The Nature of Space and Time (Princeton Science Library Book 40) by Stephen Hawking (PDF)

Description

Einstein said that the most incomprehensible thing about the universe is that it is comprehensible. But was he right? Can the quantum theory of fields and Einstein’s general theory of relativity, the two most accurate and successful theories in all of physics, be united in a single quantum theory of gravity? Can quantum and cosmos ever be combined? On this issue, two of the world’s most famous physicists–Stephen Hawking (A Brief History of Time) and Roger Penrose (The Emperor’s New Mind and Shadows of the Mind)–disagree. Here they explain their positions in a work based on six lectures with a final debate, all originally presented at the Isaac Newton Institute for Mathematical Sciences at the University of Cambridge. How could quantum gravity, a theory that could explain the earlier moments of the big bang and the physics of the enigmatic objects known as black holes, be constructed? Why does our patch of the universe look just as Einstein predicted, with no hint of quantum effects in sight? What strange quantum processes can cause black holes to evaporate, and what happens to all the information that they swallow? Why does time go forward, not backward? In this book, the two opponents touch on all these questions. Penrose, like Einstein, refuses to believe that quantum mechanics is a final theory. Hawking thinks otherwise, and argues that general relativity simply cannot account for how the universe began. Only a quantum theory of gravity, coupled with the no-boundary hypothesis, can ever hope to explain adequately what little we can observe about our universe. Penrose, playing the realist to Hawking’s positivist, thinks that the universe is unbounded and will expand forever. The universe can be understood, he argues, in terms of the geometry of light cones, the compression and distortion of spacetime, and by the use of twistor theory. With the final debate, the reader will come to realize how much Hawking and Penrose diverge in their opinions of the ultimate quest to combine quantum mechanics and relativity, and how differently they have tried to comprehend the incomprehensible.

User’s Reviews

Reviews from Amazon users which were colected at the time this book was published on the website:

⭐This is a wonderful book, but it’s not for the faint of heart. I’ve read physics for years, and most of this went right over my head. This is not a “science education for layperson” book, nor does it intend to be. The chapters are presentations given in a 1994 debate between Hawking and Penrose at a professional conference at Cambridge. There’s a 2010 update at the end. Again, it’s a fantastic book, but keep in mind that it’s aimed at physicists.

⭐Hawking and Penrose talking it out, what could be better?

⭐This is a fairly technical book, not a book that “explains science to the lay person.” You have to have some familiarity with general relativity and the math that goes with it. I’ll keep reading it, but much of it will go over my head. Just so you know.

⭐R.I.P Dr. Hawking.

⭐Somehow less riveting than the book, even with all of the Hollywood wiles to sell the story.

⭐This is a very educational book covering the lectures of one of the greatest physicists ever who explains a very complex subject in terms that are understandable and will get you thinking about the universe that combines space and time in a multi-dimensional level

⭐The progression of deep ideas between the best minds in the planet…

⭐Just as described

⭐You need a degree in maths with this. Too hard for most people I think.

⭐Excellent for use and does its job well. Packaging was great and came quickly.

⭐NEW TO THIS BUT REALLY ENJOYED THE READ FASCINATING

⭐this is for advanced readers of science. Difficult to understand.

⭐…This book strives to answer “unanswerable” questions, and succeeds admirably. This is NOT a textbook, but fascinating fodder for the intelligent layman. I enjoyed it thoroughly, and would recommend it highly.

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