Book Description
The dark matter problem is one of the most fundamental and profoundly difficult problems in the history of science. Not knowing what makes up most of the mass in the Universe goes to the heart of our understanding of the Universe and our place in it. In Search of Dark Matter is the story of the emergence of the dark matter problem, from the initial 'discovery' of dark matter by Jan Oort to contemporary explanations for the nature of dark matter and its role in the origin and evolution of the Universe.
Written for the intelligent non-scientist and scientist alike, it spans a variety of scientific disciplines, from observational astronomy to particle physics. Concepts that the reader will encounter along the way are at the cutting edge of scientific research. However the themes are explained in such a way that no prior understanding of science beyond a high school education is necessary.
Customer Reviews:
In Search of Dark Matter.......2007-08-04
I found this book to be very informative, up to date, and could be understood by the layman
An EXCELLENT book on Dark Matter.......2007-05-10
This book sets out the evidence for missing matter in the universe in an entertaining yet thorough way. There is virtually no math in the entire book, and yet each subject area is treated fully. I had thought the first evidence for dark matter was star rotation rates in galaxies as set out by Vera Rubin and others. However this book traces the roots of the "something is wrong with our picture of the universe" back to the 1930s and Fritz Zwicky and Jan Oort--two astronomers who could not be more different from each other. And that is another strength of this book--we learn something about Zwicky and Oort without being seriously sidetracked.
"In Search of Dark Matter" strikes a perfect balance between moving the story along (and it does read like a story) and stopping here and there for brief asides about the personalities and milieu involved at the various stages of dark matter research. Finally, alternatives such as MOND theory are discussed. This book is not a deep tome--it is only roughly 150 pages. But it certainly piqued my interest and made me want to find out more. The authors succeed in bringing up most topics assuming little or no background in astronomy, yet don't get mired explaining the basics. A great read!
Excellent Book.......2007-02-22
The book is very well organized and enjoyable to read. Well done!
Book Description
Once we thought the universe was filled with shining stars, dust, planets, and galaxies. We now know that more than 98 percent of all matter in the universe is dark. It emits absolutely nothing yet bends space and time; keeps stars speeding around galaxies; and determines the fate of the universe.
But dark matter is only part of the story. Scientists have recently discovered that the expansion of the universe is speeding up, driven by a mysterious commodity called dark energy. Depending on what dark matter and energy happen to be, our seemingly quiet universe could end its days in a Big Rip, tearing itself apart, or a Big Crunch, collapsing down to a universe the size of nothing, ready to be reincarnated in a Big Bang once again.
For the general reader and armchair astronomer alike, Iain Nicolson's fascinating account shows how our ideas about the nature and the content of the universe have developed. He highlights key discoveries, explains underlying concepts, and examines current thinking on dark matter and dark energy. He describes techniques that astronomers use to explore the remote recesses of the cosmos in their quest to understand its composition, evolution, and ultimate fate.
Customer Reviews:
A superb popular book about cosmology.......2007-09-02
Iain Nicolson has done a wonderful job of presenting many of the facts and hypotheses about cosmology to the layman (and to the interested high school student).
The book starts with some fundamentals of astronomy. We then proceed to a discussion of Big Bang cosmology. And we learn all about the Hubble expansion, as well as observed evolution of the visible universe, comparison of the time since the Big Bang to the lifetimes of the oldest stars. In addition, we're told about Big Bang nucleosynthesis (this is one topic I would have wanted to see discussed in more detail), and evidence of the Big Bang from the cosmic microwave background.
After this, we learn about the existence of dark matter in spiral galaxies and galaxy clusters. But what's the dark matter made of? One possibility is "MACHOs," (MAssive Compact Halo Objects). However, the author explains that MACHOs alone can not account for the dark matter in our own galaxy, much less for the dark matter elsewhere.
It turns out that we need to look for non-baryonic sources of dark matter. And that means "WIMPs," (Weakly-Interacting Massive Particles). It also means wondering about whether dark matter is all that cold.
Next, we look at an interesting hypothesis: maybe Newtonian gravitation breaks down at high accelerations! Most physicists think this idea is wrong, and so far (as this book shows), the evidence for it is not all that favorable.
That brings us back to looking for those WIMPs. And we see some of the ideas for detecting them including Super-Kamiokande (a water-based neutrino detector) and atmospheric Cerenkov telescopes.
Nicolson's next topic is the inflationary model of cosmic expansion. And there is a section on the growth of cosmic microwave background density fluctuations, including results from the BOOMERanG balloon experiments and the WMAP mission.
Now comes something relatively new and exciting. In the past ten years, we've seen that data from supernovae indicate that the expansion of our universe is accelerating. And that leads to a search for the driver of this expansion, which most folks call "dark energy." That in turn brings up questions about whether there needs to be a "multiverse" to explain what otherwise would be an unusual set of coincidences about the properties of our own visible universe. In addition, it means questions about the history of dark energy in our own universe. And there is a discussion of possible outcomes: eternal accelerating expansion (where gravity loses), a "Big Crunch," (where gravity wins) or a "Big Rip," (where the repulsive force destroys everything).
I highly recommend this book.
A fascinating expose.......2007-06-10
DARK SIDE OF THE UNIVERSE: DARK MATTER, DARK ENERGY, AND THE FATE OF THE COSMOS is a pick not just for college-level science collections strong in astronomy, but for the general-interest lending library catering to non-scientist readers. It offers up a history and survey of how ideas about nature and the universe have developed, using key discoveries and scientific rationale to consider the evolution of theories on dark matter and describing how astronomers explore the remote cosmos to gain evidence supporting or refuting these theories. Any with an interest beyond the solar system will find this a fascinating expose, packed with color astronomy photos throughout.
