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

Amazing! Truth can be stranger than fiction. Vacuums filled with activity. The beginning and end of the universe. Spacetime a rubber sheet. And all described specifically and clearly.

I like Seife's writing style. He wrote this book keeping in mind that 'regular' people will be reading it. He starts with the very first theorys on the universe and explains them in a way that slides right into to your mind like butter. The theorys are written chronologically and gradually get more complex as new things are discovered. He also describes these new discoveries chronologically and detailed to where the average person has a broader more precise understanding of the whys and hows and whats of each theory.This book has confirmed what I always thought was a huge part in the creation of the universe: symmetry; particularly TCP symmetry (I wish there was more info on that in the book)...The previous reviewer mentioned that this book suffers by "trying to explain mathematical ideas without using mathematics"... that is a bunch of bull b/c there is a great glossary that explains every mathematical term/symbol....speaking of math; I'll leave you with a though: in this book we find out that the universe is in fact finite(albeit ever-expanding) but how can you truly decifer the language of a finite universe with an infinite language of illusions and possibilities(MATH!)that allows anything to go?... If we could then over 95% of the universe still wouldn't be invisibe dark matter now would it!

Ever since I read Charles Seife's excellent book "Zero: A Biography of a Dangerous Idea" I have been excited to read whichever book he might publish next. I finally got my change with "Alpha & Omega: The Search for the Beginning and End of the Universe". The title tells us exactly what the book is about: The Search for the Beginning and End of the Universe. In this book Seife informs us about what scientists know about how the universe began, and what they think they know about how the universe will one day end. Charles Seife has a rare talent for taking extremely complex and difficult scientific concepts and explaining them in a way that those concepts are understandable to a lay-reader. Charles Seife examines what the accepted scientific view of the beginning of the universe was, and he shows how that view has evolved over time until scientists had more data to give a clearer picture of the origins of the universe. Seife also tells us how scientists have figured out how the universe is likely to end. He tells us what scientists know, and more importantly, how they know it. This is very important because it shows the advances made in scientific knowledge as well as because of the fact that it explains the knowledge on a more basic level that makes sense. The theories become more real and less of an alien concept to someone like me who does not have a depth of knowledge in science. Even though Seife went to great lengths to explain the science in the simplest language possible without losing the depth of the information presented, some of it still went over my head a bit. Seife's volume can be best used as a primer and as introduction to the topic. He has a smooth writing style that makes the book very easy to read even with the difficult concepts presented. This is another excellent book by Charles Seife and I would recommend it to anyone interested in the scientific explanations for the origins of the universe.

How was the universe born, and how will it die? These are questions asked in other books: what sets Alpha & Omega apart is a focus on the discoveries in science which have led to major shifts in theories about the universe - and the modern discoveries which promise to link new cosmological discoveries to daily living. A fascinating account of how lives and worlds change.

This history of modern cosmology is engrossing. The book is clearly, and often eloquently, written and it is up-to-date (till February 2003, the time of going to press). This helps because many important discoveries have taken place recently. It also helps that Seife is a trained mathematician since modern physics is so closely tied to mathematics. So, for example, most popular science books wrongly explain Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle, but Seife gets it right. The book is particularly strong in describing various experiments and telescopes, how they work, and how they are expanding our understanding of the universe. On the negative side, the graphics could be much better; often, they help little in illustrating the concepts. There are also some spelling mistakes. Overall, however, I recommend this book highly.