The Accelerating Universe Infinite Expansion, the Cosmological Constant, and the Beauty of the Cosmos

Description:

A Brilliant Journey into the World of Beauty and Modern Cosmology

"Thought-provoking . . . engaging."-New Scientist

"The Accelerating Universe is not only an informative book about cosmology. It is rich storytelling and, above all, a celebration of the human mind on its quest for beauty in all things."-Alan Lightman, bestselling author of Einstein's Dreams

"Stimulating."-Nature

"The reader will enter a ‘garden of delights.'"-Physics World

"Far more than a puzzle for specialists, the struggle to reinterpret the cosmos raises fundamental questions about the human craving for order: Does this craving reflect deep cosmic harmonies that helped create our species? Or does it simply defy an irreducible chaos that we would rather not confront? Livio probes these questions with a daring sufficient to satisfy the hungriest curiosity."-Booklist

In this entertaining and lively exploration of the universe, Hubble Space Telescope scientist Mario Livio introduces us to the "old cosmology," which culminated in the view of a perfectly balanced universe, and then presents all of the fascinating ideas being explored by cosmologists in the "new cosmology," which has been inspired by the discovery of acceleration. Providing extraordinarily clear explanations of all the key concepts and theoretical ideas, Livio is a marvelous guide through this most exciting frontier in science today.