The Universe: The book of the BBC TV series presented by Professor Brian Cox

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From Darwin and Einstein to the origins of life, consciousness and the universe itself, Carroll combines cosmos-sprawling science and profound thought in a quest to… Even before I became a philosopher I was wondering about everything—life the universe and whatever else Douglas Adams thought was important when he wrote The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Universe. As a philosopher, I’ve been able to spend my life scratching the itch of these questions. When I finally figured them out I wrote The Atheist’s Guide to Reality as an introduction to what science tells us besides that there is no god. In H ow History Gets Things Wrong: The Neuroscience of Our Addiction to Stories I apply much of that to getting to the bottom of why it’s so hard for us, me included, to really absorb the nature of reality.

The Universe by Andrew Cohen, Professor Brian Cox - Waterstones The Universe by Andrew Cohen, Professor Brian Cox - Waterstones

It is a weighty subject, incorporating everything from cosmology and atomic physics to quantum physics and philosophy, but astrophysicists Geraint Lewis and Luke Barnes have done a stellar job in explaining some extremely challenging concepts with style and panache. Cambridge University Press are mostly known for their academic titles, but this is firmly in the popular science mould, akin to the works of authors like Brian Greene or Sean Carroll. This accessible, illustrated guide to the cosmos is for both the new and the experienced stargazer.Seeing Like a State is a book about why it’s impossible for ambitious programs of top-down control to succeed, and why they so often end up with millions of people dead. The world is always more complicated than the maps you make of it, and in a lot of situations, it turns out that complexity matters . You can’t design and build the perfect city. You have to grow it. Award-winning author Sean Carroll brings his extraordinary intellect to bear on the realms of knowledge, the laws of nature and the most profound questions about life, death and our place in it all. The hilarious Dara Ó Briain offers scientific answers to questions such as: how did life begin? How was the Earth created? Do aliens exist? The Art of Urban Astronomy: A Guide to Stargazing Wherever You Are Writer Giles Sparrow tells the stories of well-known 'celebrity' stars such as Proxima Centauri, Betelgeuse and our very own Sun, but also of those holding the sky's secrets; supernovae, quasars and dark matter. Through these 21 stars (and 3 imposters) he reveals the impact that astronomy has played on science's understanding of the past, present and future. Overall, the tone of the book is engaging, though occasional attempts at being witty fall flat, while the authors sometimes become distracted by tangents resulting in their belabouring their point. This can become frustrating, particularly as you know where it’s headed: the multiverse.

The Universe: The book of the BBC TV series presented by Professor The Universe: The book of the BBC TV series presented by

NAMED A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR BY THE ECONOMIST, OBSERVER, NEW SCIENTIST, BBC FOCUS, INDEPENDENT AND WASHINGTON POST Straight from the pen of a scientist working with commercial spaceflight comes a memoir of getting into the air. Kellie Gerardi has worked with NASA, tested technology that would be sent to the International Space Station, and helped develop programmes for future space exploration. On this cosmic timeline, our human era is spectacular but fleeting. Someday, we know, we will all die. And, we know, so too will the universe itself. One of the most profound and illuminating studies of this century to have been published in recent decades."-John Gray, New York Times Book Review

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Taking the growing body of information about other planets, applying the laws of biology, principles of chemistry, and his knowledge of Earth's history, Kershenbaum presents the possibilities for alien creatures with confidence. These seven short lessons guide us, with simplicity and clarity, through the scientific revolution that shook physics in the twentieth century and still continues to shake us today. In this beautiful and mind-bending introduction to… If the end of the world really is imminent, perhaps we should start looking for another one. The obvious choices are the Moon or Mars, but there are lots of other places in the Solar System we could try, each with their own problems and opportunities. We could try floating above Venus in balloon cities, or living in caves inside our very own asteroid. We think it's a great collection of space and astronomy books, but if you think we've forgotten any please do let us know over on the Science Focus book club Facebook group. Or, take a look at our list of big, coffee table photography books about space. Where are we? Who are we? Do our beliefs, hopes and dreams hold any significance out there in the void? Can human purpose and meaning ever fit into a scientific worldview?

the best space and astronomy books 2023 15 of the best space and astronomy books 2023

Stargazing does not have to be complicated, reveals Abigail Beall in this beautifully compact guide. It's not a hobby reserved for those who can afford a telescope, nor is it completely inaccessible to city-goers who spend most of their time under a light-polluted sky. This is by no means a frivolous book, but importantly, you don’t need a degree or to be an astronomy nerd to enjoy it or to wonder at the audacity of life. This is a book for anyone who has ever stared at the night sky and wondered what the grand design was (Sutter says there wasn’t one). As Sutter himself says, Your Place in the Universe is a book not just about physics and science, but also about our home, the Universe, and our human story. It is about how our knowledge and understanding has grown and developed, and how we have decoded and deciphered, faltered and often misunderstood. We may have occasionally got a little lost and gone down the odd blind alley, but Sutter sums up how, ultimately, we still continue to untangle our delightfully chaotic existence in the Universe.Have you ever wondered why we can’t just make the world better? Sure, we’ve made enormous strides in agriculture and medicine over the past few centuries. We can generate electricity and move around the world in a day. We can feed and heal people. But why haven’t we just sat down and figured out the right way to live? Planned it all out on a clean sheet, like an architect. Humans have always been fascinated by the stars. But why are we so drawn to these celestial objects? Jo Marchant reveals this historical relationship through beautifully told stories, of gods and spirits, mathematicians and physicists. Many of us have heard of space celebrities such as Tim Peake and Brian Cox writing about this topic, but – while books of that kind are included on this list – there are a wide range of great titles to be read in your search for an understanding of the Universe. Some of these will help amateur astronomers get to grips with the night sky, while others will bring heart-warming tales of the collaboration and community within the space industry. Who better to describe life in space than someone who’s walked the (space)walk? Peake pens answers to the public’s burning questions, revealing what space smells like, how he enjoyed a cosmic cuppa, and what it felt like to return to Earth.