Alpha and Omega : The Search for the Beginning and End of the Universe

by Seife, Charles (Author)

• ISBN13: 9780142004463
• ISBN10: 0142004464
• Edition: Reprint
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2004-06-01
• Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics)

Summary

Today we are on the verge of discoveries that should soon reveal the deepest secrets of the universe. In Alpha & Omega, Charles Seife takes us to the front lines of the cosmological revolution to synthesize the discoveries of scientists at observatories and laboratories around the world who are actually peering into both the cradle of the universe and its grave. The cast of characters includes galaxy hunters and microwave eavesdroppers, gravity theorists and atom smashers, all of whom are on the trail of dark matter, dark energy, and the growing inhabitants of the particle zoo. Seife’s lucid explanations of scientific theories and current research make cutting-edge science both crystal clear and wonderfully exciting.

Author Biography

Charles Seife is the author of Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea, which won the PEN/Martha Albrand Award for first nonfiction and was named a New York Times Notable Book. Seife writes regularly for Science magazine as well as Scientific American and The Economist.

Table of Contents

Preface	ix
Chapter 1 The First Cosmology
The Golden Age of the Gods	1	(9)
Chapter 2 The First Cosmological Revolution
The Copernican Theory	10	(15)
Chapter 3 The Second Cosmological Revolution
Hubble and the Big Bang	25	(24)
Chapter 4 The Third Revolution Begins
The Universe Amok	49	(14)
Chapter 5 The Music of the Spheres
The Cosmic Microwave Background	63	(27)
Chapter 6 The Dark Universe
What's the Matter with Matter?	90	(13)
Chapter 7 Darker Still
The Enigma of Exotic Dark Matter	103	(13)
Chapter 8 The Big Bang in Our Backyard
The Birth of Baryons	116	(16)
Chapter 9 The Good Nus
The Exotic Neutrino	132	(18)
Chapter 10 Supersymmetry
Fearlessly Framing the Laws of Matter	150	(13)
Chapter 11 Seeing the Invisible
MACHOs, WIMPs, and Illuminating the Darkest Regions of the Universe	163	(19)
Chapter 12 The Deepest Mystery in Physics
&Lambda, the Vacuum, and Inflation	182	(17)
Chapter 13 Wrinkles in Spacetime
Gravitational Waves and the Early Universe	199	(16)
Chapter 14 Beyond the Third Revolution
Voyage to the Ends of Time	215	(10)
Appendix A Tired Light Retired	225	(4)
Appendix B Where Does Matter Come From?	229	(6)
Appendix C Nobel Prizes in Physics-Past and Future	235	(6)
Appendix D Some Experiments to Watch	241	(8)
Glossary	249	(20)
Select Bibliography	269	(8)
Acknowledgments	277	(2)
Index	279