The Intelligent Universe

by Fred Hoyle (Author)

13 customer reviews

ISBN-13: 978-0030700835

ISBN-10: 0030700833

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Product details

Hardcover: 256 pages
Publisher: Holt, Rinehart and Winton (March 1, 1988)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0030700833
ISBN-13: 978-0030700835
Package Dimensions: 10 x 7 x 1 inches
Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
Average Customer Review: 13 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #818,989 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #462 in Books > Textbooks > Science & Mathematics > Biology & Life Sciences > Ecology
- #2095 in Books > Science & Math > Biological Sciences > Ecology
- #4907 in Books > Science & Math > Evolution

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Shaun Johnston

An intellectual treat.

February 15, 2017

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

I enjoyed being in the company of a brilliant intelligence. Able to think the unthinkable, and then check to see if it works. Not afraid of taboos, or being thought ridiculous by those more hidebound than he was. An intellectual treat.

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Walter Beinssen

FRED hOYLE AND THE INTELLIGENT UNIVERSE

February 12, 2014

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

Fred Hoyle, who was the British Astronomer Royal for many years, argues in his book that life did not begin on Earth from inorganic chemicals "in some warm pond" as Charles Darwin proposed, but was instead seeded from space. He makes a very convincing case for this proposition. However, he goes a step further and proposes that the universe is in fact an intelligent entity which is "evolving" or developing itself in accordance with some great plan, getting ever more complex through this process.

He does not prove his theory in this book, in my opinion, but it is a beautiful idea elegantly explained for the lay person.

Hoyle received strong criticism from the scientific community, especially after he repudiated the 'Big Bang" theory in favour of a 'Steady state' explanation of the Universe's beginnings. There is no denying that Hoyle was a great scientist. His book is an absorbing read for anyone who has ever wondered about the great mysteries of space and time.

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Stephen H. Rogers

Fred Hoyle, astrophysicist exraordinaire

August 1, 2013

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

Fred Hoyle, astrophysicist exraordinaire, is in danger of being a forgotten genius in part for his refusal to accept the big bang theory and, no doubt, for his refusal to accept that life originated on Earth. This book is not an easy read but Fred does his best to explain the rather difficult subject matter. For newcomers to Hoyle I would suggest reading "The Nature of the Universe" first which explains how stars come into being and how the solar sytem was born.

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Deloras J McLain

Five Stars

September 12, 2014

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

I liked his writing style. His points were easily understood and interesting.

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Jobltz

Alone in the middle

October 10, 2013

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

Hoyle was a prominent astronomer, knighted for his contributions. This book delineates his justifiable dissatisfaction with Big Bang theory, which I appreciated. However, his only replacement was a "static" universe, since he did not want to permit creation as an option (implying God's existence), which I consider supported by proper analysis of astronomical data. As a result he has few comrades-in-arms.

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Goggle-Eyed Slewfoot

interesting, but tells only one side

December 16, 2007

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

It does not take much time to read this book because half of the space is covered by illustrations. If you are a student who is assigned to make a book report, and if you want the teacher to think you did twice as much reading as you really did, this might be the book for you.

In this book, Fred Hoyle expresses an opinion which is rejected by most other scientists. He claims that all of life on our planet is descended from microbes which arrived in a meteor shower. Although other scientists say that a microbe could not survive the hot temperature which results from entering the atmosphere, Hoyle argues to the contrary.

If we progressed from microbes to humans, then one would think that life then proceeded according to Darwin's description, but Hoyle argues that such a process would be impossible. What he proposes as an alternative is not quite clear to me. On page 250, the next-to-the-last page of the book, he tells us that the microorganisms merged to create macroorganisms. However, on page 117, he says that our genes have been granted from extraterrestrial sources. This leaves several questions unanswered: Is this the same planet that the microscopic meteorite came from? And if so, does this mean that the meteor shower was not a natural phenomenon, but the work of intelligent life on that planet? How can an outside agent donate genes to another species? How can that agent accomplish this while escaping the gleeful discovery of millions of UFO enthusiasts? Furthermore, why would an outside civilization bother populating our planet but want nothing else to do with us?

If Hoyle had such a great scientific idea, why did he take his idea straight to the lay reader instead of submitting it to peer review? Probably because he knew it wouldn't do any good. On page 242, he predicts, quite correctly, that other scientists would reject his idea. This rejection, he says, would be more "dogmatic" than "scientific." Here on the Amazon site, there are other books arguing against Hoyle's brain child. If you are interested, you can read some of these books and decide for yourself.

Ironically, unorthodox science has rendered Hoyle as a victim as well as a perpetrator. Creationist Duane Gish has repeatedly quoted Hoyle as saying that the chances of life originating on earth are equal to that of a tornado sweeping through a junkyard and coming out with a jumbo jet. Gish would have his readers and listeners believe that Hoyle has compiled statistics and arrived at a decimal figure. We find Hoyle's statement on pages 18-19, we find Hoyle's statement, and we find that he is making an analogy, not a statistical claim. Furthermore, we find Hoyle expressing resentment at being misquoted.

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