A review by svjak
Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil deGrasse Tyson

adventurous informative inspiring reflective fast-paced

5.0

Neil deGrasse Tyson is a fantastic scientific mind. Reading Astrophysics for People in a Hurry barely scratched the surface and I'm already eager to learn more about what he has to say. 

But perhaps even more important than his scientific literacy is his ability to communicate and explain complicated, scientific concepts in an accessible and intriguing way. Not a single page (or minute) of this book was boring. And coming from someone who can easily get lost in information-dense texts, this is high praise. Tyson managed to still convey a lot of information about the universe and astrophysics without making it feel overbearing. 

Time to get cosmic. There are more stars in the universe than grains of sand on any beach, more stars than seconds have passed since Earth formed, more stars than words and sounds ever uttered by all the humans who ever lived.

In fact, I would argue that Tyson is the sole reason that I now have an interest in the topic of astrophysics. 

Every cup that passes through a single person and eventually rejoins the world’s water supply holds enough molecules to mix 1,500 of them into every other cup of water in the world. No way around it: some of the water you just drank passed through the kidneys of Socrates, Genghis Khan, and Joan of Arc.

How about air? Also vital. A single breathful draws in more air molecules than there are breathfuls of air in Earth’s entire atmosphere. That means some of the air you just breathed passed through the lungs of Napoleon, Beethoven, Lincoln, and Billy the Kid.

He uses real-world examples and real-life concepts to convey how massive the universe is, how tiny molecules are, and what this means in the context of our lives. He drives home why these concepts should be important to us. Educators like David Attenborough and now Neil deGrasse Tyson are precisely the reason that I loved science as a child. 

This book as brought back so many fond memories of studying science and being in awe of our universe. It's reminded me of what it was like to be a child with a mind that just wanted to learn about new things because I enjoyed learning and I enjoyed making connections between different aspects of life. 

What we do know, and what we can assert without further hesitation, is that the universe had a beginning. The universe continues to evolve. And yes, every one of our body’s atoms is traceable to the big bang and to the thermonuclear furnaces within high-mass stars that exploded more than five billion years ago. We are stardust brought to life, then empowered by the universe to figure itself out—and we have only just begun.

This is one of those books that you can read over and over and it will never lose its value because each time you listen you have another opportunity to reflect and discover new ways to digest the information. This book is almost like therapy in a way because it makes you contemplate your own existence, where we come from, where we're going, what we know, and what we don't know. 

And it's also incredibly humbling. 

Rarely do I read a book that I immediately need to go out and recommend to everyone I know, but this was a fantastic book that I think everyone should read at least once.