This item is available online through Marketplace sellers.
$12.82
SHIP THIS ITEM
Temporarily Out of Stock Online
Please check back later for updated availability.
This item is available online through Marketplace sellers.
15.95
Out Of Stock
Overview
A vibrant collection of essays on the cosmos from the nation's best-known astrophysicist. “One of today’s best popularizers of science.”—Kirkus Reviews. Loyal readers of the monthly "Universe" essays in Natural History magazine have long recognized Neil deGrasse Tyson's talent for guiding them through the mysteries of the cosmos with stunning clarity and almost childlike enthusiasm. Here, Tyson compiles his favorite essays across a myriad of cosmic topics. The title essay introduces readers to the physics of black holes by explaining the gory details of what would happen to your body if you fell into one. "Holy Wars" examines the needless friction between science and religion in the context of historical conflicts. "The Search for Life in the Universe" explores astral life from the frontiers of astrobiology. And "Hollywood Nights" assails the movie industry's feeble efforts to get its night skies right. Known for his ability to blend content, accessibility, and humor, Tyson is a natural teacher who simplifies some of the most complex concepts in astrophysics while simultaneously sharing his infectious excitement about our universe.
Neil deGrasse Tyson is an astrophysicist with the American Museum of Natural History and the New York Times best-selling author of Astrophysics for People in a Hurry. He lives in New York City.
Table of Contents
Preface 11 Acknowledgments 13 Prologue: The Beginning of Science 15 The Nature of Knowledge: The challenges of knowing what is knowable in the universe Coming to Our Senses 25 On Earth as in the Heavens 31 Seeing Isn't Believing 38 The Information Trap 48 Stick-in-the-Mud Science 60 The Knowledge of Nature: The challenges of discovering the contents of the cosmos Journey from the Center of the Sun 69 Planet Parade 75 Vagabonds of the Solar System 85 The Five Points of Lagrange 95 Antimatter Matters 102 Ways and Means of Nature: How Nature presents herself to the inquiring mind The Importance of Being Constant 111 Speed Limits 119 Going Ballistic 127 On Being Dense 135 Over the Rainbow 144 Cosmic Windows 152 Colors of the Cosmos 161 Cosmic Plasma 168 Fire and Ice 175 The Meaning of Life: The challenges and triumphs of knowing how we got here Dust to Dust 185 Forged in the Stars 192 Send in the Clouds 199 Goldilocks and the Three Planets 207 Water, Water 213 Living Space 221 Life in the Universe 229 Our Radio Bubble 238 When the Universe Turns Bad: All the ways the cosmos wants to kill us Chaos in the Solar System 249 Coming Attractions 254 Ends of the World 263 Galactic Engines 268 Knock 'Em Dead 275 Death by Black Hole 283 Science and Culture: The ruffled interface between cosmic discovery and the public's reaction to it Things People Say 291 Fear of Numbers 298 On Being Baffled 303 Footprints in the Sands of Science 309 Let There Be Dark 320 Hollywood Nights 327 Science and God: When ways of knowing collide In the Beginning 337 Holy Wars 346 The Perimeter of Ignorance 353 References 363 Name Index 369 Subject Index 373
The director of the Hayden Planetarium goes from the Big Bang to the search for alien intelligence in just over two hundred pages. Neil deGrasse Tyson talks with us about “Astrophysics for People in a Hurry.”
It begins with a box. You know the kind I mean—small, lightish, not terrifically wide and, because it’s wrapped in row of waving Santas or the smiling faces of cherubic snowmen, there’s no telling what’s inside. Sure, you can lift it, feel its heft, but still it remains nearly impossible to determine an ugly turtleneck […]