LITERCURIOUS BOOK REVIEW
| Title | The End of Everything: (Astrophysically Speaking) |
| Author | Dr. Katie Mack |
| Publisher | Scribner (August 4, 2020) |
| Format | Kindle, Hardcover, Audiobook, Audio CD |
| Pages | 240 |
| Language: | English |
| ISBN 10/13 | 198210354X / 978-1982103545 |
AUTHOR
Dr. Katherine (Katie) Mack is a theoretical astrophysicist. Find out more about her on her webpage here. You can follow Dr. Mack on Twitter here and Facebook here.
WHO IS THE TARGET AUDIENCE?
This book will intrigue and enlighten anyone who might be interested in the birth and different possible deaths of our universe.
SYNOPSIS
The End of Everything: (Astrophysically Speaking) is an extremely well written exploration of five possible endings to the universe as we know it. She puts theory and physics into terms that are easy for anyone to understand. The graphs and pictures enhance that understanding and the footnotes are invaluable.
The End of Everything starts at the beginning; the “Big Bang to Now.” This is where Dr Mack explains the origins of our universe as we know it today. She follows up the beginning with chapters covering each the five possible ends:
- Big Crunch
- Heat Death
- Big Rip
- Vacuum Decay
- Bounce
Intermixed within these chapters are discussions on a variety of scientific principles. She clearly explains how each field of study interrelates with the others. She avoids using in depth mathematical equations but rather uses examples to explain the theories. These examples make the subject matter easy to understand for anyone not in the scientific field. I particularly appreciated the example of gravity by throwing a baseball so hard that it escapes the earths pull and continues on out into space forever.
Other than the fact that the universe will someday end; one of the most mind-blowing elements of her book is that there may be things beyond the visible horizon we will never know about. According to current scientific study, the universe is still expanding. No matter how far we see into space, we will never be able to see past 13.8 billion light years. The time that it takes for light to travel from the start of the universe to earth. In a constantly expanding universe, this means there may be a lot more out there that we will never know about. Unless we can travel in any direction fast enough to meet the light from that distant object, we will never see it. I wonder what lies out there beyond the horizon.
CONCLUSION
The End of Everything: (Astrophysically Speaking) is a tremendously fascinating book. The look into our universe from its birth to its possible deaths is exciting and mind-blowing. The physics, mathematics and scientific study involved to inspire the theories and experiments are just, well, astronomical.
Dr. Mack does an exceptional job relating the information in laymen’s terms, so everyone can understand the principles involved. She relates the subject humorously and at the same time maintains intrigue. She includes numerous footnotes, graphs and depictions in each chapter to further explain the concepts involved.
I heartily recommend this book to anyone who has an interest in cosmology, or who just wants to understand more about our place in the universe.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like to thank Dr. Katie Mack, NetGalley, and Scribner for affording me the opportunity to review The End of Everything: (Astrophysically Speaking).