An enlightening book about some dark subjects.......2007-05-05
We used to believe that the entire universe consisted of the kind of matter and energy that we were familiar with in our daily lives, but when astronomers actually tried to calculate the actual mass of the universe, they found that there was not enough observable mass to account for all the observed gravitational effects. How to account for this discrepancy? Dark matter! Dark matter? But what exactly is this stuff? Physicists have postulated several different forms of dark matter, with such whimsical acronyms as MACHOs (massive compact halo objects) and WIMPs (weakly interacting massive particles). Astronomers and physicists continue to debate the nature of dark matter, and Iain Nicolson brings us the debate and the science and people behind it in "Dark Side of the Universe: Dark Matter, Dark Energy, and the Fate of the Cosmos".
While dark matter seemed to offer a stopgap solution to missing matter, it came up short in explaining the observed accelerating expansion of the universe. Such an acceleration requires a nearly flat universe with a mass+energy density equal to a certain critical density. Even with dark matter the density of the known universe is roughly one-quarter the critical density, implying the existence of an additional form or forms of as-yet-unknown energy, i.e. dark energy.
Iain Nicolson explores all these ideas and more in a compelling narrative that is accessible to the intelligent lay reader without omitting important details. More knowledgeable readers will find some familiar material, but Nicolson brings his considerable experience and insight to the subject so that the familiar becomes wondrously new again and even the most up-to-date reader finishes the book with a greater understanding and appreciation for both the people and the science exploring some of the biggest questions known to humankind.
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The Dark Universe: Matter, Energy and Gravity (Space Telescope Science Institute Symposium Series)
Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
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ASIN: 0521822270 |
Book Description
This timely volume presents specially written articles by world experts at an international conference at the Space Telescope Science Institute. The goal of the meeting was to assemble physicists and astronomers working on all aspects of dark matter and theories of gravity. Topics covered include Nucleosynthesis, Hot Gas in Clusters, MACHOs, WIMPs, Rotation Curves, Gravitational Lensing Neutrinos, Large Scale Flows, Dwarf Spheroidals, Cosmological Parameters from Supernovae, the Cosmic Microwave Background, the Cosmological Constant, and Theories of Gravity.
Book Description
Tom Van Flandern's book adds a new dimension to cosmology--not only does it present a novel approach to timeless issues, it stands up to the closest scientific scrutiny. Even the most respected scientists today will readily admit that the Big Bang Theory is full of holes. But it takes a new look, like Dark Matter, Missing Planets, and New Comets, to explain not only why the theory is wrong but what to substitute in its place. If you are curious about such things as the nature of matter and the origin of the solar system, but feel inadequately equipped to grasp what modern science has to say about such things, read this book. You will not get the all too common condescending attempt to water down the `mysteries' of modern science into a form intelligible to little non scientist you, but rather a straightforward new theory, logically derived in front of your eyes, which challenges the roots of many of today's complex accepted paradigms, yet whose essence is simple enough to be thoroughly communicated to the intelligent layman without "losing it in the translation."
Customer Reviews:
thinking about fundamentals - a tour de force.......2006-07-14
I was extremely impressed by the amount of thinking that went into this book. Whether you agree with Van Flandern or not, he goes deep, challenging fundamental assumptions at every turn. His writing is also first rate. Van Flandern is very good at communicating difficult ideas -- not an easy thing to do.
I started out skeptical about exploding planets. By the end the author had almost convinced me. In the process I learned a great deal about celestial mechanics. I found especially appealing his idea that gravity has limited range of 2 parsecs. That would explain so many things. Like Van Flandern, I regard the Big Bang as a lot of nonsense. I also suspect that he is probably correct about the origin of the Valles Marineris on Mars -- the deepest canyon in the solar system. What an ingenious idea. And I admire Van Flandern for discussing controversial subjects, such as the monuments of Mars. His updated synthesis is the best I have seen yet. Clearly R.C. Hoagland benefitted greatly from Van Flanern's ideas. What a story.
I disagree with the author in several areas. Van Flandern could be correct that most comets originated from a disintegrated planet. That is plausible, though whether this happened via an explosion or a collision, I still have my doubts. I suspect there have always been rogue objects of unknown origin moving through the solar system. His explanation why these objects could not come from interstellar space was not entirely clear to me. Hale Bopp was much too large to be derived from a moon sized body.
The book was published before the discoveries of Hyakutake's ephemeral tail and cometary x-rays, which in my view are diagnostic for an electrical cometary connection. I wonder if Van Flandern is aware that several years ago a physicist in New Mexico demonstrated that terrestrial lightning causes x-rays, a discovery that's been confirmed many times, since. I believe that cometary x-rays and those caused by lightning are one and the same phenomenon.
I subscribe to the solar capacitor model. In my view the astronomer Bessel was correct long ago when he argued for an electrical connection between sun and comet. Van Flandern's discussion of comets touches on but neglects to discuss in full a most telling point: That comets are wildly variable in their brightness. Why, for example, was Halleys' comet 200X as bright after perihelion as before, at the same distance from the sun? Fred Hoyle described its display as a series of explosions. This sort of show could not be due to reflected light, alone, even if Van Flandern is correct that some of the material in the coma is debris from the original break up. I believe the extreme variability of X-ray generation and brightness is caused by solar flares and coronal mass ejections. In other words, there is a direct connection between sun and comet. Nor can a break up model account for the preponderance of smoke sized particles in the coma. The same is true for the vast cloud of hydrogen surrounding comets. All of this suggests electrical phenomena -- which NASA and mainstream science continue to ignore and dismiss.
