A bang in the dawn: Physics of the origin of the universe
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This book in cosmology requires some knowledge in undergraduate level physics, where the author chronicles the very early history of the universe while describing the underlying physical concepts. In the light of epoch experiments to be conducted with new Large Hadron Collider (LHC), during October 2008 at CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, located in Geneva, Switzerland, this book lays a foundation for some of these experiments. The LHC will create the conditions of less than a millionth of a second after Big Bang when there was a hot soup of tiny particles called quarks and gluons. The particle collider LHC will expect to generate a numerous particles after two beams of protons collide after travelling for 17 miles at the speed of light. The data will provide evidence for the existence of additional dimensions and also Higgs Boson, the particle that explains why matter has mass.
The most interesting chapters in the book are the First Three Minutes (Chapter 5) and First One-Hundred Seconds (Chapter 7). Standard model of cosmology proposes that the universe is made of four natural physical forces; weak nuclear force, strong nuclear force, electromagnetic force and gravitational force. When the universe was 10(e-43) seconds old (the first moment of the universe), it was at a temperature of 10(e32)K, and all the four forces were proposed to be in a unified manner. The author is one of the pioneers in this field of research and he theoretically demonstrated the existence of unified of weak and electromagnetic forces for which he was awarded Nobel Prize. At above critical temperature of 3X10(e15)K, these two forces were symmetrical and had the same strength, and the symmetry broke as the cooling of the universe decreased the heat below the critical temperature. During the very first minute, when the universe was in thermal equilibrium, the numbers and the distribution of all particles were determined statistically and not by prior history, i.e., reality as perceived by cause - effect relationship did not exist. The abundance of present day helium, neutrinos, microwave radiation, and the relics of the state of equilibrium ended at close of the first second. As for as we know nothing that we can observe depended on the history of the universe, isotropic or homogeneous nature prior to this time except the proton nuclear particle ratio. The universe probably started with equal number of protons and neutrons, and the conversion of neutrons to protons occurred through its interaction with other particles such as; electrons, positrons, neutrinos and antineutrinos and not through neutron radioactive decay. Hydrogen and helium was produced in abundance prior to the evolution of galaxies and stars. Stars evolved using hydrogen as a nuclear fuel to generate energy and their existence, simultaneously producing the heavier elements as products of nuclear fusion.
The detection of background cosmic microwave radiation (CMR) in 1965 was one of the most important discoveries of 20th century. From the known properties of black body radiation using the early temperatures close to the origin, physicists have calculated the density of the photons, and the ratio of photons and nuclear particles at this time of the universe. Chapter 6 gives a historical development that predicted the existence of CMR, a remnant of the big bang, and also history of cosmological theories of nucleo-synthesis of heavier elements. This book is widely read by both academics and others, and often quoted by clergy in their sermons. Recent advances in cosmology has rendered some data obsolete, but it is very well structured with useful glossary of physics terms and concepts, a mathematical supplement, and suggested books for more enthusiastic readers.
1. The Theory of Almost Everything: The Standard Model, the Unsung Triumph of Modern Physics
2. An Introduction to the Standard Model of Particle Physics
3. An Introduction to the Standard Model of Particle Physics
4. The Rise of the Standard Model: A History of Particle Physics from 1964 to 1979
5. Modern Elementary Particle Physics
6. Supersymmetry and String Theory: Beyond the Standard Model
7. An Introduction to Relativistic Processes and the Standard Model of Electroweak Interactions (UNITEXT) (UNITEXT)
8. Particle Physics: A Very Short Introduction
9. Deep Down Things: The Breathtaking Beauty of Particle Physics
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A classic - but not so modern any more
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In 'The First Three Minutes' Steven Weinberg takes the reader through a (quite) modern view of one of the most enigmatic subjects in physics - the origin of the universe. First of all he takes you on a tour of some of the key events in (quite) modern cosmology that led to the picture of the young universe we have now. The discovery of cosmic red shift was an amazing revelation and showed that all the galaxies seemed to be speeding away from each other. Then the accidental detection by Penzias and Wilson of a low level radiation that seemed to come from everywhere in the universe put the 'Big Bang' model firmly ahead of rivals like the 'Steady State' model. They had tuned into the radiation from the adolescent universe. Then the first three minutes themselves are played like a film which is repeatedly paused to allow the reader to see what's going on. What's going on is subatomic particles and high energy photons colliding billions of times a second in a thick bath of heat. After everything has cooled to just three hundred million degrees Kelvin the author looks at the scientific discoveries in this story from a historical perspective and asks some questions he sees as very important like 'why wasn't anyone looking for the cosmic microwave background?' Then finally he looks the other way into the future and to what it might reveal about the beginning of time. His 'film' of the Big Bang starts at one hundredth of a second after its start and in this last chapter he asks what could have happened before this time and how we could discover it. He says in the epilogue that he "didn't intend to write and easy book" and this is true - the evidence and the theories are quite detailed - but he is a very good writer and really knows what he's talking about so I didn't get very lost. There is a mathematical section at the back that looks at the ideas discussed in the book like black body radiation and critical density and it is pretty tricky but he purposefully keeps it very separate so it can be skipped if you want to avoid a headache. This book was first published in '77 and so some of it is dated - you realise how quickly physics moves on. Quarks are a very recent theory at the time of writing and strings are nowhere near but this doesn't matter at all. It is still accepted that the stuff in this book is true but it has been expanded on in the last twenty-five years. It is a tribute to Steven Weinberg's mind and writing that all of his predictions of the future of cosmological research have happened and all his theory is correct still. If you're at all interested in cosmology or particle physics then this is defiantly for you. If you think a much more cutting edge view is what you want then go for something more modern but you'll be missing out. As a reviewer in the seventies put it, when it comes to the describing the Big Bang "it's hard to imagine the job being better done". Exactly - deserves a place on your bookshelf.
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Difficult to understand if not knowledgeable on the subject.
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To appreciate this book you'd have to have a few college classes on cosmology. Because I haven't this book put me to sleep. There is a lot of terms and diagrams, and unless you have a previous understanding of elementary particles and astronomy I don't recommend it.
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Good but Difficult
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Steven Weinberg is one of the great physicists of the 20th century. "The First Three Minutes" is really written for the undergraduate physics major and is too difficult for most people. For non experts, there is a wonderful account of this early cosmology in "The Bible According to Einstein." It is about 50 pages long and is narrated in a wonderful language.
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Wonderful. A source of ideas.
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A masterpiece. Weinberg was able to keep all the physics, with almost no mathematics. There is, in this book, a sense of drama seldom to be found in scientific books. You should start your cosmology studies here, independently of how far you intend to go.
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