A User's Guide to the Universe
Surviving the Perils of Black Holes, Time Paradoxes, and Quantum Uncertainty
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Narrated by:
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Mark F. Smith
About this listen
Answers to science's most enduring questions from "Can I break the light-speed barrier like on Star Trek?" and "Is there life on other planets?" to "What is empty space made of?"
This is an indispensable guide to physics that offers readers an overview of the most popular physics topics written in an accessible, irreverent, and engaging manner while still maintaining a tone of wry skepticism. Even the novice will be able to follow along, as the topics are addressed using plain English and (almost) no equations. Veterans of popular physics will also find their nagging questions addressed, like whether the universe can expand faster than light, and for that matter, what the universe is expanding into anyway.
Gives a one-stop tour of all the big questions that capture the public imagination including string theory, quantum mechanics, parallel universes, and the beginning of time.
Explains serious science in an entertaining, conversational, and easy-to-understand way.
Includes dozens of delightfully groan-worthy cartoons that explain everything from special relativity to Dark Matter.
Filled with fascinating information and insights, this book will both deepen and transform your understanding of the universe.
©2010 Dave Goldberg and Jeff Blomquist (P)2012 Audible, Inc.Listeners also enjoyed...
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As smartphones, supercomputers, supercolliders, and AI propel us into an ever more unfamiliar future, How to Speak Science takes us on a rollicking historical tour of the greatest discoveries and ideas that make today's cutting-edge technologies possible. Wanting everyone to be able to "speak" science, YouTube science guru Bruce Benamran explains - as accessibly and wittily as in his acclaimed videos - the fundamental ideas of the physical world: matter, life, the solar system, light, electromagnetism, thermodynamics, special and general relativity, and much more.
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Wowzers!
- By Ralph Temblador on 02-15-21
By: Bruce Benamran, and others
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Warped Passages
- Unraveling the Mysteries of the Universe's Hidden Dimensions
- By: Lisa Randall
- Narrated by: Donna Postel
- Length: 17 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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Warped Passages is an altogether exhilarating journey that tracks the arc of discovery from early 20th-century physics to the razor's edge of modern scientific theory. One of the world's leading theoretical physicists, Lisa Randall provides astonishing scientific possibilities that, until recently, were restricted to the realm of science fiction. Unraveling the twisted threads of the most current debates on relativity, quantum mechanics, and gravity, she explores some of the most fundamental questions posed by Nature.
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Physics textbook without the math
- By Victor on 05-13-18
By: Lisa Randall
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The Unknown Universe
- A New Exploration of Time, Space and Cosmology
- By: Stuart Clark
- Narrated by: Stephen Hoye
- Length: 8 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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On March 21, 2013, the European Space Agency released a map of the afterglow of the big bang. Taking in 440 sextillion kilometers of space and 13.8 billion years of time, it is physically impossible to make a better map: We will never see the early universe in more detail. On the one hand, such a view is the apotheosis of modern cosmology; on the other, it threatens to undermine almost everything we hold cosmologically sacrosanct.
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Everything, Absolutely Everything!
- By Gillian on 03-09-17
By: Stuart Clark
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The Universe in Your Hand
- A Journey Through Space, Time, and Beyond
- By: Christophe Galfard
- Narrated by: Ray Chase
- Length: 9 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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Christophe Galfard's mission in life is to spread modern scientific ideas to the general public in entertaining ways. Using his considerable skills as a brilliant theoretical physicist and successful young-adult author, The Universe in Your Hand employs the immediacy of simple, direct language to show us, not explain to us, the theories that underpin everything we know about our universe.
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Awesome
- By AJ on 02-28-17
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The Cosmic Cocktail
- Three Parts Dark Matter
- By: Katherine Freese
- Narrated by: Tamara Marston
- Length: 9 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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The ordinary atoms that make up the known universe - from our bodies and the air we breathe to the planets and stars - constitute only 5 percent of all matter and energy in the cosmos. The rest is known as dark matter and dark energy, because their precise identities are unknown. The Cosmic Cocktail is the inside story of the epic quest to solve one of the most compelling enigmas of modern science - what is the universe made of? - told by one of today’s foremost pioneers in the study of dark matter.
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I was looking for a book about science....
