Journey With Fred Hoyle, A (2nd Edition)


Book Description

This is the story of the author's unique scientific journey with one of the most remarkable men of 20th century science. The journey begins in Sri Lanka, the author's native country, with his childhood acquaintance with Fred Hoyle's writings. The action then moves to Cambridge, where the famous Hoyle-Wickramasinghe collaborations begin. A research programme which was started in 1962 on the carbonaceous nature of interstellar dust leads, over the next two decades, to developments that are continued in both Cambridge and Cardiff. These developments prompt Hoyle and the author to postulate the organic theory of cosmic dust (which is now generally accepted), and then to challenge one of the most cherished paradigms of contemporary science — the theory that life originated on Earth in a warm primordial soup.This new edition examines the many scientific developments that have transpired since the first edition was published. The discovery of bacteria in the upper reaches of the atmosphere, biological signatures in meteorites, spectroscopy of high-z galaxies and more all mesh with many of the ideas that had their origin in the first edition. Pushing into the future, the updated text examines the many experiments and probes currently operating or planned that will shed more light on the theory of planetary panspermia. A Journey with Fred Hoyle is an intriguing book that delineates the progress of a collaboration spanning 40 years, through a sequence of personal reflections, anecdotes and reminiscences.




A Journey with Fred Hoyle


Book Description

This is the story of the author''s unique scientific journey with one of the most remarkable men of 20th century science. The journey begins in Sri Lanka, the author''s native country, with his childhood acquaintance with Fred Hoyle''s writings. The action then moves to Cambridge, where the famous HoyleOCoWickramasinghe collaborations begin. A research programme which was started in 1962 on the carbonaceous nature of interstellar dust leads, over the next two decades, to developments that are continued in both Cambridge and Cardiff. These developments prompt Hoyle and the author to postulate the organic theory of cosmic dust (which is now generally accepted), and then to challenge one of the most cherished paradigms of contemporary science OCo the theory that life originated on Earth in a warm primordial soup.This new edition examines the many scientific developments that have transpired since the first edition was published. The discovery of bacteria in the upper reaches of the atmosphere, biological signatures in meteorites, spectroscopy of high-z galaxies and more all mesh with many of the ideas that had their origin in the first edition. Pushing into the future, the updated text examines the many experiments and probes currently operating or planned that will shed more light on the theory of planetary panspermia. A Journey with Fred Hoyle is an intriguing book that delineates the progress of a collaboration spanning 40 years, through a sequence of personal reflections, anecdotes and reminiscences.







The Intelligent Universe


Book Description




Cosmic Womb


Book Description

Compelling evidence that life, intelligence, and evolution on Earth were seeded by comets and cosmic intelligence • Explains how life first came from interstellar dust and comets and how later arrivals of cosmic dust and comets spurred evolution • Explores the possibility that universal knowledge may be stored in human DNA and how ancient cultures may have known a way to retrieve this knowledge • Reveals new discoveries about the dimensions of the Great Pyramid of Giza All ancient cultures link humanity’s origins to the heavens. The Egyptians, for example, were adamant that their ancestors came from the stars of Orion and Sirius. Today, however, religion and science assert that life arose spontaneously here on Earth. Did the ancients know our true cosmic origins? Have they left us clues? Expanding on the panspermia theory developed with the celebrated astronomer Sir Fred Hoyle--namely that the building blocks of life were imported to Earth by comets in the distant past--Chandra Wickramasinghe and Robert Bauval explore the latest findings in support of a cosmic origin for humanity. They detail the astrobiological discoveries of organic molecules deep in space, how microbes are incredibly resistant to the harshest conditions of space--enabling the transfer of genes from one star system to another, and the recent recovery of microorganisms from comets still in space. They argue that the universe was “born” and preset with the blueprint of life and that the cosmos must be teeming with lifeforms far older and perhaps far more developed than us. They show how life arrived on our planet in the form of interstellar dust containing alien bacteria approximately 3.8 billion years ago and how later comets, meteoroids, and asteroids brought new bacterial and viral genetic material, which was vital for evolution. Using the latest advances in physics, cosmology, and neuroscience, the authors explore how universal knowledge may be stored in human DNA and cells, and they postulate that ancient cultures, such as the pyramid builders of Egypt and the temple builders of India, may have known a way to retrieve this knowledge. Sharing new discoveries from experienced architects, engineers, and mathematicians, they show how the Great Pyramid is a three-dimensional mathematical equation in stone, bearing a potent message for humanity across time and space about who we are and where we come from.




