginner, even though I'm certainly not a scientist. I've read a bunch and have taken several high school & college physics and astronomy classes. So, when Singh was talking about physics, the text seemed to move too slowly. Now, if I wasn't familiar with the topic, it would have been perfect.
But, to be honest, I did learn some interesting physics in the book, e.g. The actual cause of redshift is related to the stretching of spacetime rather than a doppler shift effect (p. 270), how to create carbon from helium within a star (pp. 390-396), and that lithium and boron were produced around the same time helium was being created out of hydrogen (p. 398).As for the history of science, this is where Singh excels beyond most. I loved the history, the little tidbits, the emotions and the battles behind the theories, equations and discoveries.
There were so many intriguing things from the ancient world to today. I wish there had been more of these, but the book probably would have been twice as long! (The author mentions that in a Q&A appended to my edition, noting that his first draft had lots of neat items and it was about 1,000 pages long!). I'm also sad that the excitement of the public in response to these types of scientific discoveries seems to be fading, especially in the West and very especially in the US. Most people just don't seem to think science or the larger world is as exciting as spectator violence or reality TV.I hope that writers like Singh can help put excitement and interest back in peoples' minds, and more importantly, their hearts. This is what captured me as a small boy and it has carried me to today.
The wonder of a small child is something to try to grasp for each day. I'm a sucker for readable tomes explicating theoretical physics/ cosmology for the non-mathematically trained and feel compelled to pump up my puny understanding of the field every now and then. Singh kept me engaged almost all the way through The Big Bang(the book slacks off a bit toward the end)as he ran through the history of the science leading up to and encompassing the acceptance of The Big Bang theory as the most accurate description we now have of the origin and evolution of the I'm a sucker for readable tomes explicating theoretical physics/ cosmology for the non-mathematically trained and feel compelled to pump up my puny understanding of the field every now and then.
Singh kept me engaged almost all the way through The Big Bang(the book slacks off a bit toward the end)as he ran through the history of the science leading up to and encompassing the acceptance of The Big Bang theory as the most accurate description we now have of the origin and evolution of the universe. Most of the material here won't be new to anyone who has been paying attention or who has read such books as Brian Greene's Elegant Universe and/ or The Fabric of the Cosmos, but The Big Bang still provides a good review of the subject and an enjoyable read as well, with such anecdotes as the following to keep a reader amused: 'One tall tale explains how an astronomer driving to his observatory tried to use the Doppler effect to outwit the police. Having been caught jumping a red light, the astronomer argued that the light had appeared green to him because he was moving towards it and consequently it was blueshifted. The police officer excused him the ticket for running a red light, and instead doubled the fine and gave him a speeding ticket. To achieve such a dramatic wavelength shift, the astronomer would have had to be driving at roughly 200,000,000 km/h.' Simon Singh is a marvellously engaging non-fiction writer. Only straying from his central subject to relay a surprising or eyebrow-raising anecdote, he manages to paint a human face on the history of our perception of the universe.In telling the story of the Big Bang theory, the book takes you through miniature biographies and descriptions of the impact of the life-work of Galileo, Copernicus, Kepler, Hubble and many others who strove and discovered gems of cosmological truth through history.
Simon Singh is a marvellously engaging non-fiction writer. Only straying from his central subject to relay a surprising or eyebrow-raising anecdote, he manages to paint a human face on the history of our perception of the universe.In telling the story of the Big Bang theory, the book takes you through miniature biographies and descriptions of the impact of the life-work of Galileo, Copernicus, Kepler, Hubble and many others who strove and discovered gems of cosmological truth through history. Another epic by Simon Singh, a talented writer, and a great story-teller. The book can be undoubtedly considered as a small encyclopedia of Cosmology. The amount of information summarized over the course of hundred years in this compact book is fascinating. Likewise his previous works, the author takes a detour between subjects to explain other topics and then links it to the main story in an extraordinary way possible. No extra knowledge, besides some basic physical understanding, is requiredAnother epic by Simon Singh, a talented writer, and a great story-teller.
The book can be undoubtedly considered as a small encyclopedia of Cosmology. The amount of information summarized over the course of hundred years in this compact book is fascinating. Likewise his previous works, the author takes a detour between subjects to explain other topics and then links it to the main story in an extraordinary way possible.