- By Jeff on 03-27-15
By: Katherine Freese
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The World According to Physics
- By: Jim Al-Khalili
- Narrated by: Jim Al-Khalili
- Length: 6 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
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Shining a light on the most profound insights revealed by modern physics, Jim Al-Khalili invites us all to understand what this crucially important science tells us about the universe and the nature of reality itself. Al-Khalili begins by introducing the fundamental concepts of space, time, energy, and matter, and then describes the three pillars of modern physics - quantum theory, relativity, and thermodynamics - showing how all three must come together if we are ever to have a full understanding of reality.
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excellent book
- By Anonymous User on 05-10-21
By: Jim Al-Khalili
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A Brief Welcome to the Universe
- A Pocket-Sized Tour
- By: Neil deGrasse Tyson, Michael A. Strauss, J. Richard Gott
- Narrated by: Neil Hellegers
- Length: 4 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
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A Brief Welcome to the Universe offers a breathtaking tour of the cosmos, from planets, stars, and galaxies to black holes and time loops. Best-selling authors and acclaimed astrophysicists Neil deGrasse Tyson, Michael A. Strauss, and J. Richard Gott take listeners on an unforgettable journey of exploration to reveal how our universe actually works. Propelling you from our home solar system to the outermost frontiers of space, this book builds your cosmic insight and perspective through a marvelously entertaining narrative.
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A brief welcome for everyone
- By Ashley F on 08-24-24
By: Neil deGrasse Tyson, and others
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The Island of Knowledge
- The Limits of Science and the Search for Meaning
- By: Marcelo Gleiser
- Narrated by: William Neenan
- Length: 10 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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How much can we know about the world? In this audiobook physicist Marcelo Gleiser traces our search for answers to the most fundamental questions of existence, the origin of the universe, the nature of reality, and the limits of knowledge. In so doing he reaches a provocative conclusion: Science, like religion, is fundamentally limited as a tool for understanding the world. As science and its philosophical interpretations advance, we face the unsettling recognition of how much we don't know.
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Island of knowledge
- By Joshua Kring on 07-26-15
By: Marcelo Gleiser
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Forces of Nature
- By: Professor Brian Cox, Andrew Cohen
- Narrated by: Samuel West
- Length: 7 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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Professor Brian Cox uncovers some of the most extraordinary natural events on Earth and in the universe and beyond. From the immensity of the universe and the roundness of Earth to the form of every single snowflake, the forces of nature shape everything we see. Pushed to extremes, the results are astonishing. In seeking to understand the everyday world, the colours, structure, behaviour and history of our home, we develop the knowledge and techniques necessary to step beyond the everyday.
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Complicated in its simplicity
- By Philomath on 06-13-17
By: Professor Brian Cox, and others
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Knocking on Heaven's Door
- How Physics and Scientific Thinking Illuminate the Universe and the Modern World
- By: Lisa Randall
- Narrated by: Carrington MacDuffie
- Length: 14 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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The latest developments in physics have the potential to radically revise our understanding of the world: its makeup, its evolution, and the fundamental forces that drive its operation. Knocking on Heaven's Door is an exhilarating and accessible overview of these developments and an impassioned argument for the significance of science. There could be no better guide than Lisa Randall.
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Too Political
- By Allan on 12-14-11
By: Lisa Randall
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Dance of the Photons
- From Einstein to Quantum Teleportation
- By: Anton Zeilinger
- Narrated by: L. J. Ganser
- Length: 8 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
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Einstein's steadfast refusal to accept certain aspects of quantum theory was rooted in his insistence that physics has to be about reality. Accordingly, he once derided as spooky action at a distance the notion that two elementary particles far removed from each other could nonetheless influence each others propertiesa hypothetical phenomenon his fellow theorist Erwin Schrdinger termed quantum entanglement.
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Brilliant author tries hard, but comes up short...
- By Michael on 07-27-12
By: Anton Zeilinger
What listeners say about A User's Guide to the Universe
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Juha
- 06-09-14
Well popuralized universe
Would you listen to A User's Guide to the Universe again? Why?
I did actually listen this a couple of times and I think I will listen it some more times.
I am becoming a physics teacher and I SHOULD know MUCH about these things. Unfortunately my background knowledge is somewhat shady.Luckily there are books like this that do not require so much background.I have never been so keen on kosmology but these kind of books makes me ponder the connection with the smallest known things in conjunction with the greatest things we know and the big mystery of life ( = the uncertainty / free will of a particle). I think listening books like this makes ones life a beutiful.
