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animus96's review against another edition
5.0
Fantastic book. If you are a layperson and you want to gain some knowledge on the forces that rule our world and the entire universe, this book will really help you.
booksasportals's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
2.75
leok's review against another edition
4.0
Interesting companion book to the show of the same title. Book goes far more in depth into the topics covered in the show to the point where I struggled a bit to understand the concepts and math being discussed. Luckily, Brian Cox is nice enough to point out well in advance the section that will require some mental gymnastics, and encourages the reader (in his all to witty ways) to take a break and have some tea before tackling the subject matter. If that doesn't work, there's always er-reading it.
I can't think of any way to summarize this book except that if you're familiar with Cox's lectures, podcast, and shows, then you will not be disappointed.
I can't think of any way to summarize this book except that if you're familiar with Cox's lectures, podcast, and shows, then you will not be disappointed.
bryonie's review against another edition
1.0
I tried with this one, I really did. I don't have any science background, and math was never my strongest subject in school, but I know when someone is a good teacher. The biggest factor is being able to take really abstract or difficult concepts and boil them down into something someone who doesn't have a physics degree can understand them. Neil deGrasse-Tyson can do it wonderfully. Carl Sagan could do it too. Brian Cox? Nope. Not even a little. After a third chapter if scratching my head, rereading the section to see if I missed something, and then giving up and moving on to the next concept, I eventually made the decision to DNF this book. Nothing in this book was boiled down so the lay person (ie. me) could get more than the basic gist of the concept.
As much as this stuff interests me, I don't want to have to go and get a physics degree just to understand what this author is trying to say.
As much as this stuff interests me, I don't want to have to go and get a physics degree just to understand what this author is trying to say.
kurtisbaute's review against another edition
4.0
Excellent book about the forces of nature and their discovery via the scientific method. Cox has a poetic way of expressing the beauty of the scientific method, and this book is filled with cool historical accounts of discovery, as well as great examples on how these forces apply to the universe and interact with each other. If I hadn't already read a lot about this topic I think this book would have really blown my mind. Would definitely recommend for those just getting into science.
ulanur's review against another edition
3.0
I absolutely adore Brian Cox's lyrical, romantic view on science. He does make it much more approachable than in science class where you just dread every second. That being said I enjoyed the BBC documentary by the same name much more than the book. Seeing visual representations in such exotic surroundings just made me fall in love with science all over again. There are many mathematical equations in the book, which I was not particularly fond of. It was however a joy and very humbling to find out how much we don't actually know.
The mane theme of this book is to ask questions, which is the cornerstone of science and what makes it unequalled in its beauty, so be a child again and ask the simple questions. Do you know the answers?
The mane theme of this book is to ask questions, which is the cornerstone of science and what makes it unequalled in its beauty, so be a child again and ask the simple questions. Do you know the answers?
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