Big Bang: The Most Important Scientific Discovery of All Time and Why You Need to Know About It: An illuminating history science biography exploration of Albert Einstein's genius

This brilliant book by Simon Singh, first published in 2004, seeks to explain the theories that have existed since ancient times until the modern day concerning the structure, age and creation of the universe. Singh has an easygoing style of writing and having said what he wants to say he will often summarise the remarks he has made, thus making sure he has been fully understood and that the reader is keeping up to speed. Also, rather than just discuss the cold scientific facts, he brings the subject to life by describing the personalities involved, and the challenges they faced in their attempts to solve the mysteries of the cosmos. Each chapter also ends with a helpful two page "handwritten" summary covering the salient points.He starts the book by addressing the place of the earth in the big scheme of things, going through the various early theories where the earth was at the centre of everything. Interestingly, in the third century BC the ancient Greek astronomer Aristarchus had worked out that it was the earth that moved around the sun and not the other way around, but he lost out to the views of heavyweights Aristotle and Ptolemy who had both favoured a geocentric model. In fact, logic and common sense seemed to rule out the idea of the earth orbiting the sun, for reasons such as if the earth was travelling through space at great speed we would feel a tremendous wind and would be knocked off our feet as the ground moved under us. Not to mention that placing the earth at the centre of the universe was a useful way of explaining gravity in that everything was attracted to this centre point. The geocentric view prevailed for many centuries, this position also suiting the early church who stood steadfast against anyone proposing something different. But, eventually, through the determined efforts of Copernicus, Tycho Brahe and Galileo in the 16th century, science won through and the church was forced to accept the heliocentric layout of the solar system.Singh discusses the speed of light and the postulated existence, or otherwise, of the ether. I was surprised to read that it was as early as 1670 when the Danish astronomer, Ole Rømer, first recognised that light had a finite speed and he made a not unreasonable estimate of this speed based on calculations of apparent anomalies in the orbit of one of the moons of Jupiter. Of course, of critical importance in understanding light was Einstein's contribution, which led to the development of his special theory of relativity. Singh's account naturally progresses to Einstein's general theory of relativity and to his view that the universe was static, although he did need to add a cosmological constant to his general relativity theory to support this conjecture. But shortly afterwards saw the (then) unpopular, and independently developed, theories of Friedman and Lemaître which proposed an expanding universe, with Lemaître being the first to recognise that if the universe was expanding then it must once have been smaller, and once probably minute - hence he was the first to hint at a big bang theory although he called it the primaeval atom. Lemaître also had the distinction of being both a physicist and an ordained priest, so he can be thought of as having hedged his bet when it came to theories of creation.Next, Singh discusses the discovery in the early 20th century that many of the so-called nebulae that were visible through telescopes were actually far away galaxies, and not, as some thought, merely objects within our own Milky Way galaxy. Further research, notably by Hubble, showed that most of these galaxies were moving away from earth, and the further they were away, the faster they were moving. Experimental evidence had thus been found for the expansion of the universe and therefore, as a corollary, an initiation in a big bang, thus opening the way to a proper Big Bang theory.But, moving on, Singh notes that this incipient Big Bang theory had problems. For example, it couldn't account for how the heavy chemical elements had formed. George Gamow had led efforts that succeeded in explaining how the heat of the big bang would have led to the fusion of proton and neutrons, leading to the formation of helium in the proportion that it is present in the universe today. But he couldn't explain the formation of the heavier elements. Another issue was the age of the universe, because using the estimated speeds and distances of far away galaxies, it seemed that the universe was younger than the age of the earth, as calculated from radioactivity measurements. In the 1940s, Fred Hoyle, along with others, proposed an alternative to the Big Bang theory by suggesting a Steady State model in which the universe was expanding but where new matter was continually being created in the gaps between the old galaxies. The discrepancies in the age of the earth and the universe were less of a problem for this theory but it still had its own difficulties. It couldn't, for instance, account for the formation of any of the elements, not even helium. Throughout his life, Hoyle remained very critical of the Big Bang Theory and ironically it was he who coined the term "Big Bang", although it was intended to be derogatory.The battle between the Big Bang and Steady State theories continued but slowly the ground moved in favour of the former. Successive discoveries uncovered errors in estimates of the size of the universe, and hence its age, and it was shown that the universe was indeed older than the earth, which was a welcome boost for the Big Bangers. Then, by calculating the pressures and temperatures expected to be found in stars during their life cycles, Hoyle was successful in theorising how the heavier elements could have formed from helium. Although Hoyle was a Steady Stater, his research had helped both camps. Then radio astronomy was successful in finding younger galaxies at the far reaches of the universe - their absence in the closer parts of the universe contradicted the predictions of the Steady State model, adding further weight to the Big Bang theory. The final nail in the coffin for the Steady State argument was the accidental discovery of cosmic microwave background radiation by Penzias and Wilson. Big Bang theorists had predicted the presence of this radiation, which dates back to about 300,000 years after the initiation of the universe, and they had been proved right. In the 1990s, equipment on the COBE satellite detected minor variations in the background radiation, which are thought to reflect minor variations in the density of the early universe, which in turn provided the seeds for the growth of the galaxies.Curiously, it's only at the end of the book, in an epilogue, that Singh talks about more contentious issues, including inflation, dark matter and dark energy. I was a little puzzled as to why this wasn't incorporated into main text but this is only a minor issue and it doesn't detract from the general flow.Much of the scientific information in the book I knew already but it was still refreshing and entertaining to see it presented in its historical context, and to read of the struggles by those involved in formulating and then attempting to prove the various theories. For a simple, non-mathematical introduction to cosmology, I think this book is difficult to beat.

