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The Universe in a Nutshell Hardcover – November 6, 2001

by Stephen William Hawking (Author)

282 customer reviews

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Stephen Hawking’s phenomenal, multimillion-copy bestseller, A Brief History of Time, introduced the ideas of this brilliant theoretical physicist to readers all over the world.

Now, in a major publishing event, Hawking returns with a lavishly illustrated sequel that unravels the mysteries of the major breakthroughs that have occurred in the years since the release of his acclaimed first book.

The Universe in a Nutshell

• Quantum mechanics
• M-theory
• General relativity
• 11-dimensional supergravity
• 10-dimensional membranes
• Superstrings
• P-branes
• Black holes

One of the most influential thinkers of our time, Stephen Hawking is an intellectual icon, known not only for the adventurousness of his ideas but for the clarity and wit with which he expresses them. In this new book Hawking takes us to the cutting edge of theoretical physics, where truth is often stranger than fiction, to explain in laymen’s terms the principles that control our universe.

Like many in the community of theoretical physicists, Professor Hawking is seeking to uncover the grail of science — the elusive Theory of Everything that lies at the heart of the cosmos. In his accessible and often playful style, he guides us on his search to uncover the secrets of the universe — from supergravity to supersymmetry, from quantum theory to M-theory, from holography to duality.

He takes us to the wild frontiers of science, where superstring theory and p-branes may hold the final clue to the puzzle. And he lets us behind the scenes of one of his most exciting intellectual adventures as he seeks “to combine Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity and Richard Feynman’s idea of multiple histories into one complete unified theory that will describe everything that happens in the universe.”

With characteristic exuberance, Professor Hawking invites us to be fellow travelers on this extraordinary voyage through space-time. Copious four-color illustrations help clarify this journey into a surreal wonderland where particles, sheets, and strings move in eleven dimensions; where black holes evaporate and disappear, taking their secret with them; and where the original cosmic seed from which our own universe sprang was a tiny nut.

The Universe in a Nutshell is essential reading for all of us who want to understand the universe in which we live. Like its companion volume, A Brief History of Time, it conveys the excitement felt within the scientific community as the secrets of the cosmos reveal themselves.

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Stephen Hawking, science's first real rock star, may be the least-read bestselling author in history--it's no secret that many people who own A Brief History of Time have never finished it. Hawking's The Universe in a Nutshell aims to remedy the situation, with a plethora of friendly illustrations to help readers grok some of the most brain-bending ideas ever conceived.

Does it succeed? Yes and no. While Hawking offers genuinely accessible context for such complexities as string theory and the nature of time, it's when he must translate equations to sentences that the limits of language get in the way. But Hawking has simplified the origin of the universe, the nature of space and time, and what holds it all together to an unprecedented degree, inviting nonscientists to share his obvious awe and love of the unseen forces that shape it all.

Yes, it's difficult reading, but it's worth it. Hawking is one of the great geniuses of our time, a man whose life has been devoted to thinking in the abstract about the universe. With his help, and pictures--lots of pictures--we can seek to understand a bit more of the cosmos. --Therese Littleton

From School Library Journal

Adult/High School-Writing in a lighthearted, personal, often humorous style and with colorful and entertaining graphics on every page, Hawking succeeds in communicating his love and enthusiasm for science. Without seeming to condescend, he makes a valiant attempt to clarify many fascinating and elusive topics such as relativity and time; multiple universes and dimensions; black holes and dark matter; prediction of the future; and the possibility of time travel. Those usually daunted by scientific texts might enjoy puzzling over the graphics; many of them, together with excellent captions, fully restate the content of the text in an alternative (and, for some, more understandable) manner. Also, Hawking enriches readers' vocabularies with many of the sometimes-playful words, phrases, and acronyms essential to an acquaintance with modern physics-supergravity and supersymmetry, "p-branes" and proto-galaxies, MACHOS and WIMPS. Among teens, Universe might well prove to have appeal beyond its obvious audience of science students and readers of popular science and science fiction.
Christine C. Menefee, Fairfax County Public Library, VA
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

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Product details

Hardcover: 224 pages
Publisher: Bantam; 1st edition (November 6, 2001)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 9780593048153
ISBN-13: 978-0593048153
ASIN: 055380202X
Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 0.8 x 10.2 inches
Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 280 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #30,724 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #60 in Astronomy (Books)
- #27 in Quantum Theory (Books)
- #46 in Cosmology (Books)

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DjC

A Universe With No Substance

April 27, 2018

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

The beginning of this book was promising, with good explanations and illustrations on relativity. But in subsequent chapters dealing with quantum theory, p-branes, time travel paradoxes, multiple dimensions, etc., the author often jumps into difficult concepts without presenting enough background information, then relies on statements that, without sufficient explanation, leave us wondering how they can be true. If the intention was to provide a "nutshell" explanation of the universe, then, without the substantive explanations needed to understand such complex material, the book ultimately falls short in that effort.