No extra knowledge, besides some basic physical understanding, is required as a prerequisite to the scientific subjects.It inspired me to look again and understand the universe more deeply than ever before. The five chapters plus an epilogue section of the book would surely be in my ever-reading list.
Also, there is a great further reading list in the end of the book which is quite helpful for those who want to explore more. I've been a fan of Simon Singh since I read 'Fermat's Enigma', and this book was another great one. It's not just about the Big Bang theory, but about the whole history of cosmology, starting with the-earth-is-flat-and-at-the-center-of-the-universe beliefs, up until the present-day understanding of things.
He pulls in lots and lots of interesting characters, both well-known (Galileo and Einstein) and less well-known, all of whom are worthy of attention. Singh has a real gift for turning science I've been a fan of Simon Singh since I read 'Fermat's Enigma', and this book was another great one. It's not just about the Big Bang theory, but about the whole history of cosmology, starting with the-earth-is-flat-and-at-the-center-of-the-universe beliefs, up until the present-day understanding of things. He pulls in lots and lots of interesting characters, both well-known (Galileo and Einstein) and less well-known, all of whom are worthy of attention.
Singh has a real gift for turning science into a story, and explaining it in a way that non-scientists can understand. Human beings have always looked at the stars and wondered what is there beyond the houses, beyond the trees and mountains, beyond the sun and the moon and beyond everything else that we cannot see or understand. This quest has led many curious scientists since ages to come up with various theories on how we reached here and where we are going now.
The seemingly obvious facts like earth being round, took years of sound theory and lot of convincing to be accepted by the broader group. Obviously it Human beings have always looked at the stars and wondered what is there beyond the houses, beyond the trees and mountains, beyond the sun and the moon and beyond everything else that we cannot see or understand.
This quest has led many curious scientists since ages to come up with various theories on how we reached here and where we are going now. The seemingly obvious facts like earth being round, took years of sound theory and lot of convincing to be accepted by the broader group. Obviously it is not easy to take a new idea which is counter intuitive to everything that you have seen or heard before and to make it the new acceptable explanation of our surrounding.This scientific book is no less gripping than a thriller fiction. An army of researchers from different fields of science contributed in developing this theory of The Big Bang. It is fascinating to know that this unfathomable universe began with something that was smaller than the tip of a pen and evolved to where we see it now.If you are science lover, if you are curious, if you like philosophy or even if you are very religious; you will love this book which answers many questions on how we reached to this place at this time.
I'm surprised that I hadn't heard of Simon Singh earlier. He is a fantastic storyteller who makes science easy without dumbing it down. In this book he takes you through a fascinating journey from fables about how God created the universe, all the way to the Big Bang and the questions that still remain to be answered. He explains how each discovery led to questions which led to more discoveries. He also provides a peek into contemporary societal beliefs at each stage of this journey to show how I'm surprised that I hadn't heard of Simon Singh earlier. He is a fantastic storyteller who makes science easy without dumbing it down. In this book he takes you through a fascinating journey from fables about how God created the universe, all the way to the Big Bang and the questions that still remain to be answered.
He explains how each discovery led to questions which led to more discoveries. He also provides a peek into contemporary societal beliefs at each stage of this journey to show how heroic the scientists needed to be to defend their theories.
I'm now off to read more of his books. “If you want to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first create the universe.” Carl SaganIt may seem like a silly thing to say, but I like to know where I am.Living in Solon, Ohio, I know that Lake Erie is a few miles to the north (go to the end of our street and turn left). Downtown Cleveland is about 20 miles to the northwest, Chagrin Falls just east, Chicago about a 6 hour drive west, DC about 6 hours through Pennsylvania to the east.When I travel, I always look at a map, even if I’m “If you want to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first create the universe.” Carl SaganIt may seem like a silly thing to say, but I like to know where I am.Living in Solon, Ohio, I know that Lake Erie is a few miles to the north (go to the end of our street and turn left). Downtown Cleveland is about 20 miles to the northwest, Chagrin Falls just east, Chicago about a 6 hour drive west, DC about 6 hours through Pennsylvania to the east.When I travel, I always look at a map, even if I’m not driving; where is the hotel in relation to the airport, where is San Diego compared to LA and Tijuana, where is the French Quarter in relation to English Turn, to Tulane University, to Lake Ponchartrain?I understand that many people don’t bother themselves with where they are, they’re here.
