Fear of a Black Universe: An Outsider's Guide to the Future of Physics

by Stephon Alexander

Overview

In this “captivating” (Sky + Telescope) book, a top cosmologist argues that physics must embrace the excluded and listen to the unheard 

When asked by legendary theoretical physicist Christopher Isham why he had attended graduate school, cosmologist Stephon Alexander answered: "To become a better physicist." As a young student, he could hardly have anticipated Isham's response: "Then stop reading those physics books." Instead, Isham said, Alexander should start listening to his dreams. 

This is only the first of the many lessons in Fear of a Black Universe. As Alexander explains, greatness in physics requires transgression, a willingness to reject conventional expectations. He shows why progress happens when some physicists come to think outside the mainstream, and why, as in great jazz, great physics requires a willingness to make things up as one goes along. 

Compelling and necessary, Fear of a Black Universe offers us remarkable insight into the art of physics and empowers us all to think big. 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781541604223
Publisher:	Basic Books
Publication date:	09/05/2023
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.20(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Stephon Alexander is a professor of theoretical physics at Brown University and an established jazz musician. He was the scientific consultant to Ava DuVernay for the feature film A Wrinkle in Time. His work has been featured by the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and many other outlets. 

Table of Contents

Part I

1 Escape from the Jungle of No Imagination 3

2 The Changeless Change 17

3 Superposition 35

4 The Zen of Quantum Fields 53

5 Emergence 63

6 If Basquiat Were a Physicist 75

Part II Cosmic Improvisations 93

7 What Banged? 95

8 A Dark Conductor of Quantum Galaxies 105

9 Cosmic Virtual Reality 119

10 Embracing Instabilities 129

11 A Cosmologist's View of a Quantum Elephant 143

12 The Cosmic Biosphere 157

13 Dark Ideas on Alien Life 173

14 Into the Cosmic Matrix 187

15 The Cosmic Mind and Quantum Cosmology 203

Acknowledgments 215

Notes 217

Index 227

Editorial Reviews

Recipient of the American Humanist Association’s Isaac Asimov Science Award——

One of the Best Science Books of 2021—Kirkus

"The rabbit hole gets wrestled here. An old school saying applies: the more you know, the more you don’t know. Dance along this read into the unknown and find out that this book may be the best ever answer to ‘What is soul?'"—Chuck D, rapper and co-founder of Public Enemy

"A whirlwind ride through the nature of reality, modern physics and the true meaning of being an outsider."—C. Brandon Ogbunu, The Undefeated

“The book reminds me of Hawking’s A Brief History of Time—very brief and very ambitious. It covers an enormous amount of material and offers insights not only into physics but how we do physics and who we are as physicists.”—David Spergel, winner of the 2018 Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics

"This beautiful and surprising book will leave readers wanting to learn more about the author and his mind-bending ideas. .... Lush with ideas and bold in its analysis of the status quo, this book reorients our view of science and the universe." (Starred review.)
 —Kirkus

"Theoretical physicist Alexander searches the far reaches of the cosmos while addressing the experiences of marginalized people in STEM fields in his refreshing survey....The result is both an excellent work of advocacy and a welcoming introduction to physics." (Starred review.)—Publishers Weekly

“In studying dark matter and dark energy, cosmologist Stephon Alexander advocates a bold, “outsider” approach.”—symmetry

“Captivating… Alexander raises one provocative question after the next.” —Peter Tyson, Sky + Telescope

“Alexander blends anecdote and vignette with a whistle stop tour of topical, controversial and unresolved problems in modern cosmology… Fear of a Black Universe makes a convincing case that we need greater diversity in worldview, mindset and culture.”—Physics World

“[A] timely reminder of the need to hear a wider variety of voices in physics.”—Nature

“Readers with a strong background in physics and an appetite for connecting the physical world to sociological and metaphysical questions will find much to appreciate in this book.”—Science