I believe that comets draw in ionized material from the rear via the tail. And free hydrogen is attracted to the negatively charged nucleus from all directions. This is not my model. I don't take credit for it, though I won't mention the originator's name because I promised him I would not. (His initials are J M)
A few other points: I doubt very much if the rings of Saturn are as old as Van Flandern thinks. Back when the fine detail in the rings first became known, the astronomers Victor Clube and Bill Napier argued that the rings could not be older than 10-20,000 years. After which the fine detail would gradually wash out and be lost. I suspect that physicist Paul LaViolette is correct that the rings are the signature of a recent event (see his book Earth Under Fire). In LaViolette's view this was caused by a galactic superwave. LaViolette thinks the cosmic wave pushed the sun's nebular cloud of dust back into our solar system, wreaking all manner of havoc, causing the ice ages etc. The same explanation would account for the zodiacal disk, a remnant that apparently is tipped 3 degrees away from the plane of the solar system, i.e., in the direction of the galactic center. Again, this is Paul's argument.
My other point of disagreement concerns Venus. Van Flandern's link with Mercury implies that Venus is a very old planet. How, then do we account for its tremendous heat? Venus should have cooled down long ago. The Magellan Mission showed that the planet is 85% volcanic -- though I suspect even this high number understates the reality. Could a greenhouse cause this? Of course not. The heat is coming from the planetary core. But why? Simple. Venus is very young, perhaps only a few thousand years old. I've studied the so called Venusian impact craters and can discern no difference between them and the planet's volcanic craters. Some of the "impact" craters actually have large associated lava extrusions. In my view most or all of them are volcanic in origin. Venus has many volcanic features unique in the solar system -- why? Simple. It is the youngest planet, by far.
I believe Venus was originally a giant comet that was captured by the sun. I know celestial mechanics can't explain the how of this -- but if it's shown that large comets do attract ionized material from the rear they can actually add enormous amounts of mass, which would slow them down, shortening their period and making capture a realistic possibility. I suspect that some of the other planets (and some of the moons) had a similar origin.
In short, I largely agree with Van Flandern. But I also hold for an altogether different capture mechanism (originated by J M) governed by electromagnetism. In an unpublished draft of his Principia Isaac Newton wrote:
"He who investigates the laws and effects of electrical forces with the same success and certainty [by which I have investigated celestial mechanics] will greatly promote philosophy [i.e., natural philosophy], even if perhaps he does not know the cause of these forces. First the phenomenon should be observed, then their proximate causes, and afterward the causes of the causes, should be investigated, and finally it will be possible to come down to the causes of the causes (established by phenomena) to their effects, by arguing a priori..."
Plenty of dubious ideas.......2004-11-11
This book sure has some wild hypotheses! But I think they tend to show not imagination and courage but poor intuition.
Let's start with Van Flandern's idea that gravity propagates much faster than c, the speed of light. That is, does the Sun pull you towards where it is, or to where it was 8 minutes ago? I think Newton might well have agreed with Van Flandern's argument that were gravity to propagate at c, planetary orbits around the Sun would be gravitationally damped and unstable, and the Solar System would not exist.
But this argument is false. It is the same for electromagnetism. A charge moving at constant speed pulls you towards where it will be when the field reaches you. A charge moving with constant velocity does not radiate: the lowest order radiation term is the dipole term, corresponding to an accelerating charge. And gravitational radiation depends not on the dipole term, but the typically much smaller quadrupole term, which can become significant for a body with a changing acceleration.
Examinations of binary pulsars have indicated that a quadrupole moment does indeed lead to a gravitational damping and orbit decay. Not only that, the decay is consistent to within 1% of the speed of gravity equaling c. I find that convincing. Moreover, near-occultation observations of quasars may support this conclusion as well. And on top of that, a speed of gravity greater than c would transmit a signal backwards in time.
Van Flandern argues that there is nothing special about c, given that we use electromagnetic waves to measure time and length. He's wrong. As Swiatecki and others have illustrated, the constancy of c is a consequence of the local spacetime manifold. Imagine a number of very thin boards with identical rectilinear grids and identical synchronized stopwatches fixed at all gridpoints on all boards. Now let the boards slide around at varying speeds and directions. Then smash one of the watches on the top board so hard that it stops all the watches directly beneath it. Later, smash another one the same way. You'll quickly discover the differential interval between spacetime events, and that will give you the value of c. And we've found c without any reference to light or to Maxwell's equations.
Van Flandern supports the "fission" theory for the origin of the Moon, rather than the "giant impact" theory. While that's still possible, evidence is leaning heavily away from his idea.
Now, what about a recently exploding planet creating the asteroid belt? Well, sure, there are many asteroid orbits that are unstable over really long times. But there's plenty of evidence that some asteroids have been around since the beginning of the solar system, and that what we're seeing is simply lots of collisions, not explosions. Moreover, a recent explosion, without a clear mechanism no less, is a little provincial as a theory.
The funny part is that there are some wild phenomena, such as planetary migrations, especially in other stellar systems, which do bear plenty of investigation. We don't need to start by indulging in arbitrary and dubious speculations: explaining what's right in front of us is exciting enough!
I think Van Flandern's comments about the "face on Mars" once again showed poor intuition. That "face" looked awfully strongly like something with a natural origin.
Van Flandern does not like the Copenhagen interpretation of Quantum Mechanics, which he feels disregards the need for an underlying reality behind all the concepts. I think this actually may be a fair criticism, but there are alternative formulations of Quantum Mechanics which avoid such problems.