I review few books but I am taken enough with this book to pick up my pen!I found this book easy to read and very informative.What it amounts to is that you are taken through a history of cosmology from the very earliest times in an interesting way, from Erastothenes and others through Ptolemy then on to Copernicus, Kepler and on to more modern times. This historical approach gives you an excellent understanding of the issues and an understanding of the significance of new discoveries as they were made. I found the tables contrasting the way various theories met the observations and criticisms of their time very useful. It made me understand why even after Copernicus people did not have to be silly to reject the sun centred solar system postulated by him.The same applies to the advances of the twentieth century developments described in the book all made even more interesting by snapshots of the characters of the people involved. One thinks of science as being objective but human subjectivity also plays a part in determining what is the fashionable theory of the time.Overall I have emerged from this book with an understanding not only of the Big Bang but of how the Greeks with the simplest of equipment managed to estimate the circumference of the earth, the size of the moon, the distance to the moon and the sun; of the solar system; of the development of our elements most of which come from super nova which are very much post Big Bang and with us of course to-day.Recommended even to those without any scientific background.

I LOVE this book! Never have I started a review like this, but boy do I love this book. I read a LOT of books and this one had me gripped from the first page and kept me engrossed and stimulated the whole way through. Singh manages to explain complex ideas and theories in such a way that they are rendered clear and coherent and allow you to understand the difficult themes surrounding cosmology and the big bang theory. This book starts by looking at Copernicus, Galileo, Newton etc and showing how their ideas lead to modern cosmology research and development, it explores the development of telescopes and other measuring apparatus (more interesting than it sounds!) and how discoveries were made about galaxies millions of km's away from earth. It looks at opposing theories and the controversies surrounding them and how each theory gained ground and was either disproved or confirmed. This book is littered with anecdotes and humorous asides that add to the enjoyment of reading, as well as increasing your understanding. You also get a real feel for the excitement of discovery and of the various protagonists of the various theories and debates. At the end of each chapter you get a wonderfully illustrated and condensed summary that allows you to solidify the knowledge gained before going on to the next chapter, as well as allowing you to go back to this book and refreshing your memory. It has loads of clear tables and illustrations to explain particular points and various photos to compliment the text. Rarely have I enjoyed a book as much as this in the past few years and i've loved the sense of wonder and trains of thought it has lead me on. I could gush about this book for ages (as you may be able to tell!) but needless to say it comes HIGHLY recommended indeed.Dedicated to Stephen A. Haines whose reviews inspired me to read some amazing science books and who will be greatly missed.Feel free to check out my blog which can be found on my profile page.

