Introducing Stephen Hawking [Paperback]

J. P. McEvoy (Author), Oscar Zarate (Contributor)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 5, 2002 | ISBN-10: 1840466391 | ISBN-13: 978-1840466393

Stephen Hawking is a world-famous physicist, but few people outside his field know what he has done. To the public he is a figure of tragic dimensions - a brilliant scientist and author of the phenomenal best-seller A Brief History of Time, and yet confined to a wheelchair, unable to speak or write. Hawking has mastered the two great theories of 20th-century physics - Einstein's General Theory of Relativity and Quantum Mechanics - and has made breathtaking discoveris about where they break down or overlap, such as on the edge of a Black Hole or at the Big Bang origin of the Universe. Here is the perfect introduction to Hawking's work by the author, who was helped by several long discussions with Hawking in researching the book.

Product Details

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: Totem Books (January 5, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1840466391
• ISBN-13: 978-1840466393
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,475,363 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, humorous introduction to Hawking & modern physics, October 18, 1998

By 

[e-mail] (Oxford, Ohio) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Introducing Stephen Hawking (Paperback)

After picking this up in a bookstore in Chicago, I couldn't stop reading it after I had started. The book combines interviews with Hawking along with biographical information and excellent cartoon illustrations and black & white photos to explain how modern thoughts on physics and black holes were developed. I've used some of the information from this book to teach my high school Physics class about black holes, and I hope to use it more in the future. The book sort of ends without much explanation of the COBE background explorer, but other than that, it's full of essential information presented in a format that is easy and fun to read.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Aaah, so thats how space time works....., December 14, 2000

By 

Mr. Daniel Growcott - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Introducing Stephen Hawking (Paperback)

Cartoons, comic book style, sumo wrestlers - all these will from now on be associated with astronomy and quantum theory, thanks to this book. If like me you are just reading for general interest this book will explain it all, but without bogging it down with detail. A good read, and now I feel confident to read Hawkings book 'A brief history of time'.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding contribution to the popular understanding of Stephen Hawking and modern physics, July 15, 2008

By 

Charles Ashbacher (Marion, Iowa United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Introducing Stephen Hawking (Paperback)

This book is impressive in the amount and complexity of physics it delivers in an understandable manner. It starts with the physics of Galileo and Newton, moves through relativity and then ends with quantum mechanics. The goal is of course to present the advances in physics made by Stephen Hawking and a combination of cartoons and text is used.

The authors also do not make the major mistake of avoiding equations at all costs; they use them when necessary and explain them well. Combining this with the clear exposition of the very complicated principles of physics and this book is an outstanding contribution to the popular understanding of the life of Hawking and modern physics.