The Universe in a Nutshell
by Stephen W. Hawking
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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 1157)
Read in January, 2008
recommends it for:
Science readers, people curious about the universe
Hawking is just about unparalleled in his ability to share the beauty and wonder of science. His description of how we discovered the universe is expanding is wondrous. We all know the practicality of science; it produces all this nifty technology. Yet most people can't appreciate the rich wonder and satisfaction of it, largely thanks to boring science classes in school and clinical science writers. Hawking is a gift to science in this regard. He's also a bit funnier than most, which helps liven...more
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Read in April, 2008
recommends it for:
Science/sci-fi people
This book is actually quite a bit different from "A Brief History of Time", which had both pros and cons. The book is set up so the first two chapters are "essential" information to understanding the rest of the chapters, and then you can pick and choose which chapters to read when, as opposed to "Brief History" which was strictly chronological. I ended up reading it cover to cover anyway.
Pros: Newer theories in astrophysics and fun new ideas explored (Is time ...more
Pros: Newer theories in astrophysics and fun new ideas explored (Is time ...more
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Read in May, 2008
Hawking's ideas are rooted in the work of Newton and Einstein.
All galaxies were once unified. But the galxtic cluster fuck is now in a state of constant expansion.
Newton & Agustine had conceptualized time as an independent constant, absolute seprate from physical reality. Einstein's work concerning the mathmatical description of black holes was part of the process of viewing time in a different manner.
One experiment using clocks I vaguely recollect was putting two clocks in capsules ...more
All galaxies were once unified. But the galxtic cluster fuck is now in a state of constant expansion.
Newton & Agustine had conceptualized time as an independent constant, absolute seprate from physical reality. Einstein's work concerning the mathmatical description of black holes was part of the process of viewing time in a different manner.
One experiment using clocks I vaguely recollect was putting two clocks in capsules ...more
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Stephen Hawking's The Universe in a Nutshell is a followup to his work, A Brief History of Time. it looks into most of the subjects that his first book did, but The Universe in a Nutshell has greater knowledge of the subject. The information being theoretical means it is constantly changing. Stephen Hawking first thought that information is lost in a black hole and can never be restored. Stephen used Richard Fenyman's multiple histories theory to formulate a theory that the information would...more
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bookshelves:
space--science--philosophy
Has a copy to sell/swap
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Read in January, 2005
recommends it for:
Space nerds and Astronomy lovers
The Universe in a Nutshell was the first book I read by SH and went to read his older books after this. However this is the most up to date of Nutshell, Brief and Briefer Histories of Time. The first two chapters are sort of refresher chapters in physics to ensure you can understand the latter chapters.
A must for any fan of space, science or the cosmos. But I'd say if you enjoy Stephen's witty dryness in his other books, then give this a go. Its a lot lighter than most all science books and ...more
A must for any fan of space, science or the cosmos. But I'd say if you enjoy Stephen's witty dryness in his other books, then give this a go. Its a lot lighter than most all science books and ...more
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Has a copy to sell/swap
recommends it for:
Physics Majors and Trekkies
I have just begun reading this illustrated book which explains the known universe. It begins with a forward by Hawking explaining that the first edition had a foreward written by Carl Sagan; i wonder what he wrote?
I'm in the first chapter and it begins with the story of a unknown phsysicist lecturing that the shape of the earth as round. And an old lady stands up and says "that's rubbish. the earth is flat as a plate and it rests on the back of a gigantic turtle." The lecturer s...more
I'm in the first chapter and it begins with the story of a unknown phsysicist lecturing that the shape of the earth as round. And an old lady stands up and says "that's rubbish. the earth is flat as a plate and it rests on the back of a gigantic turtle." The lecturer s...more
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bookshelves:
never-got-to-finish,
reference
recommends it for:
Stephen Hawking (to edit the book!)
