Seven Wonders of the Cosmos [Paperback]

Jayant Vishnu Narlikar (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 28, 1999

Our cosmic tour begins here. As we leave the secure confines of the Earth and journey into space, we find a plethora of strange and unexpected phenomena. Little can we anticipate from the quiet, star-studded sky the violent events in the cosmos. Stars explode. Powerful radio sources eject matter in jets. The ever-changing Universe grows more beautiful and more complex the deeper into it we go. Professor Narlikar skillfully steers us through a cosmic journey of discovery, starting from the Earth and Solar System and stepping out to the farthest reaches of the Universe. Using simple analogies, humorous anecdotes, and a wealth of illustrations, he conveys the thrill of observing strange and surprising features of the Universe. The seven wonders represent a range of mysterious phenomena, a class of spectacular events, or remarkable cosmic objects that have challenged human curiosity and defied explanation. They concern the giants and dwarfs of the stellar world, the catastrophic explosion of massive stars, pulsars--the ultimate timekeepers of the cosmos, the strange effects of gravity, illusions of space, and the majestic expansion of the Universe as a whole. With lucid prose, the author weaves together a host of exciting recent discoveries in astronomy and shows us how these motivate astronomers to unravel the wonders of tomorrow.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Seven Wonders is a superbly lucid state-of-the-art account of the most important freatures of modern astronomy and cosmology...Ideal for students and as an introduction to the subject for educated non-scientists." Science

"...does a good job...manages to cram a lot of the universe into a little more than 300 pages, and the book would serve a beginning cosmologist or someone wanting to brush up on the topic equally well." Sky & Telescope

"Jayant Vishnu Narlikar is India's most outstanding living scientist." Science

Book Description

Using simple analogies and a wealth of illustrations, Professor Narlikar skilfully steers us through a cosmic journey of discovery, starting from the Earth and Solar System and stepping out to the farthest reaches of the Universe. The seven wonders represent a range of mysterious phenomena, a class of spectacular events, or remarkable cosmic objects that have challenged human curiosity and often defied explanation. With lucid prose and humorous anecdotes, the author conveys the thrill of observing strange and surprising features of the Universe, and the satisfaction gained by understanding them through modern science.

Product Details

• Paperback: 334 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (April 28, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521638984
• ISBN-13: 978-0521638982
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,616,991 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars A good overview, April 8, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Seven Wonders of the Cosmos (Paperback)

Considering the complexity of modern astronomy and astrophysics, this book does a very good job at explaining what the main questions/discoveries of astrophysics are in simple terms. I myself would complain that these issues are explored a little too superficially, although this is necessary in order to avoid introducing mathematical concepts and getting too involved. I don't think the author did a good job at describing the first wonder, the earth, but after that the book gets really good. I enjoyed it. Really, this book isn't complicated if you take it as survey. If you want to understand the fundamentals of astronomy and astrophysics, then this book is not for you, although it may help inspire future reading.

3.0 out of 5 stars Not as straightforward as claimed, January 18, 2000

By 

Frank Iannella - See all my reviews

This review is from: Seven Wonders of the Cosmos (Hardcover)

This book was not as easy to understand as claimed. There are significant parts of the book that read like a technical journal with explanations that include mathematical calculations and esoteric physical concepts. Although, there were some concepts explained using easy to understand models, this book is intended for those with some background in the physical sciences.