Finally, Van Flandern goes after the Big Bang theory of the origin of our Universe. I think that's a mistake. The evidence is overwhelming that the Universe was once much denser and much, much hotter. We see that from the Hubble expansion, from the 2.7 K blackbody radiation, and most important, from the helium percentages in the visible universe corresponding to Big Bang nucleosynthesis. Complaining about the beryllium percentage is very poor intuition indeed: we'd still have that dense, hot universe just as the Big Bang says. He'd have been better off attacking the Inflationary models of the early universe: these are still fair game.
Um, it could be that the accelerating expansion of the universe is heading towards a singularity (called the "Big Rip") in a finite time. Perhaps in a few billion years, spacetime will reach this. In the final million years, the galaxies would disperse, including our Milky Way. In the final months, our solar system would fly apart. In the final hours, the Earth would disintegrate, as gravity would no longer bind it together. At the end, all particles would explode as well. If you like wild ideas, this one is far more realistic than most of what Van Flandern proposes.
The best explanation of Very Long Period comets........2003-10-28
If you want to know the very best explanation of the origin of the Very Long Period comets, this is where you will find it. If you combine the section on the Missing Planet, with a pile of album cover art by Roger Dean (on the YES album covers like Yessongs) you will know more about the history of the solar system then most professional astronomers. Is this hyperbole? No. Van Flandern is right about the origin of comets, but given the mindset of the astronomical community, protons will decay before they admit it.
Van Flandern is akin to A.C. Clarke in one way: Someone once said about Clarke that "if he had stuck to any one hypothesis, he would have been a dangerous man." Like Clarke, Van Flandern works many hypotheses. And if it is permissible to have a favorite Clarke book or theme, it is certainly also permissible to extol the virtures of DM,MP&NC on the basis of the MP&NC material alone.
Science will advance at four times the current pace when they stop ejecting people like Halton Arp and TVF from their ranks.
Brand new thinking about timeless astronomical issues.......2002-10-24
Tom Van Flandern's book adds a new dimension to cosmology--not only does it present a novel approach to timeless issues, it stands up to the closest scientific scrutiny. The author has a proven track record and top notch credentials, so when he begins his hard-hitting critique of the status quo it's a breathtaking read, for laymen and scientists alike. Let's be honest about the Big Bang Theory--even the most respected scientists today will readily admit it is full of holes. But it takes a new look, like Tom Van Flandern's book, to explain not only why the theory is wrong but what to substitute in its place. This is a significant book and if you read it you will get a thrill just as those who read Copernicus and Galileo must have gotten a thrill to realize they were reading about the future of science. Read it--you won't be disappointed.
Not so dark matters.......2001-06-16
__________________
Van Flandern was a consultant to the government regarding the Global Positioning System. Doubts had been expressed that the GPS could remain accurate due to a relativistic effect known as "frame dragging", but TVF concluded that, through a slightly too convenient coincidence, "frame dragging" didn't apply to this particular narrow case. It's clear that he understands conventional theories very well, and that's what made it possible for him to develop his Meta Model, the discussion of which comprises the first half of this book.
I can see how the Meta Model discussion would not get high marks, as it clearly didn't in at least one of the earlier reviews here. I read most of it, finally got bored, and skipped into the second half of the book (first edition ISBN 1556431554) which pertains to TVF's Exploding Planet Hypothesis.
When he wrote the first edition, the Alvarez theory was gaining momentum elsewhere in the sciences, as the position of the impact crater that ended the Cretaceous had been located at Chicxulub (the crater had been located circa 1960, but the Alvarez theory didn't come around until 1980 -- see "Night Comes to the Cretaceous" by James Lawrence Powell, ppback 0156007037 hardcover 0716731177).
TVF didn't mention any of that, spending time instead on the "Face on Mars". At that time (early 1990s) the newest surface photos from Martian orbit were still those of Viking from the 1970s. The "Face" did exist, and it was an artifact -- but it existed only in those photos, and was only an artifact of the lower resolution of the Viking cameras, as opposed to that of the recent (late 1990s) orbiter. I don't see how any reasonable person can look at the higher res photos (as opposed to both the Viking photos and the low res photos from the new orbiter, which can mimic the resolution of Viking) and conclude that the "Face" is artificial. This devotion to a completely discredited idea is not to TVF's credit, and as someone who respects his intellect and many of his ideas, I wish he'd knock it off.
The best part of either edition is the discussion of TVF's Exploding Planet Hypothesis (EPH). He uses the model to explain things like the tipped axis of Uranus, disturbed moon system of Neptune, retrograde rotation of Venus, Earth-crossing objects, and various other things which have made thoughtful people wonder for a very long time. In the original edition the EPH was about 3.2 million years ago.
This new edition extends the EPH by adding an earlier exploding planet dated to 65 million years ago, in order to provide a source for the object which crashed into the Earth and ended the dominion of the dinosaurs. TVF's extension seems a bit ad hoc, but once a single unexplained planetary explosion has been posited, additional ones shouldn't be considered surprising or forbidden. On the other hand, TVF had already questioned the (also ad hoc) Oort Cloud idea, and that's the leading competitor (and dominant paradigm) for a source of the Chicxulub object. Since TVF is devoted to building a single comprehensive model to explain oddball characteristics of various solar system objects to replace the dozens of (also ad hoc) unique explanations.
[see "Shoemaker by Levy" ISBN 0691002258 for some brief comments quoted from Shoemaker regarding the role played by Jupiter in sweeping the Solar System of transitory debris -- TVF needs multiple exploding planets because such debris would either be kicked out of the system or bent into untroubling orbits within ten million years, mostly due to the presence of Jupiter]
TVF's discussion of the origin of Earth's own Moon is a great reason to buy this book, and a great place to begin reading it for those who are like me, and enjoy picking at a book here and there. It's also a discussion I'd like to criticize a little. TVF discusses the four basic models of lunar formation, then picks them off one by one, as he offers his own model (fission from Earth due to overspin). The problem with his critique of the capture model is that his arguments apply also to his overspin model, and there's nothing he can do about it. Furthermore, the early presence of water on the Earth (a discovery that I think antedates this new edition of "Dark Matter") reduces the likelihood that the Moon was born of fission from Earth, either due to TVF's model or the more conventional impact model which is the dominant one of the five presented.
