Nature's Balancing Act: How Small Quirks of Physics Makes Life Possible

Are the physical laws of our universe finely tuned, such that life can exist? What does this imply about how our universe formed? Questions like these are examined in Nature's Balancing Act, presented for a wide audience. From the Big Bang to present-day research, ranging from gravitational waves to experiments on antimatter, our physical laws are shown to be slightly off balance, allowing life to exist.

In its opening chapters, the following is asked: What would happen if the strong nuclear...