A Universe from Nothing - Hardcover

Krauss, Lawrence M.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 145162445X ISBN 13: 9781451624458

Publisher: The Free Press, 2012

Synopsis

Internationally known theoretical physicist and bestselling author Lawrence Krauss offers provocative, revelatory answers to the most basic philosophical questions: Where did our universe come from? Why is there something rather than nothing? And how is it all going to end? Why is there something rather than nothing?" is asked of anyone who says there is no God. Yet this is not so much a philosophical or religious question as it is a question about the natural world-and until now there has not been a satisfying scientific answer. Today, exciting scientific advances provide new insight into this cosmological mystery: Not only can something arise from nothing, something will always arise from nothing. A mind-bending trip back to the beginning of the beginning, A Universe from Nothing authoritatively presents the most recent evidence that explains how our universe evolved-and the implications for how it's going to end. It will provoke, challenge, and delight readers to look at the most basic underpinnings of existence in a whole new way. As Richard Dawkins has described it: This could potentially be the most important scientific book with implications for atheism since Darwin.

About this title

Review:

"His arguments for the birth of the universe out of nothingness from a physical, rather than theological, beginning not only are logical but celebrate the wonder of our natural universe. Recommended."--Library Journal "People always say you can't get something from nothing. Thankfully, Lawrence Krauss didn't listen. In fact, something big happens to you during this book about cosmic nothing, and before you can help it, your mind will be expanding as rapidly as the early universe."--Sam Kean, author of The Disappearing Spoon "With its mind-bending mechanics, Krauss argues, our universe may indeed have appeared from nowhere, rather than at the hands of a divine creator. There's some intellectual heavy lifting here--Einstein is the main character, after all--but the concepts are articulated clearly, and the thrill of discovery is contagious. 'We are like the early terrestrial mapmakers, ' Krauss writes, puzzling out what was once solely the province of our imaginations."--Mother Jones "The author delivers plenty of jolts in this enthusiastic and lucid but demanding overview of the universe, which includes plenty of mysteries--but its origin isn't among them. A thoughtful, challenging book."--Kirkus "Lively and humorous as well as informative... As compelling as it is intriguing."--Publishers Weekly "Krauss possesses a rare talent for making the hardest ideas in astrophysics accessible to the layman, due in part to his sly humor... one has to hope that this book won't appeal only to the partisans of the culture wars - it's just too good and interesting for that. Krauss is genuinely in awe of the "wondrously strange" nature of our physical world, and his enthusiasm is infectious."--Associated Press "We have been living through a revolution in cosmology as wondrous as that initiated by Copernicus. Here is the essential, engrossing and brilliant guide." --Ian McEwan "A series of brilliant insights and astonishing discoveries have rocked the Universe in recent years, and Lawrence Krauss has been in the thick of it. With his characteristic verve, and using many clever devices, he's made that remarkable story remarkably accessible. The climax is a bold scientific answer to the great question of existence: Why is there something rather than nothing." -- Frank Wilczek, Nobel Laureate and Herman Feshbach professor at MIT, author of The Lightness of Being "Astronomers at the beginning of the twentieth century were wondering whether there was anything beyond our Milky Way Galaxy. As Lawrence Krauss lucidly explains, astronomers living two trillion years from now, will perhaps be pondering precisely the same question! Beautifully navigating through deep intellectual waters, Krauss presents the most recent ideas on the nature of our cosmos, and of our place within it. A fascinating read." -- Mario Livio, author of Is God A Mathematician? and The Golden Ratio "[An] excellent guide to cutting-edge physics... It is detailed but lucid, thorough but not stodgy... [an] insightful book... Space and time can indeed come from nothing; nothing, as Krauss explains beautifully. ...A Universe From Nothing is a great book: readable, informative and topical."--New Scientist "In A Universe from Nothing, Lawrence Krauss has written a thrilling introduction to the current state of cosmology--the branch of science that tells us about the deep past and deeper future of everything. As it turns out, everything has a lot to do with nothing--and nothing to do with God. This is a brilliant and disarming book."-- Sam Harris, author of The Moral Landscape "An eloquent guide to our expanding universe... There have been a number of fine cosmology books published recently but few have gone so far, and none so eloquently, in exploring why it is unnecessary to invoke God to light the blue touchpaper and set the universe in motion." --Financial Times "In A Universe From Nothing, Lawrence Krauss, celebrated physicist, speaker and author, tackles all that plus a whole lot else. In fewer than 200 pages, he delivers a spirited, fast-paced romp through modern cosmology and its strong underpinnings in astronomical observations and particle physics theory.Krauss's slim volume is bolder in its premise and more ambitious in its scope than most. He makes a persuasive case that the ultimate question of cosmic origin - how something, namely the universe, could arise from nothing - belongs in the realm of science rather than theology or philosophy."--Globe & Mail "How physicists came up with the current model of the cosmos is quite a story, and to tell it in his elegant A Universe From Nothing, physicist Lawrence Krauss walks a carefully laid path... It would be easy for this remarkable story to revel in self-congratulation, but Krauss steers it soberly and with grace... His asides on how he views each piece of science and its chances of being right are refreshingly honest...unstable nothingness, as described by Krauss... is also invigorating for the rest of us, because in this nothingness there are many wonderful things to see and understand."--Nature "Nothing is not nothing. Nothing is something. That's how a cosmos can be spawned from the void -- a profound idea conveyed in A Universe From Nothing that unsettles some yet enlightens others. Meanwhile, it's just another day on the job for physicist Lawrence Krauss." -- Neil deGrasse Tyson, Astrophysicist, American Museum of Natural History "In this clear and crisply written book, Lawrence Krauss outlines the compelling evidence that our complex cosmos has evolved from a hot, dense state and how this progress has emboldened theorists to develop fascinating speculations about how things really began." -- Martin Rees, author of Our Final Hour "With characteristic wit, eloquence and clarity Lawrence Krauss gives a wonderfully illuminating account of how science deals with one of the biggest questions of all: how the universe's existence could arise from nothing. It is a question that philosophy and theology get themselves into muddle over, but that science can offer real answers to, as Krauss's lucid explanation shows. Here is the triumph of physics over metaphysics, reason and enquiry over obfuscation and myth, made plain for all to see: Krauss gives us a treat as well as an education in fascinating style." --A. C. Grayling, author of The Good Book

About the Author:

Lawrence Krauss, a renowned theoretical physicist, is director of the Origins Project at Arizona State University. He is the author of more than 300 scientific publications and nine books, including the international bestsellers, A Universe from Nothing and The Physics of Star Trek. The recipient of numerous awards, Krauss is a regular columnist for newspapers and magazines, including The New Yorker, and he appears frequently on radio, television, and in feature films. Krauss lives in Portland, Oregon, and Tempe, Arizona. Richard Dawkins is a Fellow of the Royal Society and was the inaugural holder of the Charles Simonyi Chair of Public Understanding of Science at Oxford University. He is the acclaimed author of many books including The Selfish Gene, Climbing Mount Improbable, Unweaving the Rainbow, The Ancestor's Tale, The God Delusion, and The Greatest Show on Earth. Visit him at RichardDawkins.net.

About this edition

• Publisher: The Free Press
• Publication date: 2012
• ISBN 10: 145162445X
• ISBN 13: 9781451624458
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 256