The Oxford Companion to Cosmology (Oxford Companion)

By Andrew Liddle and Jon Loveday

Book Overview

Here is a lavishly illustrated, state-of-the-art look at modern cosmology, the only such resource presently available. In more than 350 in-depth entries, Andrew Liddle and Jon Loveday cover the entire scope of this cutting-edge field, from cosmic rays and dark energy to Higgs bosons and neutrinos. Beginning with an introductory essay on Hot Big Bang Cosmology, the Companion illuminates the ideas behind our current understanding of the universe, outlines some of the fundamental physics from which those ideas emerge, and discusses the many strands of observational evidence available to the modern cosmologist. The authors tackle such fascinating topics as anti-matter, the age of the universe, black holes, quasars, and radio galaxies. The book also features biographical profiles of major scientists and informative entries on the tools of exploration such as the Cosmic Background Explorer satellite, the Hubble Space Telescope, and the Keck Observatory. Extensive cross-referencing allows readers to pursue ideas throughout the book, and web links direct the reader to recommended online resources which will be regulary updated via the books companion website.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0199560846
• ISBN13: 9780199560844
• Release Date: June 2009
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Length: 360 Pages
• Weight: 0.87 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.0" x 7.6"

Customer Reviews

This book puts it together very nicely!

One would not assume that a dictionary approach would work for something as far flung as modern cosmology--But it did so exceptionally well. While avoiding the highly technical, Liddle and Loveday succeed in drawing the landscape in a way that an interested reader cannot miss. And they do it with humor, consistency and clarity. Well done!

The biggest Oxford Companion of them all

The Oxford Companion series contains several splendid volumes devoted to such things as Wine, the Bible, Classical Literature and the American Musical. This Oxford Companion devoted to Cosmology or the scientific study of the birth, growth and ultimate fate of the universe, is without question the largest and most inclusive one of all. Co-authored by Astrophysicist Andrew Liddle, whose previous books include two superb astrophysics and cosmology textbooks: An Introduction to Modern Cosmology and Cosmological Inflation and Large-Scale Structure, the purpose of this Oxford Companion to Cosmology is to provide a coherent one-stop resource containing the latest information on the history and structure of the Cosmos. The past two decades have seen an explosion in knowledge, but as in every cutting-edge scientific field, the more that we discover the more questions we unearth. The stunning discovery in the late 1990s that the expansion of the universe was accelerating has essentially thrown all of our assumptions into a sorting hat, forcing us to explain the mystery of the missing 96% of the matter we think is contained in the universe. It appears to be undetectable with our present instrumentation. So-called Dark Energy, as seen through the lens of String Theory, has literally redefined our definition of the universe. Our universe is now conceived as a multi-dimensional multiverse or Landscape containing 10^500 universes of utterly different structure and variable physical laws. This makes our uniqueness even less of a pleasant illusion. Some cosmologists are suggesting that a redefinition of gravity, of the speed of light and of Einstein's Relativity are required in order to explain the 'Horizon Problem', the strange flatness and sameness apparent everywhere in the visible universe, even though these far-flung regions have never been in communication with each other. In other words, how can regions that have never been visible to each other "be painted the same color"? Cosmic Inflation, as posited in the 1980s by Alan Guth to explain the 'Horizon Problem', has encountered difficulties that make seeking an alternative explanation a profitable speculative exercise for cosmologists. Cosmology is in an exciting state of upheaval, and this Companion, with more than 350 relevant entries and 200 photos and diagrams, will make a superb addition to your arsenal of knowledge. What makes it particularly useful is the ability to search for an entry, finding it fairly easily in alphabetical order. Reading a technical article on cosmology often requires that we look up background material. This Companion is superbly well suited for the task. Anyone with an interest in the field will find this volume a welcome addition to their library. Very strongly recommended. Mike Birman