“Stephon Alexander has done it again - his new book Fear of a Black Universe opens many dimensions - it’s an endlessly stimulating, hyper complex overview, by a deeply musical scientist and mathematician. From Public Enemy’s classic “Fear of a Black Planet” hip hop album and things like how what happened before the Big Bang, on over to how consciousness itself is woven into the fabric of space-time, this book will blow your mind. In Fear of a Black Universe we can see a clear lineage in the way that Stephon Alexander draws a kinetic, and hyper eclectic tapestry woven from the threads of physics, high end mathematical thinking, and the inclusive languages of urban African American culture’s engagement with STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) and fields as diverse as string theory, dark matter, and dark energy. A must read for anyone who thinks of physics and music as being inseparable. This book really pushes the envelope!”—Paul D. Miller aka D.J. Spooky

“Einstein famously remarked that mystery is the source of all true art and science. This book explores some of the biggest mysteries of all: dark matter, dark energy, origin of the Universe, and origin of life — in ways that are unconventional and enthralling, yet down to Earth. We go on a journey with a brave adventurer for whom physics is a passionate pursuit of beauty and truth. And his passion shines through on every page.”—Edward Frenkel, author of Love and Math

"An expansive and poetic account of not just the theory of physics, but the dreamy processes that lead to its creation, and the opposing forces that support and hinder its progress."
 —Eugenia Cheng, author of X+Y

"Read this book and you'll feel awe at the grandeur and the remaining mysteries of our world, but you'll also get a hit of the human side of physics.  Science is made of people, and is for people; this book revives the humanist project that launched science in the first place." —Jaron Lanier, author of Ten Arguments for Deleting Your Social Media Accounts Right Now

"Very few Black theoretical physicists have risen to the top level of professorships and research appointments at Ivy League Universities.  Stephon Alexander is one of those few, having succeeded by means of very hard work, a formidable intelligence, and a prolific creativity.  He also needed vast amounts of stubborn persistence and character to overcome gracefully the effects of what can only be called prejudice, both conscious and unconscious.  In this courageous and provocative book, Alexander recounts his personal story, while offering  a hopeful perspective for our future.  Discussing the origins of his boldest ideas, from his practice as a professional jazz musician to his  explorations of Jungian psychology, is especially inspiring."
 —Lee Smolin, author of Einstein’s Unfinished Revolution

"Stephon Alexander, a professor of physics at Brown University and the 2020 president of the National Society of Black Physicists, dives headfirst into the mysteries of our universe. Fear of a Black Universe not only unpacks the poetry of theoretical physics but also critiques the glaring homogeneity of the field. Alexander merges the personal with the scientific in this compelling guide."—LitHub

“One of the key science books of the fall.”—Library Journal

"[A] brief yet undiluted history of the most groundbreaking discoveries that have shaped our understanding of the universe, peering into the unlit horizons of its future . . .pulsating with the quiet power of pariahood, symphonic with the same outsiderdom that made Blake and Beethoven who they were, thinking in ways orthogonal to the common tracks and playing with forms of not-thinking that vivify the dead-ends of thought."—Maria Popova, The Marginalian

From the Publisher

★ 06/14/2021

Theoretical physicist Alexander (The Jazz of Physics) searches the far reaches of the cosmos while addressing the experiences of marginalized people in STEM fields in his refreshing survey. He begins by outlining three principles that underlie humans’ knowledge of the universe—invariance (about the speed of light and relativity), the quantum principle (about subatomic forces), and the principle of emergence (about how life comes from elements)—before considering more mysterious aspects of the universe such as dark matter and the cosmic biosphere. As he describes different theories, Alexander adds personal anecdotes about his experience as a Black man in science (“Though I had the same technical training as my postdoc peers,” he writes, “my social isolation enabled me to... embrace ideas on the fringes of established knowledge”), his friendships with other scientists, and how he became interested in physics. He argues that one should “never be afraid of even the most absurd ideas, and even to embrace them,” and that minority voices ought be elevated because of the “outsider’s perspective” they bring. Diversity in science, he writes, “is not simply a social justice concern...it enhances the quality of the science we accomplish.” The result is both an excellent work of advocacy and a welcoming introduction to physics. (Aug.)