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Mary Soon LeeTop Contributor: Fantasy Books

A very good introduction to topics in theoretical physics.

September 22, 2019

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

Stephen Hawking, who died in 2018, was a preeminent physicist, and this is one of several books that he wrote describing physics for a non-mathematical audience. In it he discusses such things as whether time had a beginning, the nature of black holes, and progress toward a complete unified theory to explain the universe. I found the book fascinating, primarily for the science but also for incidental remarks about the scientists.

To my surprise, it was a fairly quick read, the prose free of abtruse contortions, and the text interspersed with diagrams and illustrations. That said, there were times when I was deeply perplexed. I read chapter two twice to understand it better, and there were five places in the subsequent chapters where I wrote question marks to indicate my confusion. Chapter six, where Hawking turns from physics to biology and computers, appealed to me less than the rest of the book. (I found myself questioning his assertions there in a way that I didn't in the physics sections.)

I mentioned that I found this a quicker read than I'd expected. The downside to that is that I'd have appreciated more detail, but that may be hard to achieve without getting into nitty-gritty mathematics. Overall, this strikes me as a very good introduction to the areas of theoretical physics that Hawking studied. Interested readers, myself included, can then scurry away to find further books on the subject. Highly recommended.

About my book reviews: I try to review every book I read, including those that I don't end up enjoying. The reviews are not scholarly, but just indicate my reaction as a reader, reading being my addiction. I am miserly with 5-star reviews; 4 stars means I liked a book very much; 3 stars means I liked it; 2 stars means I didn't like it (though often the 2-star books are very popular with other readers and/or are by authors whose other work I've loved).

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atomicbohr

Hawking for the Masses

October 6, 2018

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

I bought The Universe in a Nutshell with some trepidation, having struggled through A Brief History of Time.

The Universe in a Nutshell is not nearly as difficult or as abstruse as A Brief History of Time. It is very accessible to those who are not crazy interested in physics. It's a very interesting read. Highly recommended.

2 people found this helpful

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Royce Callaway

A Quantum Physics Picture Book

February 15, 2007

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

This is not a book for the timid or for those who have not read other and simpler books on quantum theory. The illustrations are excellent and contribute to your understanding of what is being discussed but even so the concepts are not simple to grasp. Like many of the other reviewers I have a technical background in engineering and have read widely in the area of physics and quantum theory. Nevertheless this book is a challenge and I cannot honestly say that I grasped all of it. In fact my criticism of the book is that it presumes considerable knowledge by the reader and some of the theories seem farfetched. The fact that an equation can be made to work simply by making convenient assumptions does not constitute proof from my perspective. I was amused by Hawkings indirect hit on evolution when he points out that intelligence does not appear to be necessary for life and thus life on other planets is problematic. That section alone was worth the price of admission.

Nevertheless, Hawking again demonstrates his humor and his personality clearly shines through. His ideas and concepts are challenging and without doubt he has contributed more to cosmology than almost anyone else. I enjoyed reading the book, I liked the pictures, I think I may have even understood some of it. If you are interested in cosmology and quantum theory this is a good book. I only gave it four stars because it is not as easy to understand as his "Brief History of Time".

5 people found this helpful

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Nanbendaa

I could not understand ,visualize

November 18, 2014

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

I could not understand ,visualize any concept explained in this book. Got some rough idea about string theory.
But Imaginary time, p branes, time travel .... no idea how to visualize.

Can anyone suggest me to understand those concepts ? googling "understanding universe for dummies/idiots/fifth grader"
I think each topic needs a separate book to make me understand..

update:-
Found such a book, Road to reality by Roger Penrose

6 people found this helpful

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Joseph Hill

A Thorough and Informative Discussion Concerning Humans and the Universe They Inhabit

November 14, 2014

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

In this installment of Professor Hawking's discussion on cosmology, he expands his insights concern humanity and its future. For one thing, he for-sees a greater integration of the actual human being (cranial implants) with technology which is happening today. In addition, he explains particle physics in a more concise and clear deposition. With all due certainty, purchase: A Briefer History Of Time, The Illustrated-A Brief History Of Time, and The Universe in a Nutshell if you want a clear and non-technical presentation into the field of cosmology.

One person found this helpful

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C. S.

Hawking in a nutshell

March 23, 2012

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

I have to admit bias as I have been a friend of Stephen Hawking for 60 years, but his books just answer so many questions, as well as raising more, that every one of his books is prescribed reading for everyone. Universe in a Nutshell is a brilliant follow on to A Brief History of Time, keeping us abreast with all the new discoveries that have occured since it was published. Whilst scientists in Switzerland battle to find evidence of particles travelling faster than the speed of light and all Star Trek Fans wait on the validation of Warp speed, we are able to undestand the most complex facets of our universe by reading this extraordinary book and its predecessor. Stephen you are a genius and I know you were created by God.

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