Frequently Asked Questions about the Universe
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5.0 • 4 Ratings
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- $10.99
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- $10.99
Publisher Description
"Delightful, funny, and yet rigorous and intelligent: only Jorge and Daniel can reach this exquisite balance." —Carlo Rovelli, author of Seven Brief Lessons on Physics and Helgoland
You’ve got questions: about space, time, gravity, and the odds of meeting your older self inside a wormhole. All the answers you need are right here.
As a species, we may not agree on much, but one thing brings us all together: a need to know. We all wonder, and deep down we all have the same big questions. Why can’t I travel back in time? Where did the universe come from? What’s inside a black hole? Can I rearrange the particles in my cat and turn it into a dog?
Researcher-turned-cartoonist Jorge Cham and physics professor Daniel Whiteson are experts at explaining science in ways we can all understand, in their books and on their popular podcast, Daniel and Jorge Explain the Universe. With their signature blend of humor and oh-now-I-get-it clarity, Jorge and Daniel offer short, accessible, and lighthearted answers to some of the most common, most outrageous, and most profound questions about the universe they’ve received.
This witty, entertaining, and fully illustrated book is an essential troubleshooting guide for the perplexing aspects of reality, big and small, from the invisible particles that make up your body to the identical version of you currently reading this exact sentence in the corner of some other galaxy. If the universe came with an FAQ, this would be it.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Physicist Whiteson and cartoonist Cham (We Have No Idea) bring their podcast Daniel and Jorge Explain the Universe to the page in this amusing intro to the mysteries of the cosmos. Their survey is structured in a q&a format, and they admit that answering some questions only leads to more questions: they begin their exploration with "Why can't I travel back in time?"—and reveal that it might be possible, with the caveat that they're using the physicist's version of "possible," as in "not prevented by the laws of physics." Other questions considered include "Why haven't aliens visited us? Or have they?" (there's "a lot we don't know," they answer); "Is an asteroid going to hit the Earth and kill us all?" (chances are "not that high"); and "Is an afterlife possible?" (according to physics, quantum information can't be destroyed by the universe—so kind of). Along the way, they explain complex scientific ideas with humor: given the surface area of Mars, they write, even if trillions of dollars are spent to make it habitable, it'll "still be cheaper by area than real estate in California." The authors' answers always feel fresh, and Cham's fun cartoons are a treat. Entertaining and satisfying, this is sure to please.
