Customer Reviews

Cosmic Enigmas (Masters of Modern Physics)

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The book is a collection of essays written by Joseph Silk through the years, and some of them have been rewritten in order to capture the new developments in astronomy and astrophysics. Although it is a popularization book, the reader is expected to have some general knowledge of physics in order to understand the arguments of the author. The book is divided into six parts spatially ordered but within each part the essays are placed in chronological order. The author follows the history of the universe from its creation to the present and the expected end. His reasoning is supported by detailed technical proof, but he describes mainly the conventionally accepted theories. He tries to exhibit fairness by mentioning several other interpretations, but many of the newer theories are completely absent from his work. This creates the impression that the book is one-sided and biased. The purpose of the book is also not quite clear as some of the essays are simply about the history of the universe, and some are focused on the current enigmas for the astronomers but, again, seen from the point of view of the conventional theories. The language is technical. The tone is impartial, but often witty, and the thought of the author is generally easy to follow. He doesn't make any assumptions about the audience, and, as a whole, the book is an interesting and motivating reading. But the lack of any arguments for or against some of the newer ideas in astronomy does take away a great deal of the pleasure from reading the book.