This is a very interesting and comprehensive account of the developments in science that led to the Big Bang theory of the origin of the Universe. Along the way it gives the reader an understanding of how science works. It is clear that an awful lot of work (background reading, travelling and interviewing as well as writing a book of over 500 pages) went into this book.On the other hand, I do not think Simon Singh has answered the statement that forms the second half of his subtitle, “why you need to know about it.” Why should we need to know about it? Most of us simply get on with our everyday lives, work and leisure without giving the Big Bang a moment’s thought. And why should we? Singh does not even address this question. Of course, it is a fascinating subject; that is why so many astronomers and theoreticians have devoted their lives to answering the question. But what influence should it have on us?In the early 1960s I was a Physics undergraduate, so I was reading about Quasars, Fred Hoyle’s Steady State Theory and Penzias and Wilson discovering the Cosmic Microwave Background as they happened. When I first read about Hoyle’s theory, I wasn’t yet sold on the Big Bang, but I was suspicious of Hoyle’s Creation Field (C-Field). It seemed like an ad hoc hypothesis with no evidence behind it.It seems to me that Singh has omitted two important points from the Galileo affair. First, in his “Dialogues on the Two Great World Systems” Galileo was arguing for the Copernican Sun-centred model. This model was already obsolete in 1632 because, over twenty years earlier, Kepler had demonstrated that the planets move in ellipses at varying speeds around the Sun, rather than in circles at constant speed as maintained by Copernicus. Galileo and Kepler corresponded with each other so it is surprising that Galileo was able to write that the orbit of Mars was still a problem for astronomers even though Kepler had solved that problem.Secondly, although Galileo had observed the phases of Venus which proved that that planet orbited the Sun, he had no evidence that the Earth itself actually moved. He thought that he had. His theory, as explained in the “Dialogues”, was that the tides were caused by the waters of the seas sometimes falling behind as the Earth rotated and sometimes running ahead. However, this theory contradicted his earlier explanation of why we are not aware of the Earth rotating. He argued, correctly, that everything on and related to the Earth shared in its rotation and movement around the Sun. “Everything” of course included the water of the seas and the air.However, this is a book well worth reading and even keeping and re-reading.

The five star reviews this book has received are absolutely correct. It is a fairly easy to read book about how the universe began and evolved but it is not dumbed down at all. There are complex ideas here but you will be able to pick them up if you are at all interested in this subject. I have found myself reading this every night as if it was an exiting novel - I can't but it down and am not looking forward to finishing it! I have just ordered "A Universe from Nothing" by Lawrence M Krauss to keep me going when I finish this one. I am a happy atheist and strangely find these books comforting - we're all in it together as they say! If only they taught this sort of thing in physics and chemistry at school, I think a lot more people would be interested. I found the anecdotes and stories about the characters involved really fascinating too and they help me to remember the scientist's achievements. I will never think of Hubble, an American, without chuckling about his put-on English accent, plus fours and him going around saying "By Jove" after he studied in England for a while. Good for him and what a character!

This is the third of Simon Singh's books that I have read. As with his books on codes and Fermat's last theorem, the book is beautifully written with an easy style not cluttered with technical detail whilst conveying the key issues almost as if a detective novel. He clearly sets out the process of identifying the "big bang' as the origin of the universe detailing both the adoption of scientific method and evidence as a replacement for ancient philosophical thought as well as the twists and turns of more modern philosophical thoughts and prejudices as the story unfolds. Perhaps most interestingly, he then departs from the traditional whodunnit format to set out some of the issues that are still left on the table because although we now know there was a big bang, we are also left in no doubt that there is still much to discover about what emerged from it, why it might have occurred and the consequences and future possibilities. I was left with a sense of amazement at the creativity and serendipity involved as well as an admiration for the incredible efforts of key individuals. I was also left in no doubt that there were as many questions raised than answered and, unlike previous eras when physicists believed that they had made all the key discoveries, future generations of physicists, both theoretical and experimental, have much to pursue. It is certainly thought-provoking.