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- Gabrielle
- 11-19-13
a thrilling gallop through the coolest there is
Where does A User's Guide to the Universe rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?
Oh this book was good, so so good, and I belly laughed hard at their geeky jokes which as promised were indeed groaners. The jokes were that nerd-funny I would pause the book, snort-laugh and go tell the joke to my husband who would also gasp and snort-laugh.
A great introduction to some of the coolest stuff there is to know and think about in the universe - the delivery was fantastic and the subjects extremely interesting, all explained clearly and kind to the non-geeks in the world, not that I have ever met any to ask.
I liked the author's explanation for why they do not believe the earth has been visited by flying saucers.
I liked their explanations of most things, actually.
great book, I loved it.
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6 people found this helpful
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- melissa.weers
- 09-02-13
get book for us nerds
What made the experience of listening to A User's Guide to the Universe the most enjoyable?
it felt like he was talking to me
Have you listened to any of Mark F. Smith’s other performances before? How does this one compare?
this was my frist listen to mark and it was a lot of fun
If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?
enjoy your book nerd
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1 person found this helpful
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- Darren Nolan
- 07-06-16
Good Beginner/Intermediate Physics Book
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It does get a bit hard to follow at times - but this isn't the fault of the author. Quantum physics is hard to comprehend. Period. I have taken undergrad DiffEq, linear algebra, and some physics & chemistry courses so I can't say how this book would be for someone with absolutely zero background in math and physics. Bottom line is I really enjoyed it and learned a lot.
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1 person found this helpful
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- chetyarbrough.blog
- 05-15-15
PHYSICS WIMPs
Dave Goldberg is a physicist with a Ph.D. in Astrophysics from Princeton University and Jeff Blomquist is an engineer at Boeing Aerospace. Goldberg and Blomquist attempt to glorify and simplify the study of physics by praising its inherent fascination and potential for answering questions about the universe. However, “A User’s Guide to the Universe” fails to enlighten the uninformed; i.e. it fails because no more is understood about physics than a child knows about birth when told that babies come from mother’s wombs rather than stork’s beaks.
In fairness, Goldberg and Blomquist help one understand some of the vocabulary of physics and cosmology but naming and explaining are two different arguments that confuse their answers; in part, because answers remain as unverifiable to physicists as the general public.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Jan
- 07-31-13
got distracted
It's well written and quite easy to follow but at the same time due to the concepts discussed it will be easier to read the book rather then listing to it. I had to rewind quite a few times as it not like a fiction book where if you miss a few sentences you can still follow the story.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Paul
- 10-25-12
Physics even I can understand
I skipped physics in senior high school, doing biology instead. And I managed to fail that in Year 12. But I love reading about cosmology and the universe, and this book has been a great help. It deals with the big questions like whether we'll ever be able to travel through time, whether there's life out there and where we all came from, but, it's written in a way even I could understand. And yet they did it without dumbing things down. There's a lot of meat to chew on, but they made it easily digestible. I hope this gastronomic analogy doesn't put you off, because it's really a great read. The authors explain how atoms work and what the universe looks like, yet they manage this without breaking their promise to use only one equasion. If you're interested in the big questions, don't shy away from this entertaining and informative book.
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16 people found this helpful
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- Andrew Corley
- 01-10-23
Good theory descriptions for lay person
I appreciate the simplified explanation of these theories.
But, the attempts at humor are distracting as are the footnotes.
I'd also like to see this content updated with more recent discoveries (Highs Boson, for example).
There are also a few times were I sense the performance is being done on auto-pilot, without really engaging with the content.
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- Mafunzalo
- 09-23-23
Totally over the head of high nearly anyone.
Stay away. The humour is written for physicists for physicists. Not funny to the average human.
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- Kindle Customer
- 03-22-17
Too cutesy, despite solid science underpinnings
I quit about 10% through. I just couldn't handle the bad jokes and cutesy comments. The science is handled at a good, conversational level, if the authors weren't beating you over the head with their attempts to be "hip" and "with it," wink wink nudge nudge. Enough. It's rare for me to abandon a book, but I can't stand it any more. One of the worst science books I've ever encountered - and not because of the science!
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2 people found this helpful