A Brief History of Time

Product Description
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 A Brief History of Time has transformed our view of the universe.

Stephen Hawking, one of the most brilliant theoretical physicists in history, wrote the modern classic A Brief History of Time to help nonscientists understand the questions being asked by scientists today: Where did the universe come from? How and why did it begin? Will it come to an end, and if so, how? Hawking attempts to reveal these questions (and where we're looking for answers) using a minimum of technical jargon. Among the topics gracefully covered are gravity, black holes, the Big Bang, the nature of time, and physicists' search for a grand unifying theory. This is deep science; these concepts are so vast (or so tiny) as to cause vertigo while reading, and one can't help but marvel at Hawking's ability to synthesize this difficult subject for people not used to thinking about things like alternate dimensions. The journey is certainly worth taking, for, as Hawking says, the reward of understanding the universe may be a glimpse of "the mind of God." --Therese Littleton

Great Read for Everybody
One of my favourite books is A Brief History of Time, written by Stephen Hawking. This book is famous like its author. Its wonder lies in the fact that the forefront of physics is portrayed in laymen's terms. Thus the theories behind quantum mechanics, relativity, black holes, time travel, and wormholes can all be comprehended by the average person. Every time I pick up this paperback, I feel humbled by the grandeur of our mysterious universe. Needless to say, the origin of the universe may just provide a clue to the birth of life. Of all the theories described in the book, I was most intrigued by Einstein's special theory of relativity.

Before the dawn of the 20th Century, the Michelson-Morley experiment was conducted to substantiate the existence of a substance called "ether." Instead, it created a shock wave for the entire scientific community. Throughout the next twenty years, numerous futile attempts were made to explain the surprising results of the experiment. In the end, it was Einstein's special theory of relativity that came to the rescue.

A remarkable consequence of relativity is that it revolutionized our ideas of space and time. Before Einstein's heydays, Newtonian physics indicated that space was not absolute, meaning different observers of a moving object may conclude differently about the distance it travelled. However, time was always assumed to be absolute, i.e., different observers would always agree on the time it took an object to traverse through space. Einstein took Newton's theories and took a step back. He claimed that if one lets go of the idea of absolute time, then we need not "invent" the idea of ether. Nor would we be troubled by the Michelson-Morley experiment. The notion of absolute time, however, is so deeply engraved in our minds that even today, it is difficult to discard.

Einstein went on to come up with unconventional predictions of how objects behave when they approach the speed of light. These imaginary experiments came to be known as Einstein's paradoxes. Perhaps the most famous one is the twins paradox: A twin steps on a spaceship and travels at the speed of light for 20 years according to his watch. When he returns to Earth, he will find that much more time has indeed elapsed during his absence and his twin brother is now 100 years older than him. You might find it hard to accept this outcome. That is why it is called a paradox in the first place. However, this is not so difficult any more if you think of time being relative.

Einstein's brilliance in my opinion, lies not in his discovery of relativity, but the manner in which he did it. In order to reach his conclusions, he took a step back from well known physics principles. Instead of taking for granted the firmly-entrenched view that time was absolute, he chose to doubt it. In the end, he took a completely opposite stance. As a result, every road block baffling the scientific world then was instantly removed.

Einstein's work prompted me to wonder whether we can always take our assumptions for granted. Sometimes, moving a step backwards and re-evaluating popular opinion is not a bad idea. Of course, to his credit, Einstein also applied immense creativity and ingenuity to secure the fantastic success that he enjoyed. Nonetheless, I will keep this lesson in mind on my quest for knowledge.


[...]

Excellent Book
5 stars from me. This is an excellent book, I would recommend it to anyone, though you might have to read it more than once to fully understand the depth. After-all it is written by Stephen Hawking :)

Prompt and great quality!
I bought this as a used book expecting there to be some wear and tear, but it looks brand new! Great quality product and very prompt shipping.

Great for understanding the physicist's mind
For the majority of people, advanced physics is something understood only by a select few, something that requires years of post-graduate work to grasp. In this book, Stephen Hawking attempts to take these extremely complicated and unfathomable theories and present them in a manner that is both understandable and entertaining. For the most part, he is successful.

Hawking starts by recounting the development of the understanding of our world through the eyes of physics. This helps show how the many perceptions of our universe that we now take for granted often took many years to be understood and accepted. This allows the reader to see that there are many things that could change still about our current perception of the universe.

Having done this, Hawking delves into more complicated concepts, such as the theory of relativity, the Big Bang, black holes, and the end of the universe. He talks to the reader in language they can understand, yet he never "speaks down" to the reader. Hawking also considers the role of God in a universe governed by physics in a way that I believe would not offend the believer.

In all, Hawking manages to condense a lot of complicated material into a short, simple book. I believe the reader will acquire a better picture of the mind of the astrophysicist, but I don't the relevance of these intangible concepts will be readily grasped. Upon finishing the book, I was left wondering what many of these difficult theories actually mean to us as a whole.

Brief History of Time [VHS]

The Universe in a Nutshell

The Theory of Everything: The Origin and Fate of the Universe

The Elegant Universe: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest for the Ultimate Theory

Relativity Simply Explained

A Briefer History of Time

A Brief History of Time & More...

hosted by