03/30/2015
Bartusiak (Archives of the Universe), professor in the Graduate Program in Science Writing at MIT, reveals the story and science of black holes in all their “stark and alien weirdness.” Black holes begin, and end, with gravity. The first person to propose this idea was 18th-century English polymath John Michell, who imagined a star so massive that “all light... would be made to return towards it, by its own proper gravity.” As Bartusiak relates, the idea remained a curiosity until Einstein proffered his theory of special relativity (1905) and the idea that gravity could bend light and motion. German astronomer Karl Schwarzschild envisioned an “event horizon,” the point of no return beyond which nothing could escape a massive star’s extreme gravity, but no one believed it could happen. Then Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar showed how a massive white dwarf star could shrivel to nothing under its own gravity. Bartusiak notes that Einstein and many others rejected the idea, but by the 1960s, observational evidence and computer advances that allowed astronomers to model stellar collapse showed that black holes were real. Bartusiak’s lively, accessible writing and insight into the personalities behind the science make her book an entertaining and informative read. (May)
Black Hole: How an Idea Abandoned by Newtonians, Hated by Einstein, and Gambled on by Hawking Became Loved
Narrated by Randye Kaye
Marcia BartusiakUnabridged — 6 hours, 9 minutes
Black Hole: How an Idea Abandoned by Newtonians, Hated by Einstein, and Gambled on by Hawking Became Loved
Narrated by Randye Kaye
Marcia BartusiakUnabridged — 6 hours, 9 minutes
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Overview
Renowned science writer Marcia Bartusiak shows how the black hole helped revive Einstein's greatest achievement, the general theory of relativity, after decades during which it had been pushed into the shadows. Not until astronomers discovered such surprising new phenomena as neutron stars and black holes did the once-sedate universe transform into an Einsteinian cosmos, filled with sources of titanic energy that can be understood only in the light of relativity. Celebrating the hundredth anniversary of general relativity, Black Hole uncovers how the black hole really got its name and recounts the scientists' frustrating, exhilarating, and at times humorous battles over the acceptance of one of history's most dazzling ideas.
Editorial Reviews
"[T]horoughly researched, beautifully written, and full of insights about the nature of the scientific enterprise." ---Alan Lightman, author of Einstein's Dreams
Won honorable mention for the 2016 PROSE Awards in the Cosmology & Astronomy category.
Longlisted for the 2016 PEN/E.O. Wilson Literary Science Writing Award given by PEN America.
‘[A] reliable and readable account of this amazing story.’—Andrew Crumey, Literary Review.
‘Ms. Bartusiak weaves scientific concepts to create a portrait of the scientific institution itself, showing how its norms and personalities served to shape the path taken… a considered background to a still-unfolding idea.’—The Economist.
"Lively and dramatic. . . . There's no danger of being bored. Bartusiak does a good job of tracing the twisted route that our understanding has followed, from Newton to Einstein and to today as we try to extend gravity to quantum scales."—Tara Shears, Times Higher Education Supplement
"Tells this story with . . . an accessibility that other popular writers in the field have sometimes struggled to achieve when dealing with the subject. There’s as much history and character study as hard science, which is no bad thing, and even the most mathophobic reader will find this book a satisfying and enlightening read."—Mike Parker, Tribune magazine
"Bartusiak's book traces the crooked path black holes took through the history of science. . . . The narrative features intriguing cameos from many of history's well-known physicists."—Scientific American, listed as a recommended book
"Lively and readable. . . . Read it if you want to know how the concept of black holes has changed dramatically over the past 100 years—from being an apparent mistake in the maths to the strangest and most outlandish objects that we (currently) know of."—Pippa Goldschmidt, Spectator
"Expertly tells the story of the emergence of black holes. . . . [Bartusiak] offers a concise but comprehensive history . . . from the 18th century ponderings of stars massive enough that light could not escape to present-day studies of these very real objects."—Jeff Foust, The Space Review
"Black Hole is engaging and lively, weaving in personal drama . . . with a clear account of the underlying science. An acclaimed science writer."—Tom Siegfried, Science News
