"As citizens of the cosmos, we are duty bound to explore it. So opine astrophysicists Neil deGrasse Tyson, Michael Struass, and Richard Gott, guides on this bracing expedition through dusty galactic hinterlands and the vast theoretical vistas of Albert Einstein's work."
"All three [authors] write in informal, conversational tones, and the text is sprinkled with genuinely funny non sequiturs, such as a brief rumination on dwarfs versus dwarves and commentary on English-speaking aliens in Star Trek. . . . What the book does very well is to present not just what we know about the universe but how we know it."
A New York Times Bestseller
"One of Men’s Journal’s 40 Best Books of 2016"
One of Symmetry Magazine’s Physics Books of 2016
"One of Ars Technica’s 12 engrossing nonfiction books from 2016"
"Honorable Mention for the 2017 PROSE Award in Cosmology and Astronomy, Association of American Publishers"
"One of Forbes.com’s 10 Best Popular Science Books of 2016: Maths, Physics, Chemistry"
Longlisted for the 2018 AAAS/Subaru SB&F Prizes for Excellence in Science Books, Young Adult Science Books
"Looking like a cross between a textbook and a coffee-table book, Welcome to the Universe is an extremely readable compilation of introductory astronomy lectures for non-science students. . . . Their talks present physics with clarity and a little levity—with references to pop culture items such as Toy Story and Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure. Gott even tackles time travel. What's not to like?"
"The text is written in an informal and approachable style, referencing many popular-culture icons. . . . This book will open up some of the newest and most sophisticated concepts in astrophysics to a general audience, helping all of us better understand the universe we live in."
"Reading through is akin to receiving a private museum tour from an expert scientist. . . . The authors present challenging content in accessible prose as they lead readers from our solar system to the edge of the visible universe, getting into the how and the what of just about everything there is to know about the cosmos. . . . As Tyson, Strauss, and Gott explain the cutting-edge physics of multiverses, superstring theory, M-theory, and the benefits of colonizing space, even seasoned science readers will learn something new."
"Their laudable goal is communicating vast, cosmic ideas in ways that are accessible without being simplistic."
"Riveting questions fielded by three top astrophysicists in engaging style, with great illustrations and just a handful of equations. They may just have produced the best book about the universe in the universe."
"Welcome to the Universe is more than a breathtaking guide to the cosmos. It is a unique bridge between popular science and textbooks, admirably achieving Tyson's goal to ‘empower you to understand the operations of nature.'"
"The authors remind us that even though people are not the center of the universe, we are an intelligent species able to measure, theorize, comprehend, and explore the limits of knowledge. An excellent introduction that will equip readers to follow current astronomical discoveries."
"Don't know the difference between a pulsar and a quasar? Pick up this endlessly fascinating book by three astrophysicists that provides a clear, readable introduction to the inner workings of our universe."
"Three of the leading voices in astrophysics take us on a well-illustrated tour that includes Pluto, questions of intelligent life, and whether the universe is infinite."
"The book's breadth is impressive. It starts with the basics (the size and scale of the universe) and finishes with a discussion of Einstein, general relativity, and the universe’s fate. . . . The book’s strength is the authors’ ability to write conversationally."
"This book is anything but another ho-hum book on astrophysics. . . . Unlike many popular scientific books that are very esoteric, this one is more like a conversation between expert and interested lay person. . . . [Welcome to the Universe] will be a great read for any non-scientist but also science curious persons. It is certainly a good book for the teacher of science at any level as well as the high school and college student. Any reader will be able to see how some complex scientific thoughts fit together."
"All three [authors] write in informal, conversational tones, and the text is sprinkled with genuinely funny non sequiturs, such as a brief rumination on dwarfs versus dwarves and commentary on English-speaking aliens in Star Trek. . . . What the book does very well is to present not just what we know about the universe but how we know it."
"As citizens of the cosmos, we are duty bound to explore it. So opine astrophysicists Neil deGrasse Tyson, Michael Struass, and Richard Gott, guides on this bracing expedition through dusty galactic hinterlands and the vast theoretical vistas of Albert Einstein's work."
"Their laudable goal is communicating vast, cosmic ideas in ways that are accessible without being simplistic."
"Riveting questions fielded by three top astrophysicists in engaging style, with great illustrations and just a handful of equations. They may just have produced the best book about the universe in the universe."
"Don't know the difference between a pulsar and a quasar? Pick up this endlessly fascinating book by three astrophysicists that provides a clear, readable introduction to the inner workings of our universe."
"The text is written in an informal and approachable style, referencing many popular-culture icons. . . . This book will open up some of the newest and most sophisticated concepts in astrophysics to a general audience, helping all of us better understand the universe we live in."
2016-08-03
An accessible and comprehensive overview of our universe by three eminent astrophysicists, based on an introductory course they have taught at Princeton University.Tyson (Space Chronicles: Facing the Ultimate Frontier, 2012 etc.), the director of the Hayden Planetarium, Strauss (Astrophysics/Princeton Univ.), and Gott (Astrophysics/Princeton Univ.; The Cosmic Web: Mysterious Architecture of the Universe, 2016, etc.) have teamed up to introduce the latest discoveries by modern astrophysicists and the questions currently on their scientific agenda. The 24 chapters of the book are cleanly divided among the three authors. The first section, written primarily by Tyson, takes a big-picture look at the awesome “size and scale of the universe” and what we can now surmise about it from our vantage point here on Earth, based on man's 3,000-year quest to understand it. In the remainder of the book, the authors broaden the focus to consider the origin and subsequent history of the expanding universe. In part two, Strauss looks at how our vision of the universe has been changed by the development of modern radio telescopes and computers powerful enough to analyze the data they collect. “A century ago,” he writes, “[astronomers were] determining the dimensions of the Milky Way and our place in it.” Copernicus taught us that we are not at the center of the solar system, and today, astronomers are teaching us to accept that our galaxy is not the center of the universe. Strauss notes that with next-generation telescopes, astronomers will be making unanticipated discoveries while revealing the properties of faint galaxies and quasars and mapping the distribution of matter. In the third section, Gott reviews Einstein's theory of relativity and its implications for our potential to become galactic citizens and colonize space. Whatever the future holds, he concludes, our increasing understanding of the universe is in itself “a stunning accomplishment.” An entertaining introduction to astronomy.
