Book Review: Astrophysics for People in a Hurry

 

BOOK TITLE: Astrophysics for People in a Hurry

AUTHOR: Neil deGrasse Tyson

DESCRIPTION OF BOOK COVER: The silhouette of a person walking under the stars, backed by the milky way.

GENRE: Nonfiction/Science

PAGES: 222

BLURB:

What is the nature of space and time? How do we fit within the universe? How does the universe fit within us? There’s no better guide through these mind-expanding questions than acclaimed astrophysicist and best-selling author Neil deGrasse Tyson.

But today, few of us have time to contemplate the cosmos. So Tyson brings the universe down to Earth succinctly and clearly, with sparkling wit, in tasty chapters consumable anytime and anywhere in your busy day.

While you wait for your morning coffee to brew, for the bus, the train, or a plane to arrive, Astrophysics for People in a Hurry will reveal just what you need to be fluent and ready for the next cosmic headlines: from the Big Bang to black holes, from quarks to quantum mechanics, and from the search for planets to the search for life in the universe.

# OF STARS: 5

 ***

I read this book for two reasons:

1. I like Cosmos (The Neil deGrasse Tyson one. I like the Carl Sagan one too, but I was really young when I saw it and I really remember nothing except for the sequence showing the single cell organism evolving into a human over the course of ninety seconds of music).

2. I needed a way to mentally prepare for Sean Carroll’s Something Deeply Hidden which is about quantum mechanics and the multiverse theory, so my brain needed the rust kicked off it to even begin to understand what Dr. Carroll is talking about. (Or I have to get a lot of cliff notes from my dad. Preferably both, lol.)

Anyway.

Dr. Tyson has written many books, but he’s most commonly known for his work on Cosmos and other shows and podcasts, at least for being a household name. And that charisma, humor, and way of speaking translates really well in books too, meaning that his voice resonated in my head the entire time I read this little book.

Each chapter of this book tackles something different, but still related to the field of cosmology. From gravity to light waves; dark matter and dark energy, to stuff on Earth and stuff in the heart of stars, each chapter is meant to both read as a standalone and to weave together to his conclusion that we are at the same time microscopic in importance and yet can embrace that and use it to become far better citizens, not only of earth, but of the cosmos.

Consider the following:

“We are stardust brought to life, then empowered by the universe to figure itself out—and we have only just begun.” -pg 33

“…many people don’t like chemicals, which might explain the perennial movement to rid foods of them. Perhaps sesquipedalian [long] chemical names just sound dangerous. But in that case we should blame the chemists, and not the chemicals themselves. Personally, I am quite comfortable with chemicals, anywhere in the universe. My favorite stars, as well as my best friends, are all made of them.” -pg 133

“The cosmic perspective reminds us that in space, where there is no air, a flag will not wave—an indication that perhaps flag waving and space exploration do not mix.” -pg 207

“During our brief stay on planet Earth, we owe ourselves and our descendants the opportunity to explore—in part because it’s fun to do. But there’s a far nobler reason. The day our knowledge of the cosmos ceases to expand, we risk regressing to the childish view that the universe figuratively and literally revolves around us. In that bleak world, arms-bearing, resource-hungry people and nations would be prone to act on their “low contracted prejudices.” And that would be the last gasp of human enlightenment—until the rise of a visionary new culture that could once again embrace, rather than far, the cosmic perspective.” -pg 208

 

I could freaking keep going!

Of course, much of the book is given over to explaining things like waves, dark energy, dark matter, why the sphere is the ideal shape (the image of a sphere full of cheerios bouncing down the grocery aisle will forever make me laugh), and so on. But it’s peppered with Dr. Tyson’s optimism that people will, eventually, make strides towards a cosmic perspective.

Pros: So much wonderful science and much of it written in such a way that as long as you have a basic understanding of things like astronomy and chemistry, you shouldn’t have much problem enjoying it. Each chapter is a standalone, while still weaving towards the overarching themes, so you can dip in and out. I binged it, but I’m kind of insane. Peppered with humor and a very human approach as well to make it easier to read.

Cons: If you have no understanding of science whatsoever, this is not an introduction. This book assumes you at least have a baseline. And frankly, if you’re deeply religious, you won’t agree with a lot of this book. (may even find it vaguely or very insulting). And if you do know a lot about these topics, then this might be interesting, but not very in-depth. It’s supposed to be digestible tidbits after all.

I quite enjoyed reading this and it was nice to kick some of the dust that has accumulated on my brain of late from being a work at home mom!

Onto Quantum Mechanics and the multiverse theory!

***

I hit Publish on my book tomorrow (February 2). Yikes!

This is to give Amazon the “up to 72 hours” requested before the official date of February 5, meaning the print copies could be out earlier (if everything reviews quick) or later (if I have to make any changes). The Kindle edition, as far as I know, should be ready to drop on the 5^th no matter what.