Overview
- Written for the interested lay person -- no equations, no jargon, self-contained with a detailed glossary
- Contains more than 60 figures and images, illustrating and explaining technical issues
- Discusses developments in theoretical and observational cosmology, including the first detection for gravitational waves
Part of the book series: Astronomers' Universe (ASTRONOM)
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Table of contents (10 chapters)
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Front Matter
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Back Matter
Keywords
About this book
This fascinating book provides an accessible and up-to-date overview of modern cosmology. In particular, the book discusses the formation of the Cosmic Microwave Background and the evolution of large scale structures in the universe, the distribution of galaxies and clusters of galaxies on very large distance scales.
Following a brief introduction, the authors describe the scientific method – how science is done. They then discuss observational cosmology, the instruments and what observations can be done with them, and what is derived from those observations. After discussing the constituents of the universe, including dark matter and dark energy, the authors provide an outline of the forces that shape the universe, with particular emphasis on gravitation. Following this, the reader is taken on a journey in time from the present day back to the very beginning of the universe, a period called inflation, which sets the initial conditions for the subsequent evolution of the universe. The book ends with a brief chapter on what lies beyond.
Written by two experts, the book is aimed at the interested lay-person with little or no physics background, but an interest in modern cosmology.
Authors and Affiliations
About the authors
Karim A. Malik is Director of the Astronomy Unit at Queen Mary University of London and Reader in Theoretical Cosmology.
Their research interests include all aspects of theoretical cosmology, such as the physics of the early universe, the formation of the Cosmic Microwave Background and the large scale structure of the universe.
Bibliographic Information
Book Title: How Cosmologists Explain the Universe to Friends and Family
Authors: Karim A. Malik, David R. Matravers
Series Title: Astronomers' Universe
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-32734-7
Publisher: Springer Cham
eBook Packages: Physics and Astronomy, Physics and Astronomy (R0)
Copyright Information: Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019
Softcover ISBN: 978-3-030-32733-0Published: 02 December 2019
eBook ISBN: 978-3-030-32734-7Published: 21 November 2019
Series ISSN: 1614-659X
Series E-ISSN: 2197-6651
Edition Number: 1
Number of Pages: XIV, 258
Number of Illustrations: 12 b/w illustrations, 65 illustrations in colour
Topics: Popular Science in Astronomy, Cosmology