Overview
Corey Powell's riveting story explores how scientists try to explain more than the material universe. The initial idea was Einstein's 'fudge factor'. He called it his 'biggest blunder' and is known by scientists as the Greek letter Lambda. It was the first rigorous expression of this quest for something beyond the tangible. Cosmology, the attempt to explain our universe, its size, shape, beginning and end, has belonged to science for a century or so. And now it has reached a plateau, possibly its end point. There is some mopping up to be done understanding the nature of dark matter and dark energy. But dark matter and dark energy are now enshrined in scientific theory. Science has at last formulated a full-blown spiritual theory, a Church of Lambda. Powell contends that there is a God, the sum of the energies scattered through the universe. This god isn't so far from what Einstein called the 'Old One,' the strict Spinozan determinist who could not intervene in worldly affairs - but is inspiring and powerful. Corey Powell introduces readers to the god in the equations of modern cosmology, giving a fascinating insight into how the spiritual has guided cosmologists since Einstein.
Full Product Details
Author: Corey Powell
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Imprint: The Free Press
Edition: New edition
Dimensions:
Width: 14.00cm
, Height: 2.30cm
, Length: 21.40cm
Weight: 0.270kg
ISBN: 9780684863498
ISBN 10: 0684863499
Pages: 288
Publication Date: 01 October 2003
Audience:
General/trade
,
General
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active
Availability: To order
Stock availability from the supplier is unknown. We will order it for you and ship this item to you once it is received by us.
Reviews
Scientific American A delight to read...Provides an unusually graceful account of the history of cosmology. Carl Zimmer author of Evolution and Parasite Rex Powell is one of our finest science reporters...This is a book of eloquence and passion. John Horgan author of The End of Science and The Undiscovered Mind A splendid, startling argument that the greatest religious issue of our time is actually a 'scientific' problem -- the quest to discover the mysterious energy that sparked cosmic creation and that may control our ultimate destiny. Kirkus Reviews Provocative, securely grounded in contemporary theories of physics, and worth pondering.
Carl Zimmer<p>author of Evolution and Parasite Rex <p>Powell is one of our finest science reporters....This is a book of eloquence and passion.<p>
Author Information
Corey Powell is the News Editor at Discover magazine and a regular contributor. He has written for a variety of other publications including Scientific American and Newsday. He is an adjunct professor at New York University teaching a course on science writing. He graduated from Harvard in history and science.
