The layman, our planet Earth often seems calm and contemplative. Sometimes it even gives the impression of stability, stillness. British scientist Stephen Hawking looks much deeper at phenomena and objects. “History of Time” - two of his best-sellers in a friendly and simple (without formulas) acquaint readers with the fundamental principles of astrophysics and quantum physics.
At the beginning of the book, having read about the Earth as a tower mounted on turtles (ironically), we see another picture at the end: a giant ball rotating around its axis at a breakneck speed of 1,500 km / h and rushing in orbit around the Sun at a speed of 100,000 km / h. And all this flows in a nonlinear, variable space and time!
Book 1. A Brief History of Time
In 1988, A Brief History of Time was published.
Stephen Hawking, its author, introduces a variety of readers to the views of modern astrophysics on the Universe. He managed to arouse the imagination of people, to interest them.
Is the time real? What global processes drive the universe? Are the past and future connected? Gradually, in three semantic parts of the book, he writes: first, on astrophysical views of Einstein's theory, then on generalizations in line with Einstein’s general theory, and finally, on microtheory, namely, quantum mechanics.
The book “The Shortest History of Time” is gradually increasing its level of abstraction. Stephen Hawking, however, maintains the popular style needed for understanding by a lay reader. They are given a clear explanation of things unusual for our everyday life: the curvature of space, the curvature of the rays of light, the expanding Universe. The scientist’s thoughts are original, and at the same time, understandable. He consistently leads us to the conclusion that the Universe exists and evolves according to the principle of the arrow of time (the direction of development that ensures a constant increase in entropy).
Book 2. “The Shortest History of Time”
In 2005, scientists wrote a new work - "The Shortest History of Time." Stephen Hawking in this capacious and exciting book also talks about the "mechanism of the universe."
Was her spelling a banal sequel? Not! Indeed, literally the day before, in 2004, its author made a revolution in astrophysics, changing the principles of the basic theory of "black holes" (extinct stars, compressed to the utmost degree - singularity). Therefore, the model of the world presented by scientists has changed. The chapter on the Big Bang, black holes, and also the
evolution of the Universe is presented in a new way, compared with the previous book
. The very structure of a black hole is shown differently by The Shortest Time History. (Stephen Hawking proved with mathematical equations that the event horizon of a black hole is much wider and has an entropy that manifests itself in radiation.) The presentation of the material not only included the ideas of the previous book, but also enriched the theory of the
origin of the Universe, the relationship of space and time. Here you can find a generalization of scientific experiments using the COBE satellite and the Hubble Space Telescope. The “string theory”, the value of which it assumes in an extremely broad generalization, is quite clearly disclosed: to characterize all elementary particles at once. At a understandable level, the latest findings of mathematical modeling are shown (the principle of wave-particle duality).
conclusions
Who is he - Stephen Hawking? Professor of astrophysics, father of three children. His theory of
black holes was a breakthrough in quantum physics. Prominent pundits consider him "number one" in this area. And Stephen Hawking has been practically immobilized for over 20 years. Moreover, amyotrophic sclerosis is constantly progressing. In addition, due to the complication after pneumonia, a part of the trachea was removed, which completely deprives the scientist of the opportunity to speak. He drives to Cambridge in a wheelchair with batteries. His brain is powerful and systemic. Using sensitive sensors, using a computer, the professor types phrases, which are then voiced by
a speech synthesizer built into the chair
. His whole life, these are thoughts, intangible by others, but decrypted by a computer, and their bright expression - the book “The Shortest History of Time”. Stephen Hawking is one of Britain's most respected people. More precisely, he is the third, after the world rugby champion Wilkinson and the footballer Beckham. The courage and intelligence of this man is truly admirable.