The Mind of God: Science and the Search for Ultimate Meaning - Hardcover

Paul Davies

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0671710699 ISBN 13: 9780671710699

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Ltd, 1992

Synopsis

Complementing his metaphysical exploration of the meaning and origin of life in "God and The New Physics", physicist Paul Davies further investigates theological and scientific explanations for the creation of the universe. He examines the nature of scientific enquiry and our role in the cosmos, focusing on our increasing understanding of organised complexity thanks to the advent of fast computers. Different ages have used their own metaphors to describe the universe. For 300 years, science has been dominated by the search for simple patterns in nature. But now, with the advent of fast computers, we can see that the laws of physics play a two-fold role: they provide the simple patterns that underlie all physical phenomena, and they are also of the form that enables depth - organised complexity - to emerge. That the laws of our universe possess this crucial dual property is a fact of literally cosmic significance for it enables us, the children of the universe - animated stardust - to reflect on the nature of that same universe, even to the extent of glimpsing the rules by which it runs. The author also wrote "Superforce", "The Cosmic Blueprint" and "The Edge of Infinity".

About this title

Review

"Re-examine[s] the great questions of existence...and in the process it also provides an entertaining and provocative tour of recent developments in theoretical physics." -- Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times

"Intellectually cordial and wonderfully lucid.... Meanders through dozens of current concepts and findings...and then observes how they illuminate the ancient quandaries encountered by Plato and Pythagoras, Spinoza and Kant.... [A] mind-bending experience." -- The Washington Post

"Provide[s] cogent explications of some of the most interesting ideas to have arisen from contemporary physics, mathematics and philosophy...full of ideas...mighty nourishing." -- Timothy Ferris, San Francisco Chronicle

"Stimulating and enlightening...Shows how scientists, like the ancient philosophers before them, continue to struggle with reconciling the eternal and the ephemeral." -- The New York Times Book Review

About the Author

PAUL DAVIES is Director of the Beyond Center at Arizona State University and the bestselling author of more than twenty books. He won the 1995 Templeton Prize for his work on the deeper meaning of science. His books include About Time, The Fifth Miracle, and The Mind of God.

Edition details

• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Ltd
• Publication date: 1992
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0671710699
• ISBN 13: 9780671710699
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 288