Cosmological Enigmas


Book Description

An astronomer brings the mysteries of space down to earth in this accessible guide to cosmology, astrophysics, and the ageless wonder of the night sky. The universe is big. Really big. And it gets bigger every day. In Cosmological Enigmas, Mark Kidger weaves together history, science, and science fiction to consider questions about the bigness of space and the strange objects that lie trembling at the edge of infinity. What are quasars, blazars, and gamma-ray bursters? Could we ever travel to the stars? Can we really expect aliens to contact us? From the profound (what evidence do we have to support the big bang theory?) to the bizarre (can there be more than one universe and, if so, how many dimensions does it possess?) to the everyday-yet-profound (why is the sky dark at night?), Kidger explains not only what we know about the universe but how we came to know it. Reflecting on how stars shine and what may lie beyond the edge of the universe, Kidger takes us on the ultimate cosmic journey.




Cosmological Enigmas


Book Description

Author Mark Kidger weaves together history, science, and science fiction to consider questions about the bigness of space and the strange objects that lie trembling at the edge of infinity. Reflecting on how stars shine and what may lie beyond the edge of the universe, Kidger takes readers on the ultimate cosmic journey.Johns Hopkins University Press




Cosmological Enigmas


Book Description

Author Mark Kidger weaves together history, science, and science fiction to consider questions about the bigness of space and the strange objects that lie trembling at the edge of infinity. Reflecting on how stars shine and what may lie beyond the edge of the universe, Kidger takes readers on the ultimate cosmic journey.Johns Hopkins University Press




Astronomical Enigmas


Book Description

Astronomer Kidger has spent his career helping the general public understand the nature of the universe and astronomy. In "Astronomical Enigmas," he offers answers to the questions he is asked most frequently.




HISTORY AND PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY -Volume I


Book Description

History and Philosophy of Science and Technology is a component of Encyclopedia of Physical Sciences, Engineering and Technology Resources in the global Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems (EOLSS), which is an integrated compendium of twenty one Encyclopedias. The Theme on History and Philosophy of Science and Technology in four volumes covers several topics such as: Introduction to the Philosophy of Science; The Nature and Structure of Scientific Theories Natural Science; A Short History of Molecular Biology; The Structure of the Darwinian Argument In The Origin of Species; History of Measurement Theory; Episodes of XX Century Cosmology: A Historical Approach; Philosophy of Economics; Social Sciences: Historical And Philosophical Overview of Methods And Goals; Introduction to Ethics of Science and Technology; The Ethics of Science and Technology; The Control of Nature and the Origins of The Dichotomy Between Fact And Value; Science and Empires: The Geo-Epistemic Location of Knowledge; Science and Religion; Scientific Knowledge and Religious Knowledge - Significant Epistemological Reference Points; Thing Called Philosophy of Technology; Transitions from Function-Oriented To Effect-Oriented Technologies. Some Thought on the Nature of Modern Technology; Technical Agency and Sources of Technological Pessimism These four volumes are aimed at a broad spectrum of audiences: University and College Students, Educators and Research Personnel.




Formation and Interactions of Topological Defects


Book Description

Topological defects have recently become of great interest in condensed matter physics, particle physics and cosmology. They are the unavoidable remnants of many symmetry breaking phase transitions. Topological defects can play an important role in describing the properties of many condensed matter systems (e.g. superfluids and superconduc tors); they can catalyze many unusual effects in particle physics models and they may be responsible for seeding the density perturbations in the early Universe which de velop into galaxies and the large-scale structure of the Universe. Topological defects are also of great interest in mathematics as nontrivial solutions of nonlinear differential equations stabilized by topological effects. The purpose of the Advanced Study Institute "Formation and Interactions of Topo logical Defects" was to bring together students and practitioners in condensed matter physics, particle physics and cosmology, to give a detailed exposition of the role of topo logical defects in these fields; to explore similarities and differences in the approaches; and to provide a common basis for discussion and future collaborative research on common problems.




Modernism and Cosmology


Book Description

Through examining the work of W. B. Yeats, James Joyce, and Samuel Beckett, Katherine Ebury shows cosmology had a considerable impact on modernist creative strategies, developing alternative reading models of difficult texts such as Finnegans Wake and 'The Trilogy'.




Inner Space/Outer Space


Book Description

Inner Space/Outer Space brings together much of the exciting work contributing to a new synthesis of modern physics. Particle physicists, concerned with the "inner space" of the atom, are making discoveries that their colleagues in astrophysics, studying outer space, can use to develop and test hypotheses about the events that occurred in the microseconds after the Big Bang and that shaped the universe as we know it today. The papers collected here, from scores of scientists, constitute the proceedings of the first major international conference on research at the interface of particle physics and astrophysics, held in May 1984. The editors have written introductions to each major section that draw out the central themes and elaborate on the primary implications of the papers that follow.




The Universe is a Machine


Book Description

The Universe is a Machine is in the form of a treatise, and explores the ‘smoking gun’ clue that a distinct mechanical process was present in the aftermath of the Big Bang, superimposed on the thermodynamic and nuclear processes associated with the evolution of the early Universe. This conjecture challenges the current scientific orthodoxy that antimatter was completely destroyed in the aftermath of the Big Bang. The clues for this conjecture are contained within the cosmic microwave background radiation echo left over from the Big Bang. A novel solution is proposed for what happened to all the antimatter, why it is still extant within the Universe, and why its presence has never been detected. The very profound deduced consequences of this are also explored, revealing new perspectives on aspects of the early Universe, including inflation, conditions surrounding primordial nuclear fusion, the formation of the first spinning galaxies or superstars, the formation of a cold dark zone, the formation of black holes in the centre of galaxies, the conundrum of dark matter, and a possible future doomsday scenario for the fate of the Universe. The Universe is a Machine may offer food for thought for some physicists who claim that aspects of physics are currently in a cul-de-sac and that a totally new perspective may be required. The perspectives contained in this book may be the first step out of that cul-de-sac. This innovative new book will appeal to scientists and engineers who have an interest in cosmology. It assumes prior knowledge of fundamental concepts in mechanics and physics, and a familiarity with elementary differential and integral calculus is required for the appendices. Explanatory illustrations are included.




The World Tree


Book Description

A scientist studies the Mayan calendar and the prophecy that the world will end in the later part of 2012.