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The Infinite Book: A Short Guide to the Boundless, Timeless and Endless.


THE INFINITE BOOK: A Short Guide to the Boundless, Timeless and Endless JOHN D. BARROW
This article is about the English theoretical physicist John David Barrow. For other uses see John Barrow.


John David Barrow FRS (born November 29, 1952, London) is an English cosmologist, theoretical physicist, and mathematician.
 

Infinity is a difficult concept to grasp, stretching the imagination to the edge of possibility. In this book, Barrow looks closely at how the notion of infinity has been represented throughout history in everything from religion to art to mathematics. For mathematicians, infinity is a relatively familiar concept. The author reveals how infinity arises in famous conundrums such as Zeno's paradox and the story of Hotel Infinity. Barrow explains how history's great thinkers grappled with infinities. He also discusses how infinity has come to represent our notion of the universe and how theologians, astrophysicists An astrophysicist is a person who professionally studies and conducts research in astrophysics. Famous astrophysicists
  • Hannes Olof Gösta Alfvén (Sweden, 1908 – 1995)
  • Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar (India, USA, 1910 – 1995)
, and science fiction writers alike have pondered the idea of an infinite number infinite number

a number so large as to be uncountable. Represented by 8, frequently obtained by 'dividing' by zero.
 of worlds. Does the universe have an end and, if so, does anything lie beyond it? If it is indeed infinite, is it full of an infinite number of worlds like Earth, with infinite copies of each of us? Invoking the idea of infinity at every turn, Barrow explores immortality immortality, attribute of deathlessness ascribed to the soul in many religions and philosophies. Forthright belief in immortality of the body is rare. Immortality of the soul is a cardinal tenet of Islam and is held generally in Judaism, although it is not an , possibilities of rebirth, time travel, and other mind-bending ideas. Pantheon pantheon (păn`thēŏn', –thēən), term applied originally to a temple to all the gods. The

Pantheon at Rome was built by Agrippa in 27 B.C., destroyed, and rebuilt in the 2d cent. by Hadrian.
, 2005, 352 p., b&w photos and illus., hardcover, $26.00.
COPYRIGHT 2005 Science Service, Inc.
No portion of this article can be reproduced without the express written permission from the copyright holder.
Copyright 2005, Gale Group. All rights reserved. Gale Group is a Thomson Corporation Company.

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Publication:Science News
Article Type:Brief Article
Date:Aug 20, 2005
Words:193
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