Gribbin, John R

An introduction to the history of quantum mechanics discussing the significance of the theory and introducing scientists who developed it.

Examines the history of scientists' attempts to determine the age of the universe, and discusses how they arrived at the consensus that the universe if between thirteen and sixteen billion years old.

A gallery of color photographs of the sun, moon, planets, and other objects in the solar system, each with explantory text.

Explains how the chemicals found in all life forms were originally processed inside stars and discusses how recent developments in twentieth-century astronomy led to this discovery.

"The acclaimed author of In Search of Schr?odinger's Cat searches for life on other planetsAre we alone in the universe? Surely amidst the immensity of the cosmos there must be other intelligent life out there. Don't be so sure, says John Gribbin, one of today's best popular science writers. In this fascinating and intriguing new book, Gribbin argues that the very existence of intelligent life anywhere in the cosmos is, from an astrophysicist's point of view, a miracle. So why is there life on Earth and (seemingly) nowhere else? What happened to make this planet special? Taking us back some 600 million years, Gribbin lets you experience the series of unique cosmic events that were responsible for our unique form of life within the Milky Way Galaxy. Written by one of our foremost popular science writers, author of the bestselling In Search of Schr?odinger's Cat offers a bold answer to the eternal question, "Are we alone in the universe?" Explores how the impact of a "supercomet" with Venus 600 million years ago created our moon, and along with it, the perfect conditions for life on Earth from one of our most talented science writers, this book is a daring, fascinating exploration into the dawning of the universe, cosmic collisions and their consequences, and the uniqueness of life on Earth"--.