This book is too obscure with too much gobbledygook. He tries to explain obscure formulae in laymen's terms, to no avail. The illustrated version of the book does not help with the diagrams and confuses rather than enlightens the reader. Rather than to clear people's minds on the subject, <i>The Universe in a Nutshell<i> does not explain anything about the topic specific vocabulary and it is hard to understand. If he explained things more clearly maybe the book could have been better...more
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Read in May, 2008
I like this book a lot better than a brief history of time. Hawkings does a much better job of explaining the physics involved in the universe. The format of this allowed the reader to skip chapter and read what they are most interested in, in any order. I found this book little more laid back and just easier to read. Skip "A Brief History in Time", not only is "The Universe in a Nutshell" more up to date, it is a lot easier to to understand. This book goes along way in ...more
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non-fic,
science
Read in May, 2007
recommends it for:
astronomer buffs
So even with the great diagrams and visuals in the book, I still did not quite understand some of the equations/laws/theories Hawking mentioned. The book was helpful for physics-inept persons such as myself, not to mention the illustrations make it even more worthwhile. But if it's the understanding of physics you are looking for, you'll still need to reference some things mentioned in here.
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Read in April, 2008
recommends it for:
people who like science and have a general understadning of modern physics
Good book in general. Both too technical and too easy. I have a background in physics, though i never finished a degree. Some i already knew but only because of my continued interest in Cosmology. I still don;t quite get the 11 dimension idea. But i learned important tidbits, even if some fo the concepts sre too involved to really take in from reading a casual book
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Read in January, 2003
This is the dumbed down version of the already supposedly dumbed down "A Brief History of Time", but I'm still way too dumb for it. I got through it but, so much of it is so obscure and removed from our daily experience that it is very difficult to relate to. Did you know that the universe is a brane? Well actually it is lots of branes...whatever.
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Read in August, 2007
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
kheili bahale in ketab
rastesho bekhaiin man in ketabo az yeki pichondam
nemidad
nachar shodam
kheili bahale
jahan dar poste gerdo
age bekham kholase benevisam nemishe
chon hamash bahale
bekhonid bad nist
kheili bahale in ketab
rastesho bekhaiin man in ketabo az yeki pichondam
nemidad
nachar shodam
kheili bahale
jahan dar poste gerdo
age bekham kholase benevisam nemishe
chon hamash bahale
bekhonid bad nist
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Read in July, 2008
Yes, I'm a dork, and in addition to reading grammar books for fun, I also read science books. I've been told that Stephen Hawking is not as complicated to read as one might assume. While I did learn a lot from this book, I also was left with a lot more questions. Furthermore, the illustrations were either confusing or totally unnecessary.
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1 comments
Yay!! Finally a picture book for us dummies to understand the universe.
This book is amazing!! Why is it that children are being forced to learn how to turn water into liquor, but not how to understand the universe?
It's everything!
This book is amazing!! Why is it that children are being forced to learn how to turn water into liquor, but not how to understand the universe?
It's everything!
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Out of all the people who understand this domain, only one or two can explain it well. Hawking is at the top of the list. I think he has the best story so far - that is until someone comes up with a better story explaining nature.
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Read in April, 2008
I got this on audiobook, which I regret now. Stephen Hawking's subject matter is just too dense to grasp in recorded form, at least for me. I know that I got all the way through the book, but I still don't know what I read.
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He's a much funnier guy than you'd think... To say that I understood it would be so wrong, it would be funny. But still, I liked it. Go figure. According to quantum physics, in some dimension I do understand it.
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recommends it for:
EVERYONE
Great layman's explanation of the universe and physics in general. Also covers quantum theory and if I recall a bit about its relationship with neuroscience/consciousness issues that are directly related.
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Excellent primer for those of us who are reality challenged. String theory, M Space and more in a format that is not intimidating or full of bullshit differential equasions that only savants can grasp.
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متاسفانه این کتاب در ایران به بدترین شکلممکن ترجمه شد....امیدوارم،روزی؛نسخه ی اصلی کتاب به دستم برسد...
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