This is an excellent book. It's quite long (over 500 pages) but it's a joy to read and it's more than just another book about the Big Bang. Simon Singh takes you through the history of astronomy and physics leading up to our modern understanding of how the universe came to be, all explained in a lucid style. Along the way the reader is also given biographical information of the main players in the story and there are lots of explanatory diagrams, photos and illustrations that enhance the text. I thoroughly recommend this book to anyone who wants to understand the basics of astrophysics, whatever your background. Everyone will benefit from the well-rounded view of this topic that Singh presents here. It's one of the best popular science books I've ever read.

When I was a child, I used to wonder at the scale of the universe. Trying to imagine infinity can send you crazy. Since then, I've given space very little consideration.Simon Singh's book brings it all back. He explains the solar system, galaxy and beyond. Not just a fascinating amount of information, but also the history, ingenuity and painstaking effort involved in mapping and measuring the heavens. How would you estimate the distance to a neutron star or a pulsar? How can you study a body that is millions of light years away? How can you calculate the proportions of different elements created after the big bang? How do you design experiments to test theoretical assumptions? How do all the small observations and incredible calculations link together to provide a convincing picture of the history of the universe over the last 15bn years?Fascinating and gripping.

Segundo livro que leio do Simon Singh (o primeiro foi O ÚLTIMO TEOREMA DE FERMAT). O autor aborda as questões mais relevantes da ciência e trata com muita naturalidade, bom humor e faz com que qualquer pessoa entenda todos os conceitos mencionados no livro, através de exemplos cotidianos.Sem dúvida uma excelente leitura para quem é apaixonado pelos mistérios do COSMOS e fascinado pelas suas belezas matemáticas.O autor termina o livro com uma frase bem humorada.Com toda certeza é um investimento com um grande retorno intelectual.Boa leitura à quem decidir mergulhar nos mares de conhecimento que esse autor nos dá com essa obra :)

If you want an excellent summary of the evolution of the universe and of the science that got us there, then this is the read. Its a must read !Simon has also written The Code Book and Fermats Last Theorem - READ THESE TOO !Simon Singh is one of those few who can make clear his own brilliant grasp of the subject and the need to make it cogent to those with an interest.

2,300年前の初期天文学から最新の宇宙論までーーーっ！！これは、、、おもろい！抜群！その言葉どおり、宇宙ジャンル本の中で群を抜いてます（個人比）。この本、天文学の進展にあわせて、様々な天文学者の背景なんかにもせまっちゃったりするんですが、アインシュタインさんのとこだけでもその価値十分。すげー面白いですから。宇宙物理学ではあたりまえのメンドクセー公式とかを最小限におさえて、算数が出来ない読者の好奇心を最後までがっちり掴み続けて離しませんから。個人的感想ですが、初期天文学でなんとも驚きなのは、なんと2,300年も前に、地球が球体であるだけではなく、地球の大きさ、月の大きさ、月までの距離、果ては、太陽の大きさ、太陽までの距離を科学的手法で調査し、かなり正確に理解していた人がいたのだと。いやはや、まじで？？となります。コロンブス（1490年代）以前の連中、どいつもこいつも総ボンクラです。宇宙は大好きだけど物理や数学は大嫌いだという人生これ手抜きなあなたにわたしに抜群におすすめの一冊。ちなみに、シンさんの本は他のもまんべんなく面白いです。暗号の本もモチロン抜群に面白かったのでおすすめ。ちなみに、英語のお勉強にソートーがんばりましたが、英語版より日本語版の方が読みやすいかったです。当然です。

Good book

Dieses buch ist eine sehr gute Einführung in die Big Bang. Wissenschaftsjournalist Simon Sing hat ein Talent dafür sehr Komplexe Sachen so zu erklären das man es versteht. Las auch sein buch über Fermat und über die strategische Wichtigkeit der Chiffrierung.In diesen buch geht es um den Big Bang, sehr klar erklärt er den.