Many Worlds in One: The Search for Other Universes [Hardcover]

Alex Vilenkin (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0809095238 | ISBN-13: 978-0809095230 | Publication Date: June 27, 2006 | Edition: 1st

Recent discoveries in cosmology have led to a bizarre new worldview that (to paraphrase Niels Bohr) may be crazy enough to be true. Just consider the litany of mind-boggling new ideas being bandied about lately: the acceleration of cosmic expansion, dark energy (on top of dark matter, yet!), primordial “ripples” in space-time, the quantum creation of the universe from nothing, eternal cosmic inflation, multiple universes . . .Sound crazy enough for you?

 

Fortunately, the new theoretical advances also lead to testable predictions, and we may soon witness the confirmation of some of these predictions by fresh astronomical findings. Alex Vilenkin’s own scientific work has been closely tied to the emergence of the new worldview, from the original ideas to the most recent developments. In Many Worlds in One, he gives an exciting, surprisingly entertaining firsthand account of the birth of the new cosmology, and its fascinating—and at times disturbing—implications.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Cosmologists ask many difficult questions and often come up with strange answers. In this engagingly written but difficult book, Vilenkin, a Tufts University physicist, does exactly this, discussing the creation of the universe, its likely demise and the growing belief among cosmologists that there are an infinite number of universes. Vilenkin does an impressive job of presenting the background information necessary for lay readers to understand the ideas behind the big bang and related phenomena. Having set the stage, the author then delves into cutting-edge ideas, many of his own devising. He argues persuasively that, thanks to repulsive gravity, the universe is likely to expand forever. He goes on to posit that our universe is but one of an infinite series, many of them populated by our "clones." Vilenkin is well aware of the implications of this assertion: "countless identical civilizations [to ours] are scattered in the infinite expanse of the cosmos. With humankind reduced to absolute cosmic insignificance, our descent from the center of the world is now complete." Drawing on the work of Stephen Hawking and recent advances in string theory, Vilenkin gives us a great deal to ponder. B&w illus. (July)
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From Booklist

Cosmology has moved from establishing that there was a finite start to the cosmos to theorizing about the initial conditions that kicked off the whole shebang. Vilenkin is a leading theorist whose scenarios about the enigma of the big bang emerge in this estimably clear, personable treatment. Vilenkin explains the idea of inflation, a phenomenal increase in the volume of space in the first infinitesimals of time, propounded by physicist Alan Guth (The Inflationary Universe, 1997). Inflation solved some theoretical problems but left others dangling, such as inducing inflation to stop; if it didn't, life could not have begun. Explaining that his solutions to the "graceful exit problem," as it is whimsically called, involve the concept of "eternal inflation," Vilenkin guides readers through its bizarre and head-spinning propositions. One is that our observed universe is embedded in a suprauniverse that infinitely spawns an infinite number of other universes. This and other gigantic ideas concisely presented will provoke the interest of readers intrigued by the origin of the big bang. Gilbert Taylor
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 248 pages
• Publisher: Hill and Wang; 1st edition (June 27, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0809095238
• ISBN-13: 978-0809095230
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #212,746 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Alex Vilenkin is best known for his theories of eternal cosmic inflation, creation of the universe from nothing, and for his groundbreaking work on cosmic strings. He has also studied the implications of the possible existence of multiple universes.

Born in the former Soviet Union, Vilenkin immigrated to the United States in 1976 with an undergraduate degree in physics and an employment history in his home country that consisted of succession of menial jobs, including a stint as a night watchman in a zoo. Within a year of his arrival in US he had earned a Ph.D., and the following year he joined the faculty at Tufts University, where he remains today as a professor of physics and director of the Tufts Institute of Cosmology. He also holds the L. and J. Bernstein Chair in Evolutionary Science.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

48 of 48 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Simply Superb, July 25, 2006

By 

t.g. randini (Highlands, VA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Many Worlds in One: The Search for Other Universes (Hardcover)

As the title of my review suggests, this is simply superb. Mr. Vilenkin SIMPLIFIES... and of the thirty or so books I've read on cosmology, this is at or near the top.

The author covers much ground and does it efficiently. He lays the groundwork for his theories and takes us through the logic he employed in arriving at his 'quantum-tunneling out of nothing' theory to explain the origin of our 'local island universe'.

Mr. Vilenkin ably covers vacuums, inflation, scalar fields, the many worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics, the multiverse and even Euclidian time. If you don't understand all these concepts... DON'T WORRY. You will understand them after reading this delightful book.

33 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful introduction to current "how it all began" physics, July 21, 2006

By 

Edward A. Oates - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Many Worlds in One: The Search for Other Universes (Hardcover)

I read lots of accessible physics and cosmology books, and this is one of the best. There is essentially no math to master, but the concepts will make your head hurt (at least philosophically) while you absorb it all. This book has done the best job I've seen yet at explaining inflation in simple terms and how it might have taken only a few grams of matter/energy to create everything. (for a more detailed look at inflation, see one of Alan Guth's books on the subject, since he invented it).

I would recommend this book to adults who want to explore current cosmological thinking; I would strongly recommend this to advanced high school students (along with "Beyond Einstein" by Michio Kaku and Jennifer Trainer Thompson) as an adjunct to their physical science and AP Physics studies. It is readily understood and can awaking a lifelong quest to answer the question, "How did we get here?"

The "Why are we here?" question I'll leave to philosophers and theologians.

Ed

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars readable and detailed, January 9, 2007

By 

Kyle G. Maxwell (Medford, MA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Many Worlds in One: The Search for Other Universes (Hardcover)

I found this book to be extremely readable and surprisingly well translated into language and ideas that could be understood by those with little or no background in cosmology. The writing style is very entertaining.

But I caution curious readers that even though this book is so approachable it still covers a great deal of modern cosmology so it is by no means a light read. As was mentioned in another review one aspect of the writing style is confusing. Since so little of cosmology is experimentally proven there often exist conflicting views. Vilenkin does a good job of covering most of them, but for an unexperienced reader it can be confusing which theory he wants you to believe.

Overall the book is a great read to qualitatively cover modern cosmology and if it is confusing at first it is well worth a re-read or closer inspection for those who want to understand the finer details.