Vindication Of Cosmic Biology: Tribute To Sir Fred Hoyle (1915-2001)


Book Description

In the year 2015, 100 years after Fred Hoyle was born, the ideas relating to the cosmic origins of life are slowly gaining credence in scientific circles. Once regarded as outrageous heresy, evidence from a variety of disciplines — astronomy, geology, biology — is converging to support these once heretical ideas.This volume opens with recent review articles pointing incontrovertibly towards our cosmic heritage, followed by a collection of published articles tracing the development of the theory throughout the years. The discovery that microorganisms — bacteria and viruses — are incredibly resistant to the harshest conditions of space, along with the detection of an estimated 144 billion habitable planets around other star systems in our galaxy alone, makes it virtually impossible to maintain that life on one planet will not interact with life elsewhere. The emerging position is that life arose exceedingly rarely, possibly only once, in the history of the cosmos, but its subsequent spread was unstoppable. 'Panspermiology' can no longer be described as an eccentric doctrine, but rather is the only doctrine supported by an overwhelming body of evidence. Fred Hoyle's work in this area may in the fullness of time come to be regarded as his most important scientific contribution.




Flashes of Creation


Book Description

A respected physics professor and author breaks down the great debate over the Big Bang and the continuing quest to understand the fate of the universe. Today, the Big Bang is so entrenched in our understanding of the cosmos that to doubt it would seem crazy. But as Paul Halpern shows in Flashes of Creation, just decades ago its mere mention caused sparks to fly. At the center of the debate were Russian American physicist George Gamow and British astrophysicist Fred Hoyle. Gamow insisted that a fiery explosion explained how the elements of the universe were created. Attacking the idea as half-baked, Hoyle countered that the universe was engaged in a never-ending process of creation. The battle was fierce. In the end, Gamow turned out to be right -- mostly -- and Hoyle, along with his many achievements, is remembered for giving the theory the silliest possible name: "The Big Bang." Halpern captures the brilliance of both thinkers and reminds us that even those proved wrong have much to teach us about boldness, imagination, and the universe itself.




The Black Cloud


Book Description

A 1959 classic 'hard' science-fiction novel by renowned Cambridge astronomer and cosmologist Fred Hoyle. Tracks the progress of a giant black cloud that comes towards Earth and sits in front of the sun, causing widespread panic and death. A select group of scientists and astronomers - including the dignified Astronomer Royal, the pipe smoking Dr Marlowe and the maverick, eccentric Professor Kingsly - engage in a mad race to understand and communicate with the cloud, battling against trigger happy politicians. In the pacy, engaging style of John Wyndham and John Christopher, with plenty of hard science thrown in to add to the chillingly credible premise (he manages to foretell Artificial Intelligence, Optical Character Recognition and Text-to-Speech converters), Hoyle carries you breathlessly through to its thrilling end.




A Different Approach to Cosmology


Book Description

This is a different kind of book about cosmology, a field of major interest to professional astronomers, physicists, and the general public. All research in cosmology adopts one model of the universe, the hot big bang model. But Fred Hoyle, Geoffrey Burbidge and Jayant Narlikar take a different approach. Starting with the beginnings of modern cosmology, they then conduct a wide ranging and deep review of the observations made from 1945 to the present day. Here they challenge many conventional interpretations. The latter part of the book presents the authors' own account of the present status of observations and how they should be explained. The controversial theme is that the dependency on the hot big bang model has led to an unwarranted rejection of alternative cosmological models. Writing from the heart, with passion and punch, these three cosmologists make a powerful case for viewing the universe in a different light.




Planet Formation and Panspermia


Book Description

An in-depth view of the panspermia hypothesis examined against the latest knowledge of planetary formation and related processes. Panspermia is the concept that life can be passively transported through space on various bodies and seed, habitable planets and moons, which we are beginning to learn may exist in large numbers. It is an old idea, but not popular with those who prefer that life on Earth started on Earth, an alternative, also unproven hypothesis. This book updates the concept of panspermia in the light of new evidence on planet formation, molecular clouds, solar system motions, supernovae ejection mechanisms, etc. Thus, it is to be a book about newly understood prospects for the movement of life through space. The novel approach presented in this book gives new insights into the panspermia theory and its connection with planetary formation and the evolution of galaxies. This offers a good starting point for future research proposals about exolife and a better perspective for empirical scrutiny of panspermia theory. Also, the key to understanding life in the universe is to understand that the planetary formation process is convolved with the evolution of stellar systems in their galactic environment. The book provides the synthesis of all these elements and gives the readers an up-to-date insight on how panspermia might fit into the big picture. Audience Given the intrinsic interdisciplinary nature of the panspermia hypothesis the book will have a wide audience across various scientific disciplines covering astronomy, biology, physics and chemistry. Apart from scientists, the book will appeal to engineers who are involved in planning and realization of future space missions.