Coming of Age in the Milky Way ANNOTATION
This brilliant and informative book seeks to comprehend the enormities of cosmic space and time and how this quest has shaped religion, politics, and philosophy.
FROM THE PUBLISHER
From the second-century celestial models of Ptolemy to modern-day research institutes and quantum theory, this classic book offers a tour of astronomy and the brilliant, eccentric personalities who have shaped it. From the first time mankind had an inkling of the vast space that surrounds us, those who study the universe have had to struggle against political and religious preconceptions. They have included some of the most charismatic, courageous, and idiosyncratic thinkers of all time. In Coming of Age in the Milky Way, Timothy Ferris uses his unique blend of rigorous research and captivating narrative skill to draw us into the lives and minds of these extraordinary figures, creating a landmark work of scientific history.
SYNOPSIS
Popular science writer Ferris presents a history of astronomy for the general reader. Coverage extends from a description of the earth-centered models of the universe developed by early astronomers to Stephen Hawking's approach to quantum theory. This reprint of a 1988 William Morrow hardcover edition features a new preface by the author and an updated Addendum. Annotation ©2003 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR
FROM THE CRITICS
Publishers Weekly
The ancient Egyptians regarded the sky as a kind of tent canopy. Thirty centuries later, astronomer William Herschel argued that the sun belongs to a huge cluster of stars (a galaxy, as we call it today) and charted great swaths of intergalactic space through a telescope. How the human species slowly awakened to the vast reaches of space and time is the story absorbingly told by popular science writer Ferris (The Red Limit, Galaxies). His narrative humanizes the scientific enterpriseGalileo emerges here as a careerist, and Johannes Kepler as a self-loathing neurotic. Although it covers well-trod ground, this remarkable synthesis makes broad areas of science accessible to the layperson, from Darwin's and Lyell's investigations of the age of the earth to modern physicists' quest for a perfectly symmetrical, hyperdimensional universe. BOMC alternate. (July)
School Library Journal
YA In the first section, Ferris uses historical anecdotes to relate astronomical discoveries and the foibles of their discoverers in a successful attempt to show the ``big names'' of science as real persons, warts and all. The second section, on the history of space and time, is also well done, if lacking in the human details. The third section, which deals with cosmology and modern physics, uses a philosophical approach to discuss difficult material; the result is not easy to absorb, but it is good base material for students who will ask questions and go further on their own. Throughout the book, introductory quotations are used to advantage to tease readers into the next topic. Bob Fliess, Episcopal High School, Bellaire, Tex .
AudioFile
The author reads his history of the cosmos in a whispery "Carl Sagan" voice, giving this gourmet brain food the suspenseful aura of science fiction spiced with some dryly humorous anecdotes. One doesn't have to be a rocket scientist to understand the historical background in the beginning, but toward the end the narrative, laced with fermions, bosons, and quarks, becomes a little thick. Luckily the author knows how to pronounce the technical terms he uses, and his excellent understanding of the subject helps us to understand it, as well. Suffering no loss of value from abridgment, this is a sweet treat for science-lovers. J.A.H. (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine
Charles McGrath
....[F]everish and breathless toward the end, where it deals with a bewildering array of new sciences and discoveries, this book is a glorious adventure for the reader. -- The New York Times Books of the Century
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