The Edge of Physics
Dispatches from the Frontiers of Cosmology
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- $ 27.900,00
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- $ 27.900,00
Descripción editorial
A scientific and globetrotting exploration of the physics experiments changing the ways we understand our universe.
Why is the universe expanding? What is the nature of dark matter? Do other universes exist? In this timely and original book, science writer Anil Ananthaswamy embarks on a global journey to some of the world’s most inhospitable and dramatic research sites to witness first-hand the audacious physics experiments conducted to answer profound questions about the nature of the universe.
From the Atacama Desert in the Chilean Andes to the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope on Mount Paranal to deep inside an abandoned iron mine in Minnesota and to the East Antarctic Ice Sheet, Ananthaswamy weaves together stories about the people and places at the heart of this cosmological research.
While explaining the immense questions that scientists are trying to answer, Ananthaswamy provides an accessible and unique portrait of the universe and our quest to understand it. An atmospheric, engaging and illuminating read, The Edge of Physics depicts science as a human process and brings cosmology with all its rarefied concepts down to earth.
***PRAISE FOR THE EDGE OF PHYSICS***
'A travelogue that celebrates the blood, sweat and tears that drive our understanding of the universe.' Guardian
'An excellent book. The author has a great knack of making difficult subjects comprehensible. I thoroughly enjoyed it.' Sir Patrick Moore
'A remarkable narrative that combines fundamental physics with high adventure.' New Scientist
'The ultimate physics-adventure travelogue... brilliant.' Physics World
'A grand tour of modern day cosmology's sacred places... evocative... engaging... refreshing... a taste of science in the heroic mode.' BBC Sky at Night
'Clean, elegant prose, humming with interest.' Robert MacFarlene
'An accomplished and timely overview of modern cosmology and particle astrophysics.' Nature
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Despite 20th-century physics' revelations, from relativity and quantum mechanics to the physics of the atom's nucleus and the life cycles of stars, ninety-odd percent of the universe is a complete mystery, says a scientist quoted by Ananthaswamy, a consulting editor for New Scientist. Dark matter, dark energy, quantum gravity: these are the topics that keep physicists awake at night, requiring bigger, more massive, more extreme experiments to test theories and uncover clues. The author takes readers behind the scenes of these experiments in some of the most inhospitable places in the world, leading the tour with wit and an eye for compelling detail. First is a pilgrimage to Mount Wilson Observatory, where astronomers first measured the expansion of the universe. Next we go 2,341 feet underground in a defunct Minnesota iron mine to search for particles that could reveal dark matter. Sensitive telescopes embedded in the thick ice of Siberia's Lake Baikal and Antarctica search for neutrinos. These experiments and others are heroic in every sense, and Ananthaswamy captures their excitement and the personalities of the scientists behind them with enthusiasm and insight. Illus.