In this lively volume, Cambridge physicist Barrow (The Book of Nothing) considers the natural constants-the handful of seemingly eternal numerical values, such as the speed of light, the weight of the proton, Planck's constant or the four dimensions of space and time-that constitute the "bedrock" of physical reality. These constants quantify some of the simplest statements that science makes about the world, but as this fascinating work of popular science demonstrates, they have profound implications for the fate of the universe and our place within it. And, Barrow hints, they might not be truly constant. He traces scientists' evolving understanding of the natural constants as they grew to assume a central role in modern relativity theory and quantum mechanics, and outlines ongoing attempts to determine whether they are just inexplicable facts of nature or the logical consequence of some fundamental Theory of Everything.
Reality as we know it is bound by a set of constants--numbers and values that dictate the strength of gravity, the speed of light, and the masses of elementary particles. In The Constants of Nature, Cambridge professor and bestselling author John D. Barrow takes us on an exploration of these governing principles.
Drawing on physicists such as Einstein and Planck, Barrow illustrates with stunning clarity our dependence on the steadfastness of these principles. But he also suggests that the basic forces may have been radically different during the universe's infancy, and suggests that they may continue a deeply hidden evolution. Perhaps most tantalizingly, Barrow theorizes about the realities that might one day be found in a universe with different parameters than our own.
1 Before the Beginning
Sameliness
2 Joruney Towards Ultimate Reality
Mission to Mars
Measure for measure-parochial Standards
Maintaining Universal Standards
A brilliant idea!
Max Planck's real
About time
3 Superhuman Standards
Einstein om constants
The deeper significance of Stoney-Planck units: the new Mappa Mundi
Otherworldliness
The super-Copernican Principle
4 Further,Deeper,Fewer:The Quest for a Theory of Everything
Numbers you can count on
Cosmic cubism
New constants involve new labour
Numerology
5 Eddington's Unfinished Symphony
Countint to 15,747,724,136,275,002,577,605,653,961,181,555,468,044,717,914,527,116,709,366,231,425,076,185,631,031,296
Fundamentalism
Theatrical physics
6 The Mystery of the Very Large Numbers
Spooky numbers
A bold hypothesis
Of things to come at large
Big and old,dark and cold
The biggest number of all
7 Biology and the Stars
Is the universe old?
The chance of a lifetime
Other types of life
Prepare to meet thy doom
From coincidence to consequence
Life in an Edwardian universe
8 The Anthropic Principle
Anthropic arguments
A delicate balance
Brandon Carter's principles
A close-run thing?
Some other anthropic principles
9 Altering Constants and Rewriting History
Rigid worlds versus flexi worlds
Inflationary universes
Virtual History-a little digression
10 New Dimensions
Living in a hundred dimensions
Walking with planisaurs
Polygons and polygamy
Why is life so easy for physicists?
The sad case of Paul Ehrenfest
The special, case of Gerald Whitrow
The strange case of Theodor Kaluza and Oskar Klein
Varying constants on the brane
11 Variations on a Constant Theme
A prehistoric nuclear reactor
Alexander Shlyakhter's insight
The Clock of Ages
Underground speculations
12 Reach for the Sky
Plenty of time
Inconstancy among the constants?
What do we make of that?
Our place in history
13 Other Worlds and Big Questions
Multiverses
The Great Universal Catalogue
Worlds without end
Journey's end
Notes
Index