The Hole in the Universe: How Scientists Peered Over the Edge of Emptiness and Found Everything

This book will blow your mind. It is elegant, deep, crystal clear. A tour of nothingness that will turn you inside out: whether Cole is writing about the number zero, the perceptual aspects of seeing and feeling "nothing," the physics of the vacuum or the origin of time, you will feel right at home in this universe.

K.C. Kole is perhaps not the deepest science writer on the block, but maybe she's deeper than her lighthearted musing sounds at first. After all, what subject could be deeper than the Hole in the Universe? She chose one of the least-represented subjects to write about, and she really covered it well. The subject of "nothing" is something we fall into from time to time. After all, what was there before there was "something?" Who hasn't peered blankly into that void? Science afficionados will quickly realize what we're talking about here: the spontaneous origins of forces from which have sprung such beautiful oddities as String Theory. Don't mistake this book for a Sienfeld episode. This is a book about Nothing, with a capital N. The Nothing from which everything came. My only criticism is that I wanted about another 100 pages to go deeper into the mysteries, but truthfully I suspect that the material is just not there yet. We simply don't know enough yet. But if you're a novice and looking for exposure to the more esoteric beauties of scientific exploration, this book really does take you on a wonderful trip. I fully recommend it. I was going to give it four stars, but I really can't think of a reason why not to give it 5. Kole's style is engaging, witty, and she brings up very thoughtful insights and clues into this journey through Nothing. Five stars it is, then! Jump into the hole in the universe. Let Nothing distract you from everything around you for weeks to come!Shooshie

Physics -- in particular quantum physics and Einstein's theories -- has always fascinated me. And, though I've admittedly not read many physics books (I was a biology major), most of them lose me in the math early on, and I am quickly frustrated with them. That is, it's often hard for me to see the big picture and conceptually understand what the author is talking about. Perhaps I am dense (aka stupid) but my desire to understand physics has always been there. This book was written for people like me...KC Cole amazingly pulls together the current theories in cosmology, string theory, etc., into one coherent statement that is an amazing, stirring read. She doesn't write like a physicist but rather speaks in layman's terms. As a non-physicist, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and plan further readings of "real" physics books now that I have a bigger picture to start from.If you already understand much in physics, this book admittedly isn't for you. But, if you love science, but have never quite been able to get a foothold in the world of quantum states and quarks, this is a great place to start. The ideas, eloquently expressed, will leave you in awe.

The Hole in the Universe is everything promised by those raves from Oliver Sacks and Brian Greene and Dava Sobel -- and much more! It is a deep look at an elusive, yet centrally important subject, presented with eloquence, originality and charm. It amazes me that Cole has been able to take us to the frontiers of physics, exploring questions that physicists sstill puzzle over, and yet still make it entirely accessible (and, yes, even fun) to a complete novice like myself. I have read about ideas like string theory and the strange "repulsive force" that seems to be expanding the universe, but never before were these ideas so clear and appealing to me. Her writing is so fresh and lovely, it takes your breath away. And I love the connections between the notion of "nothing" in perception -- the holes in our heads, as Cole calls them -- and the nothings of mathematics and physics. Buy this book and give it to all your friends. They will thank you.

K.C. Cole's previous books gave the non-scientific reader a delicious taste of what physics is all about. This time she has provided a multicourse meal, cleverly cooked up out of nothing at all.Building on a foundation of nothing, she constructs the multifaceted story of what scientists know about the universe today. She even takes you to the universe inside the brain to show how nothing matters in there just as much as nothing matters out in space. Understanding nothing is also the essence of understanding matter and mathematics.Nobody expresses herself in print more clearly about these things. Cole gracefully skates over the surface of nothing, poking holes in it here and there to reveal all the something that nothing conceals. In some places she gets pretty deep; in some places she skates right to the edge of scientific knowledge. It is a very up to date book.She does like to make a lot of nothing puns, but that is after all what the book is about. As for critics who suggest that only scientists should write about science, that's like saying only football players should be allowed to announce the Super Bowl. Doing science and explaining science are too different things, and for the general reader, nobody does the latter better than K.C. Cole.