Our Cosmic Habitat: New Edition

(Paperback)

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Our universe seems strangely "biophilic," or hospitable to life. Is this happenstance, providence, or coincidence According to cosmologist Martin Rees, the answer depends on the answer to another question, the one posed by Einstein's famous remark: "What interests me most is whether God could have made the world differently." This highly engaging

Reviews

"[This book] has an informal style and breadth of coverage that make it a joy to read... Rees's explanations are exactly right."--William G. Unruh, Science "Rees provides a nice summary of how we got here, how the universe began and how it might end... Lay readers will appreciate Rees' clear, uncomplicated prose, even when dealing with tough stuff that leaves most physicists tongue-tied. Most welcome of all, he explains how scientists know what they claim to know."--K.C. Cole, Los Angeles Times "[An] awe-inspiring survey... Rees is not only a world-class cosmologist but one of our best living science writers."--John Cornwell, Sunday Times "Probably the clearest and most easily understandable account of our Universe available."--Ian Morison, New Scientist "Our very own Astronomer Royal blasts off into space, in velvety, friendly prose. His musings on the possibilities of alien life and of time travel, the necessity to colonise space, and a vision of the far future make for a pleasingly concise and always intriguing tour d'horizon."--Steven Poole, The Guardian "In the crowded field of popular writing about the universe, Rees is genuinely in the forefront--an accomplished scientist with the superior writing skills... He exudes the instinctual curiosity we all possess when looking upward, and he focuses that wonderment on the narrow range of cosmological numbers that allow us to ruminate about it all. A wonderfully appealing presentation."--Booklist "There is a lot of stuff in the universe--the estimated number of stars is 10 followed by 22 zeros. But as to whether there are other planets with life like Earth's, Rees says the chance of two similar ecologies is less than the chance of two randomly typing monkeys producing the same Shakespearean play."--George F. Will, The Washington Post "In the instant after the big bang, there was only a one-part-per-billion preponderance of matter over antimatter, just enough to create the universe that created us. Rees, an accomplished scientist with superior writing skills, marvels over the wonder that matter even exists."--Booklist (Top 10 Sci-Tech Books of 2001) "Rees is one of the great astronomers royal; he is a leading cosmologist, and his skill in writing what may be termed popular science is probably unequaled today. I know of no other author who could present such difficult concepts in so lucid a manner. This is a brilliant book, to be read and enjoyed by all."--Sir Patrick Moore, Times Higher Education Supplement "A must-read book for people who are interested in the philosophical implications of the emerging idea that, possibly, we are not alone."--Science Books and Films "A fabulous journey round the cosmos in excellent company."--Maggie McDonald, New Scientist "As books encompassing the realm of everything in the universe (universes) go, this one is relatively short. Its brevity, however ... its elaborate index (a point I find refreshing), and the fact that it was written by someone so esteemed in the astronomical community, begs the reader to ask why this couldn't be used as a one-semester introductory text. Well-written, clear visuals, great author: a good combination for a first book on the subject."--April S. Whitt, Planetarian

Author Bio

Martin Rees is Astronomer Royal of Great Britain, a Fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge, a former director of the Cambridge Institute of Astronomy and author, most recently, of the bestselling Just Six Numbers: The Deep Forces That Shape the Universe.