Despite the catastrophic character of an exploding planet, TVF's model is really quite uniformitarian, and for those who object to catastrophism on a priori grounds, this book and his EPH should provide a great introduction to the topic that fascinates one's friends and neighbors without letting on to anyone that you're secretly hoping to join the winning side. :^)
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Prime Elements of Ordinary Matter, Dark Matter & Dark Energy: Beyond Standard Model & String Theory
Vladimir, B. Ginzburg
Manufacturer: Universal Publishers
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Book Description
The book describes a history of the vortex theory. Introduced at the dawn of science almost 2600 years ago, it had passed through five phases of accumulation of its strength by absorbing the discoveries made during the Greek civilization, the Copernicus Revolution, the age of electromagnetism, the atomic age, and the information age. During the first four phases (see Chapters 1 through 12 of this book), the development of the vortex theory followed the same misfortunate pattern. Each time, this theory managed to bring attention of a new generation of brilliant scientists, who were enchanted by a deep physical meaning of its basic concept. But, although they employed the latest advances in science, none of them was able to produce a mathematical tool making the vortex theory practically usable. The fifth phase began in 1993 with the discovery of a unique spacetime spiral element, called the toryx. The toryx is a particular case of a multiple-level dynamic spiral with a poetic name helicola that describes the paths of all moving celestial bodies in our universe. The ability of the toryx to be turned inside out made it perfect for modeling the polarized prime elements of matter. A close offspring of the toryx called the helyx turned out to be ideal for modeling the polarized prime elements of the radiation particles. This discovery led to the development of a new version of the vortex theory called Three-Dimensional Spiral String Theory (3D-SST) outlined in Chapters 13 through 16.
Book Description
There are many mysteries involving cosmic phenomena. Jerome Drexler used 14 of these and his analytical concept of dark matter(DM) relationism to discover a promising candidate for dark matter, the source of ultra-high energy cosmic rays, and theories for star formation, starburst galaxies, and the emergence of DM halos. To test the validity of his discoveries, Drexler used another 11 unexplained cosmic phenomena discovered by astronomers primarily during 2005. Utilizing his same promising dark matter candidate, Drexler was able to explain in a plausible manner all 11 of these recently discovered cosmic mysteries. Drexler's research has led not only to an identification of dark matter and to plausible explanations for the 25 cosmic phe-nomena, but also to a deeper understanding of many aspects of the cosmos, leading to a partial decoding of the cosmos.
Customer Reviews:
Poses questions; posits answers.......2006-10-21
Drexler's book was sent to me unsolicited inviting my feedback and comments. I cannot call myself even an amateur cosmologist therefore I cannot assess how plausible the explanations in this book are. Furthermore, I have not actually read it cover to cover. Nevertheless, I award it 4 stars for the following reasons:
1. The topic is well laid out and is made very accessible via extremely short chapters listed in a detailed table of contents. It is well indexed. A glossary is also included.
2. Throughout the book, use is made of lists, both bulleted and numbered, e.g. pp 110-114, making it easy to follow his arguments.
3. More importantly, it lists 58 references (7 to his own work) as well as a further 30 suggested sources. Readers are cautioned not to assume agreement in these sources with Drexler's views.
4. The book is intended to be provocative and to generate further thought and discussion. The Preface states: "This book, "Comprehending and Decoding the Cosmos," deviates significantly from mainstream cosmological and astrophysical theories."
I would not, of course, recommend a book just because of its layout and style. I see this book as a thought-provoking re-examination of existing observations and theories in addition to offering solutions and new ideas. I leave it to others to comment on the plausibility of these.
CHALLENGING & PROVOCATIVE THEORIES ON DARK MATTER/RELATIONALISM.......2006-08-26
This is another fantastic book by Dr. Drexler. Dr. Drexler identifies dark matter as a viable candidate and explicates his theory cogently by describing in detail the astronomical evidence he found that justifies his theory and conclusion. His most recent book, "Comprehending and Decoding the Cosmos," published this year (2006), delineates and expounds his theory to an even greater extent. I queried him regarding the use of the term relationism vis-a-vis reductionistic practices. Dr. Drexler thoroughly explicated this complex theory that he has posited in significant detail.
Dark Matter, is deemed by many to be the most elusive mystery of the universe, which is probably attributable to its massive, extensive, and hard-to-detect characteristic. Dr. Drexler, in his 2006 sequel, astutely delineates 14 mysterious phenomena, along with his new analytical decoding concept of dark matter relationism, to discover and identify a very promising dark matter candidate compatible with these 14 cosmic elements. In the process, he has quite possibly brought the decades old quest to identify dark matter to a successful conclusion. He adroitly then locates and analyzes an additional 11 unexplained cosmic phenomena, which were discovered and reported by various astronomers mostly during 2005. Drexler again, utilizing his same promising dark matter candidate, plausibly explicates all 11 of these recently discovered cosmic mysteries in his May, 2006 sequel.
