Alpha and Omega: the Search for the Beginning and End of the Universe.CHARLES SEIFE The author of Zero now turns his attention to the realm of cosmology, providing readers an overview of several Theories of Everything being postulated today. Beginning with some historical background, Seife explains how the Copernican notion that Earth isn't the center of universe was spawned by the birth of the telescope. He fast-forwards to a second cosmological revolution led by Edwin Hubble Noun 1. Edwin Hubble - United States astronomer who discovered that (as the universe expands) the speed with which nebulae recede increases with their distance from the observer (1889-1953) Edwin Powell Hubble, Hubble , who launched the Big Bang theory big bang theory n. A cosmological theory holding that the universe originated approximately 20 billion years ago from the violent explosion of a very small agglomeration of matter of extremely high density and temperature. Noun 1. and the concept of an expanding universe expanding universe: see universe. expanding universe Current understanding of the state of the universe. It is based on the finding that all galaxies are moving away from each other. . These notions seemed to explain the beginning of the universe but not its end. Next, Seife explores how data from the currently orbiting Hubble Space Telescope Hubble Space Telescope (HST), the first large optical orbiting observatory. Built from 1978 to 1990 at a cost of $1.5 billion, the HST (named for astronomer E. P. Hubble) was expected to provide the clearest view yet obtained of the universe. have changed our view of the universe once again. Its pictures of supernovas indicate that expansion of the universe is speeding up, not slowing down as previously thought. This leads the author on a tour of the latest wrinkles wrinkles See bells and whistles. in modern cosmology, including cosmic-background radiation, dark energy, and super-symmetry. With a look toward the future, the book surveys some of the most daring experiments cosmologists are assembling and considers which of their ideas might prevail. Viking, 2003, 294 p., b&w illus., hardcover, $24.95, |
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