“Bartusiak's new book is thoroughly researched, beautifully written, and full of insights about the nature of the scientific enterprise. Aficionados of black holes will love this book.”—Alan Lightman, author of Einstein's Dreams and The Accidental Universe
‘The irony that Einstein sought desperately for order in a universe he had so thoroughly trashed is not lost on Bartusiak, who packs a lot of learning into a deceptively light and enjoyable read.’—New Scientist
"[A] Sparkling new book . . . One of the delights of this witty book is seeing the many ways physicists historically found to dismiss, deny and disdain black holes."—Washington Post
“Captivating and authoritative, Black Hole traces a truly weird concept from its tentative conjecture to inescapable reality. Bartusiak recounts a compelling tale with quirky turns, curious revelations, intellectual rumbles and personal gambles.”—Ray Jayawardhana, author of Neutrino Hunters
“An engrossing and mind-bending read . . . Bartusiak provides a front row seat as many of the most famous scientists of all time grapple with the strangest objects in the universe, black holes.”—Adam Riess, Nobel Laureate in Physics, 2011
“Marcia Bartusiak takes us on a fascinating ride around black holes, showing the beauty and mystery of a concept that has intrigued scientists from Einstein to Hawking.”—Walter Isaacson, CEO of the Aspen Institute and author of Benjamin Franklin, Einstein, and Steve Jobs
“Astronomers took fifty years to carry the black hole from laughable concept to central importance in every galaxy. Marcia Bartusiak accomplishes the same feat here, in one irresistibly attractive read.”—Dava Sobel, author of Longitude
“You don’t need an advanced degree to enjoy this entertaining tale of how black holes meandered their way from theoretical oddity into everyday consciousness. . . . A beautiful case study in how scientific ideas grow through inspiration, thought and, finally, observation.”—Mike Brown, Wall Street Journal
Six hours is just the right length for this audio history of black holes. Any more might fatigue general listeners, and any less might be too superficial for physics geeks. The audiobook still has its dense moments when the scientifically uninitiated will need to hit rewind to ponder a physics (or metaphysics) concept. Narrator Randye Kaye’s modulated delivery keeps the material moving, though it sometimes lacks the timing and drama necessary to enliven the science details. For those who make it to the end, the reward is an illuminating view of how great thinkers wrestle with a radical concept and eventually propel it into the mainstream. R.W.S. © AudioFile 2015, Portland, Maine
★ 2015-02-03
Black holes enthrall physicists and astronomers, as well as Hollywood filmmakers, and readers of this fine popular science account will understand why.It all begins with gravity, writes Bartusiak (Science Writing/MIT; The Day We Found the Universe, 2009) in this entirely engaging narrative of "the cosmic object [astrophysicists are] most likely to be asked about." Although the concept of black holes is ancient, it was Isaac Newton who explained it more or less correctly in 1687. By the 18th century, imaginative scientists realized that since gravity was a universal force, light was not exempt. Gravity from a star far more massive than the sun would slow the light it emitted to zero, and it would become invisible: a black hole. They were right—sort of. In 1916, Einstein's theory of relativity showed that light speed never slows but that gravity distorts space, so light near a large body appears to curve. Examining Einstein's equations, early researchers calculated that as gravity increases, distortion becomes so great that the light would double back. Einstein insisted that no such invisible star existed, and few disagreed until the 1960s, when astronomers detected quasars: strange, distant objects emitting unimaginable quantities of energy equivalent to billions of suns. These turned out to be supermassive black holes; most galaxies have one, ours included. Formerly a mathematical hypothesis, black holes of all sizes became front-page news, occupying brilliant scientists such as Stephen Hawking and John Wheeler, who revealed that they are a normal product of stellar evolution and even more bizarre than predicted. Superior science writing that eschews the usual fulsome biographies of eccentric geniuses, droll anecdotes and breathless prognostication to deliver a persistently fascinating portrait of an odd but routine feature of the cosmos.
Product Details
| BN ID: | 2940170492671 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Tantor Audio |
| Publication date: | 04/28/2015 |
| Edition description: | Unabridged |
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