I have personally purchased multiple copies of Dr. Drexler's 2003 and 2006 books for family members and friends at the University of Maine. I read with chagrin Dr. Marc "DM"s negative reviews on these books, which interestingly were both written and posted on May 31, 2006. I vehemently disagree with Dr. Marc's and JMK's reviews and evaluations, both of which bring to mind the saying attributable to Herbert Spencer: "Contempt prior to investigation..." Although Dr. Marc characterizes himself as a professional astronomer, I am constrained to believe that he is a grant-seeking, self-promoter, who perhaps has not even read Dr. Drexler's two books. As a professional man, with graduate degrees myself, I eschew hasty judgments when pondering the theories of colleagues and others. I have therefore indicated that neither of Dr. Marc's reviews were helpful to me, and in closing, I strongly urge every professional cosmologist, astronomer, astrophysicist, or interested novice, to read Dr. Drexler's books with an inquisitive and open mind. Do not be influenced by the pejorative and negative views espoused by Dr. Marc.
Baryons as Dark Matter.......2006-06-16
Since the discovery of DM, which many believe constitutes most of the mass of the universe, there has been a debate regarding the baryonic or non-baryonic nature of DM. Current scientific research favors non-baryonic particles with huge new detectors being built today that actually exclude baryons. At its heart, Drexler's book is philosophical in its approach, taking a contrarian view in the debate. Citing Ockham's razor and top-down vision, the author sorts recent astrophysics data of others to analyze and resolve the DM issue, asserting that DM consists of relativistic protons, i.e. baryons. A large amount of data is reviewed and the considerations seem persuasive. Not mentioned as a baryonic argument in favor of DM is another philosophical consideration relating to the significance of man in the Universe. If man is significant and perhaps even central in the universe, as Primack suggests in his new book, it would be a shame if the baryons of which we are made turn out to be cosmologically weird stuff. Drexler's book is worth a read.
Comprehending and Decoding the Cosmos: Discovering Solutions to Over a Dozen Cosmic Mysteries by Utilizing Dark Matter Relationi.......2006-06-12
I have read this book and it is another fine book by the Scientist, Mr. Drexler. I have followed Drexler's career since his days at Bell Labs-his founding of the Drexler Technology (Lasercard), his numerous patents -- He would not publish a book with research that is false. Did the other reviewer really read the book? I HAVE READ IT FROM COVER TO COVER AND IT OPENED MY MIND TO NEW IDEAS ABOUT THE COSMOS,ETC. EVERYONE WHO IS INTERESTED IN GOOD , LOGICAL RESEARCH SHOULD READ THIS BOOK.
DO NOT BUY THIS BOOK!!.......2006-06-01
There are many reasons why Jerome Drexler's theory of dark matter is not widely accepted amongst astronomers. I am a professional astronomer working at a research establishment in California. The idea that relativisic protons can be responssible for the dark matter of the Universe seems ridiculous to me and this is why:
1. If dark matter consisted of relativistic particles (such as relativistic protons) then this is what astronomers would refer to as Hot Dark Matter. Hot Dark Matter has been ruled out as a form of dark matter because it does not allow the structures we see in the Universe. The reason because the particles are at such high velocities that they can never become gravitationally bound to each other, and all structure is wiped out. Galaxies cannot form, stars cannot form, planets cannot form. This would be a huge problem. This is why astronomers have come to believe in Cold Dark Matter (slow moving massive particles).
2. Protons are charged particles (they have positive charge). Any moving charged particle has both an electric and a magnetic field associated with it. Relativistic charged particles would create a huge electric and magnetic field. This would be easily observed. However, it has never been observed.
3. The Cold Dark Matter Particle (the WIMP) has never been observed for a reason. It's predicted mass lies just beyond the energies we can probe with our current particle accelerators. The next generation of particle accelerators will be able to probe these energies. These new particle accelerators will be coming online in the next 2 to 5 years, so watch this space. Admittedly, if we don't find the predicted WIMP (or neutralino as it is strictly called), then we do have to go back to the drawing boad.
I don't understand how this book has come to be published. The people deciding it should be published are obviously not professional astronomers. However, Jerome Drexler has never had his theory published in an astronomical journal. The reason is because it has never made it past the peer review stage... because his theory is simply WRONG. It does not stand up to experimental tests or what we know about the Universe.
Book Description
Through use of a lecture-slide format, this book presents an astrophysics detective story that chronicles Jerome Drexler's literature search for astronomical clues and evidence to unveil the nature of dark matter.
There are a number of mysteries in astrophysics and cosmology that have remained unsolved for decades. What is dark matter? How exactly are stars created? In 1998, it was determined from supernova studies that the expansion of the Universe was accelerating, thereby creating the mystery of dark energy. Astrophysicists have developed mutually exclusive, single-phenomenon theories for each of these three phenomena, but not a unified theory for all three of them. The author's original goal was to identify dark matter, a decades-old mystery. In the process, he developed a new theory for dark matter and illuminated the nature of dark energy and the process of Sun formation.
Since dark matter may have been instrumental in the creation of galaxies and stars, the author decided to test his new dark matter theory on the formation of the Sun. The results were very encouraging.
He next sought a possible link between dark matter and the accelerating expansion of the Universe, which is attributed to the mysterious dark energy. Using his dark matter theory and the laws of physics, the author explained the accelerating expansion of the Universe in a plausible manner.
This book chronicles the author's search for a unified astrophysical theory and how it finally evolved.
