Come si è sviluppato l'universo fino alle sue dimensioni attuali? Come si formano i pianeti? Da dove viene la vita? Partendo dal Big Bang, si ripercorre la storia dell'universo e si esaminano le varie teorie elaborate per spiegarne l'evoluzione: dalla teoria del tutto a quella del Big Crunch.

An interesting and mostly understandable account of the the universe's physical phenomena over the course of its life from birth to present, covering the very small to the very large. The writing is not particularly vivid or inspiring, and the writer does not sufficiently bring to life what is largely a lifeless topic. The most interesting parts were those at the end dealing with the origins of the life and the evidence for organic molecules in space. Nevertheless, it is a worthwhile read to gain a grasp of current knowledge in particle and astrophysics, without being mind blowing. ( )

Another cracking book by Gribbin. He really does churn out quality time after time.

This book is a whistle-stop tour, a quick biography of our universe. I really enjoyed the "how do we know the things we think we know?" chapter and also his careful distinction between what we think we KNOW and what we THINK we know.

Accessible, informative and entertaining. Helpful glossary.

Recommended. ( )

This is the best overview of the current thinking on cosmology that I've read in some time. It covers more ground than Steven Weinberg's The First Three Minutes and brings it up to date. I've started reading it a second time and will use it as a reference for a long time to come.

It has plenty of big numbers and it is desperately in need of some illustrations, a graph even, to put these into context. Unlike Weinberg's book, you don't get the maths at the end (or at all) so you'll have to go elsewhere for that kind of detail. This despite the fact that anyone capable of making sense of the numbers will also be at ease with the equations that use them. Still, that's popular science for you. ( )