Cosmological Enigmas: Pulsars, Quasars, and Other Deep-Space Questions

By Mark Kidger

The universe is big. Really big. And it gets bigger every day. In Cosmological Enigmas, Mark Kidger weaves together history, science, and science fiction to consider questions about the bigness of space and the strange objects that lie trembling at the edge of infinity. What are quasars, blazars, and gamma-ray bursters? Could we ever travel to the stars? Can we really expect aliens to contact us? From the profound (what evidence do we have to support the big bang theory?) to the bizarre (can there be more than one universe and, if so, how many dimensions does it possess?) to the everyday-yet-profound (why is the sky dark at night?), Kidger explains not only what we know but how we came to know it. Reflecting on how stars shine and what may lie beyond the edge of the universe, Kidger takes us on the ultimate cosmic journey.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0801884608
• ISBN13: 9780801884603
• Release Date: October 2007
• Publisher: Johns Hopkins University Press
• Length: 272 Pages
• Weight: 0.25 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 7.0" x 9.3"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

A Digestible Layman's book on Astronomical topics.

Mr. Kidger's book, "Cosmological Enigmas - Pulsars, Quasars & Other Deep-Space Questions", is written with the layperson in mind. It cuts across many of the top cosmological phenomenon that are the sources of research in cosmology and astrophysics; but, does so without dragging you through the muddle astronomer/astrophysicist "speak" and leaves behind any maths required to fully explain things. That does not mean that the book is absent of all math; it does bring up important equations that are explained. Overall is fairly well written with explanations given on ground terms to those who do not have a strong background on any of the subjects covered. Given the target reader, the book presents a very god synopsis of current objects of interest and questions most commonly asked of astronomers and astrophysicist; however, the book suffers from high quality pictures and diagrams that are misplaced in two locations of the book that forces the reader to rifle through the pages in search of the figures being referred to in the text and goes as far as breaking a chapter forcing the user to both sections of figures. There are numerous typographical errors and mistakes made in explanations that should never have been present in the book. One cannot blame the author totally. The editors and reviewers should have caught the mistakes prior to publishing the book. Overall the quality of the material is there; but the publishing mistakes knock the book down from 5 to 4 stars. Like any subject in the sciences, things change very rapidly. When talking about the things that are on the cutting edge of research, discussion, and theorization, it does not take long for the contents of a book like this to become dated. Many things have changed since the date of publication; however, the layperson will not be disappointed due to the well-thought out way the book was written.

light, engaging, and fun

Kidger has written an estimable sequel to his "Astronomical Enigmas." He addresses a wide range of questions treating the origin and fate of the universe, exobiology, and the like. He presents a first-class series of _conceptual_ essays, finely toeing the line between unacceptable vagueness and over-the-top mathematics. That having been said, this is definitely not a book for the professional astronomer or physicist. However, the curious dilettante should find Kidger's discussions lively, engaging, and thought-provoking, while his numerous links to Internet resources and other published works for the non-specialist are a welcome addition that rounds out this first-class offering.