Download Description
Through use of a lecture-slide format, this book presents an astrophysics detective story that chronicles Jerome Drexler's literature search for astronomical clues and evidence to unveil the nature of dark matter. There are a number of mysteries in astrophysics and cosmology that have remained unsolved for decades. What is dark matter? How exactly are stars created? In 1998, it was determined from supernova studies that the expansion of the Universe was accelerating, thereby creating the mystery of dark energy. Astrophysicists have developed mutually exclusive, single-phenomenon theories for each of these three phenomena, but not a unified theory for all three of them. The author's original goal was to identify dark matter, a decades-old mystery. In the process, he developed a new theory for dark matter and illuminated the nature of dark energy and the process of Sun formation. Since dark matter may have been instrumental in the creation of galaxies and stars, the author decided to test his new dark matter theory on the formation of the Sun. The results were very encouraging. He next sought a possible link between dark matter and the accelerating expansion of the Universe, which is attributed to the mysterious dark energy. Using his dark matter theory and the laws of physics, the author explained the accelerating expansion of the Universe in a plausible manner. This book chronicles the author's search for a unified astrophysical theory and how it finally evolved.
Customer Reviews:
IF YOU WANT TO LEARN ABOUT ASTRONOMY AND COSMOLOGY DO NOT BUY THIS BOOK.......2006-06-01
I am a professional astronomer. I can tell you that there are serious problems with Jerome Drexler's theory and I agree strongly with the review given by JMK. For anyone interested in Cosmology, Dark Matter and Dark Energy, there are much better books out there, books that pain a picture of a more generally accepted theory.
Beware -- read skeptically.......2005-11-06
I am a professional astrophysicist, and regularly order books in my field from Amazon. I was dismayed to see this book automatically suggested to me as one I may be interested in, alongside astronomy books by actual scientists and reputable journalists. The format and promotional copy (not to mention the strikingly similar "customer" reviews) are enough to set off warning flags, and although I've only browsed the online excerpts, they contain a number of troubling errors. I must profess skepticism, to say the least, that further reading would leave me impressed by the author's novel theories of dark energy, star formation, or indeed his grasp of the basics of modern cosmology.
Feel free to buy this book and judge for yourself. But I would hate to see anyone purchase this, mistaking it for a fair introduction to the exciting and thriving field of modern cosmology. There are many excellent such popular introductions--I suggest Charles Seife's Alpha and Omega as one recent example, or books by Brian Greene, Alan Guth, or Martin Rees.
Beware of the e-version !!.......2005-01-26
At first I was happy to download this book.
But now, I find I am unable to read it on my upcoming vacation.
The publisher restricts my ability to print off a copy of it.
Having paid good money for it, I am restricted to printing 30 pages of this book every 30 days.
I had planned to print it double sided, so I only printed the Even pages, meaning I only printed 15 of the first 30 pages. And now the dadgum software won't let me back in for 30 days, even to print the Odd pages.
I can understand why you want to protect your investment, boys, but you have turned off one customer from eBooks. I can't loan the book to my friends, I can't take it on vacation with me, I can't read it under a tree, I can't take it from room to room. Pretty useless.
Buy it, but stay away from the e-version of it. A rip-off.
UNIFIED THEORIES IN ASTROPHYSICS/ASTRONOMY.......2004-02-19
This book is a very readable, interesting, and challenging work for anybody, scholar or layperson, who has cultivated an interest in such phenomena as the creation of dark matter, dark energy, accelerating expansion of the universe, and the sun formation. The author, Jerome Drexler, expanded the scope of his initial work, the substance of which was limited to the identification of dark matter. The format of the book renders the work very readable and interesting. Essentially, the book contains an overview of the material at the outset, and then the author astutely divides the material into lecture parts. Indeed, the author expanded the original work from what was designed to be a lecture and power-point presentation.
My review is predicated upon the readability of this material. While I have attained graduate level degrees, my discipline and speciality is totally unrelated to astrophysics and cosmology. Nonetheless, I have always maintained an avid interest in such things as how the sun and universe were created. Hence, when these theories became available in this book, I resolved to acquire it and study the theories and material therein.
My initial reading of the material was performed somewhat quickly, as a result of which there were many questions. I became especially interested in ultra high energy protons (UHE) protons as a candidate for dark matter. My second reading of the book entailed numerous searches of the glossary at the end of the book. The correlation between UHE protons and cosmic ray demonstrated by the author is insightful. My personal comprehension of the concepts markedly improved after my second reading of the book.
The author has clearly referenced the work of many luminaries in the field of astrophysics both in the lecture sections and the bibliography. With the inclusion of the glossary at the end of the book, the reader is able to refer quickly to the meanings of astronomical terms. The index is well referenced also to enable the reader to locate with ease specific items in the lecture materials.
I highly recommend this book not only for the scientist, but for anybody who has a curiosity and interest in such theories as the accelerating expansion of the universe and sun formation. The author has done a great job of simplifying seemingly complex concepts and materials in a manner that is challenging, but comprehensible. A gerontologist by training, I have found this book quite interesting and understandable, even with a limited background in astronomy.
Scholarly Presentation in Astrophysics.......2004-01-17
This is a challenging treatise in astrophysics and cosmology. The author presents a unified and cohesive explanation for three complex phenomena. The author also presents very plausible theories for dark matter, dark energy, and the expansion of the universe. A glossary is included to define most of the technical terms employed in the book. This scholarly presentation and treatise should be read by persons involved in the disciplines of astronomy, astrophysics, particle physics, mathematics, cosmology, and scholars in related disciplines. The manner in which the author has explicated the material in each power point presentation/discussion will challenge people without a background in astrophysics and science. These scholarly presentations can be understood and appreciated by intellectuals and students without a scientifically oriented background, a comprehension that is facilitated by the authors inclusion of a glossary,as well as the lucid manner of his description.
I highly recommend this book to both scientists and nonscientists who wish to expand their repertoire of cosmological knowledge. It is a challenging, albeit very interesting, scholarly presentation.
