A big bang in a little room
Subtitle: the quest to create new universes
By: Zeeya Merali
Publisher: Basic Books
Published: 2017
Language: eng
Number of pages: 236
ISBN-13: 9780465065912
Subjects: Cosmology
Description: "What if you could become God, with the ability to build a whole new universe in the lab? As startling as it sounds, modern physics suggests that within the next two decades, scientists may be able to perform this seemingly divine feat-- to concoct an entirely new baby universe, complete with its own physical laws, star systems, galaxies, and even intelligent life. To create your own cosmos, you would need a particle accelerator, such as the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) in Geneva or one of the proposed next-generation colliders, a lot of physics know-how, and a bit of luck. A Big Bang in a Little Room will take the reader on a journey through the history of cosmology and unravel-- particle-by-particle, theory-by-theory, and experiment-by-experiment-- the ideas behind this provocative claim made by some of the most-respected physicists alive today. Beyond simply explaining the science, A Big Bang in a Little Room will also tell the story of the people who have been plugging away for more than thirty years to make this seemingly impossible dream a reality, pushing the boundaries of our understanding of the cosmos and our place in it as humans. A Big Bang in a Little Room will examine their extravagant plans, which include current and future space missions, accelerator runs, and table-top lab experiments to search for evidence supporting their ideas In the process, the book will ask deep philosophical questions about what it means for us, as humans, to begin to contemplate creating a new universe. Remarkable in its originality and ambition, A Big Bang in a Little Room is the ideal read for anyone seeking to understand the making of our universe-- as well as the others just waiting to be created"--
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (pages 215-224) and index.
Table of contents: title: God's billboard : the cosmic microwave background; title: Beyond space and time : the quantum realm; title: Inflating the universe; title: Bursting inflation's bubble; title: Universe to multiverse; title: The accidental universe makers; title: A baby universe, a string multiverse, or God? : explaining our tailor-made universe; title: The little bang theory : or, How to grow a universe from a monopole; title: Postcards from the edge : detecting and communicating with our baby universe; title: Living in the matrix : a self-regulation guide for universe-makers.