Publishers Weekly

09/01/2021

Dark matter remains a mystery to physicists, but scientists regardless make assumptions based on known physics, rather than accepting the unknown or a deviation from the known. Theoretical physicist Alexander (Brown Univ.; The Jazz of Physics) proposes that this attitude is the field's major flaw, which keeps it from accepting ideas from outsiders and makes scientists play it safe. His book promises to be frank and sometimes controversial: he encourages creativity in theoretical physics and challenges the idea that science is purely mathematical. He aims to inspire readers who feel unwelcome in scientific communities (drawing on his own experience as a Black man in STEM) and prove to academe that diversity is better for everyone and every field. In engaging and accessible writing, Alexander explains how physics is inflected by non-science disciplines, including art, philosophy, sociology, and psychology. He also looks at the past, present, and future of physics in relation to theory (the principle of invariance of light, the quantum superposition principle, the principle of emergence). VERDICT An interesting and thorough collection of thought experiments for physicists, cosmologists, and aspiring scientists who want to think outside the box. The book will especially appeal to readers of popular science.—Cate Triola, Capella Univ., Minneapolis

Library Journal

A self-described outsider in academic physics, author/narrator Stephon Alexander brings a welcome lilt to his delivery of this barrier-breaking cosmology guide. Alexander’s voice blends his native Trinidadian accent with the Bronx accent he picked up in boyhood as he coaxes listeners to ponder complex physics concepts such as invariance, superposition, emergence, and dark matter. Cross-discipline thinking is the key to unlocking cosmological conundrums, Alexander assures us, and he gives plenty of examples of theoretical physics viewed through the lenses of sociology, genetics, and music, among others. It is Alexander’s discussion of consciousness as a kind of “cosmic adhesive” that will tip the listener’s understanding of reality: Could the basic experience of our own awareness be an integral part of the fabric of the universe? E.S.B. © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine

SEPTEMBER 2021 - AudioFile

A self-described outsider in academic physics, author/narrator Stephon Alexander brings a welcome lilt to his delivery of this barrier-breaking cosmology guide. Alexander’s voice blends his native Trinidadian accent with the Bronx accent he picked up in boyhood as he coaxes listeners to ponder complex physics concepts such as invariance, superposition, emergence, and dark matter. Cross-discipline thinking is the key to unlocking cosmological conundrums, Alexander assures us, and he gives plenty of examples of theoretical physics viewed through the lenses of sociology, genetics, and music, among others. It is Alexander’s discussion of consciousness as a kind of “cosmic adhesive” that will tip the listener’s understanding of reality: Could the basic experience of our own awareness be an integral part of the fabric of the universe? E.S.B. © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine

SEPTEMBER 2021 - AudioFile

★ 2021-05-28
A renowned cosmologist argues that empowering scientific outsiders and taking risks on nontraditional ideas will result in transformative science.

“I hope to convince my readers that diversity in science is not simply a social justice concern, but that it enhances the quality of the science we accomplish.” So writes Brown University physics professor Alexander, the 2020 president of the National Society of Black Physicists as well as an electronic musician, at the beginning of this captivating scientific journey. He points out that deviance often results in innovation, and women and minorities often innovate more, leading to a logical conclusion: “Perhaps it is time to value and elevate minorities, thus enabling them to make major contributions, not in spite of their outsider’s perspective, but because of it.” The author’s own contributions include unraveling the mysteries of the early universe and advancing ideas relating to quantum gravity, and he deftly explains these and more in accessible and often personal prose. But it’s Alexander’s enthusiasm for seriously exploring theories on the frontier of physics that makes this more exciting than most similar books: Are life and the universe truly decoupled? Did the wave function of the universe undergo self-observation at its realization, and was this a form of cosmic proto-consciousness? The author draws on research from a variety of disciplines—physics, cosmology, biology, philosophy—to bolster his compelling arguments. As he shows, the current models of our universe—and the theories scientists use to construct them—may be called into question, requiring creative, interdisciplinary thinking to resolve. This beautiful and surprising book will leave readers wanting to learn more about the author and his mind-bending ideas, and it makes a perfect complement to Chanda Prescod-Weinstein’s recent book, The Disordered Cosmos.

Lush with ideas and bold in its analysis of the status quo, this book reorients our view of science and the universe.

Kirkus Reviews