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Modern Cosmology and the Dark Matter Problem (Cambridge Lecture Notes in Physics)
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Dark Matter In The Universe
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ASIN: 0521438489 |
Book Description
This book shows how modern cosmology and astronomy have led to the need to introduce dark matter in the universe to account for mass. Some of this dark matter is in the familiar form of protons, electrons and neutrons, but most of it must have a more exotic form. The favored, but not the only, possibility is neutrinos of non-zero rest mass, pair-created in the hot big bang and surviving to the present day. After a review of modern cosmology, this book gives a detailed account of the author's recent theory in which these neutrinos decay into photons that are the main ionizing agents in hydrogen and nitrogen in the interstellar and intergalactic medium. This theory, though speculative, explains a number of rather different puzzling phenomena in astronomy and cosmology in a unified way and predicts values of various important quantities such as the mass of the decaying neutrino and the Hubble constant.
Book Description
This is a textbook for graduate students in astrophysics. The author is extremely well known not only as an astrophysicist but also as a writer of superb talent. The presentation is clear and the book should become a favourite text for students. It deals with the matter and radiation content of the universe, and the formation of galaxies, and it gives a comprehensive introduction to relativistic astrophysics as needed for the clarification of cosmological ideas.
Customer Reviews:
Best single volume text for galaxy formation and the formation of structure.......2006-03-12
This is an oustanding text on the physics of the formation of structure in the Universe. It is written at the level of a beginning graduate student in physics or astronomy, and will provide sufficient background for the student to begin serious research in this area. The text is well written and the topics well chosen. It was written in 1998, so it is already a bit dated (it obviously contains nothing about the most recent advances in dark energy), but all the basics are here. This explains what we know and what we don't know about how and why clusters and galaxies form, dark matter, and the Big Bang.
Customer Reviews:
Excellent investigation into the unknown.......2005-11-13
I found Krauss's writing about a very difficult and enigmatic subject remarkably accessible. What has to be grasped is that no one -- NO ONE -- knows to any degree of certainty what makes up dark matter, nor how many forms it might take. It is the job of particle physicists and astrophysicists to, yes, speculate about what it could be, come up with a model that just might work, and then try to find ways to quantify and prove that model. New particles are being discovered on a regular basis: just because the concept is beyond our realm of understanding doesn't mean it's "science fiction" or that these discoveries are deserving of scorn because they don't seem to affect our daily lives. Krauss delivers his information in an engaging way that doesn't pander to the lowest common denominator, nor does he shy away from challenging his reader. I found The Fifth Essence to be one of the best examples I've read of science writing for the general public. Cheers!
Still haven't found what I'm looking for.......2005-02-24
We are accustomed to having our questions answered. This book discusses a question without giving the answer. The subtitle is The Search For Dark Matter In The Universe. That's right. It's about the search. Reading this book is like spending a few weeks with a flashlight, poking around in the dark. When the last page is done, you still, as U2 sang, haven't found what you're looking for.
Before reading this one, I read a book that told me that the dark matter consisted of Jupiter-sized black holes in space, millions of them, formed in the first fraction of a second after the Big Bang.
This book mentions that possibility but doesn't buy it. The answer here is that the dark matter consists of sub-atomic particles speeding through space, flying through planets and stars without being stopped by them. They also fly right through our skin and bones, constantly. Do I have that right? Who the hell knows.
On the back cover, the author is described as a "superbly clear writer". I wouldn't go that far. Consider the source - another physicist. Clear to him. He knows this stuff already. Clear as mud to me. Well, some of it, anyway.
We now believe that from 90% to 99% of the stuff in the universe is invisible to us and undetectable by our technology. And we think that stuff is ... umm ... chocolate pudding. We're testing for it. Maybe that stuff is heaven. Or maybe the calculations are way off and there is no dark matter, and we shall soon prove that we don't exist.
I was surprised to see how the processes of physics and cosmology seem to work. We fantasize. We imagine. What if ... ummm ... what if there was a particle that was such and such a size and had such and such properties .... would that explain anything? Okay, let's say that it exists, let's call it a floooeyon. Now let's go search for it. This reads like sci fi.
Hey, Henry, I think what happens is that for every particle there is an anti-particle, and when they collide they destroy each other, and there are exactly the same number of particles as anti-particles, but then again there may be 1,000,000,001 particles to every 1,000,000,000 anti-particles, and they all destroyed each other, leaving 1 particle undestroyed, and that particle, multiplied a gazillion times, is what makes the universe.
What???????
No, for real. It is a ballooneon. Now if only I could measure the effect that one ballooneon has when it flies through the earth and bangs into a proton in a big vat of orange juice below the surface of the earth, we'd be all set.
One of the strongest impressions you take from this book is just how unimaginably huge the universe is. There are billions of galaxies. With that in mind, it seems that only an absolute fool would believe that this is the only inhabited planet. Instead of thinking that the UFO-believers are loonies, it seems that the UFO-skeptics are the loonies. We are less than a grain of sand in the universe. Of course there are others out there. Otherwise, what are all those billions of galaxies out there for?
Shedding Light on Dark Matter.......1997-11-04
In The Fifth Essence, Lawrence Krauss provides a thorough retelling of the theories relating to dark matter in the Universe. Each example is explained with carefully chosen analogies that are comprehensible to the average academic. While complex and somewhat technical, this collection is well worth the attention of the passionate amateur or professional.
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- Kabul Beauty School: An American Woman Goes Behind the Veil
- Lichens of North America
- Low Carbon Diet: A 30 Day Program to Lose 5000 Pounds--Be Part of the Global Warming Solution!
- Microbiology: An Introduction (9th Edition)
- Microbiology: Principles and Explorations
- Microbiology: Principles and Explorations
- Molecular Biology of the Cell, Fourth Edition
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