(Many) women understand how to get somewhere by directions, left at the Burger King, right at the house with the big porch. Where they are is not important: which direction would you go to get to Chicago gets a blank look, left at Burger King?Lately men are just as bad. I asked a recent a 50-something male visitor to my home, which way did you come, Harper Road or Rt. I got a blank look; I just turned where the GPS told me.I like to know how things work. I understand how an internal combustion engine works, why a refrigerator is cold inside and hot underneath, what statistics mean and what they don’t mean.I like to think I understand the basics of current scientific thought; the significance of DNA to genetic development of organisms and species, the periodic table, the movement of the planets, the Big Bang Theory.This book is for people who like to know where they are – cosmologically speaking. I thought I had a thorough lay (non-mathematical – Colin don’t laugh) understanding of the general theory of relativity.
I read Hawking’s A Brief History of Time more than 20 years ago and many other popularizations since. But I always wondered, if the speed of light was a constant, how does gravitational attraction affect stars and planets instantly no matter how distant. Now I understand.Simon Singh has written a wonderfully readable, informative book about the development of mankind’s understanding about the universe. This book is not so much an explanation of the Big Bang itself as a historical event - at least not directly.
But the truth of the matter isn't so simple as to allow that anyway. Not all questions have yet been answered, the context isn't fully understood (it never is in science), and not everyone agrees even on the basics (Fred Hoyle, the astronomer who went to his grave as the most prominent critic of the Big Bang despite having inadvertently named it, has been dead for less than a decade). A This book is not so much an explanation of the Big Bang itself as a historical event - at least not directly.
But the truth of the matter isn't so simple as to allow that anyway. Not all questions have yet been answered, the context isn't fully understood (it never is in science), and not everyone agrees even on the basics (Fred Hoyle, the astronomer who went to his grave as the most prominent critic of the Big Bang despite having inadvertently named it, has been dead for less than a decade). A more contextually rich understanding is called for, requiring the story of how the knowledge was obtained, and it's that which this book provides. It's a scientific history book.The narrative opens with examples of human creation myths, and goes on for 500 pages to trace how they were supplanted by scientific observation and interpretation. The story isn't strictly chronological, and at times I didn't know what century I was reading about; the author's strategy is to follow several independent threads (prescient developments in theory, the growth of telescope technology, relevant advances elsewhere in physics, etc) and keep the flow of time in each one without precise regard for overall synchrony.
The result is a bit confusing, but it would probably have been even worse to mix events that aren't part of the same story.Simon Singh frequently takes pains to summarize what's just been explained. For example, each chapter (100 pages or so) ends with a two page graphical spread reminding the reader of key points. This makes comprehension easier and helps to distinguish the most important concepts and contributors from the incidental ones. There is, naturally, a good deal of science to wrestle with in this story of science, but it's always well explained, in text as well as images, and I doubt anyone with genuine interest combined with knowledge of high school science will be left behind. But science is only half of the story; the other half is the story of the rivalries and alliances that brought us the knowledge we have.The last chapter, an epilogue, helpfully recounts the major points once more before covering the notions and problems on the fringe of human cosmological understanding. This is always my favorite part of science literature.
Simon Lehna Singh, MBE is a British author who has specialised in writing about mathematical and scientific topics in an accessible manner. He is the maiden winner of the Lilavati Award.His written works include Fermat's Last Theorem (in the United States titled Fermat's Enigma: The Epic Quest to Solve the World's Greatest Mathematical Problem), The Code Book (about cryptography and its history), Simon Lehna Singh, MBE is a British author who has specialised in writing about mathematical and scientific topics in an accessible manner. He is the maiden winner of the Lilavati Award.His written works include Fermat's Last Theorem (in the United States titled Fermat's Enigma: The Epic Quest to Solve the World's Greatest Mathematical Problem), The Code Book (about cryptography and its history), Big Bang (about the Big Bang theory and the origins of the universe) and Trick or Treatment?
Alternative Medicine on Trial (about complementary and alternative medicine).He has also produced documentaries and works for television to accompany his books, is a trustee of NESTA, the National Museum of Science and Industry and co-founded the Undergraduate Ambassadors Scheme.