The Fabric of the Cosmos

Religion and science agree on one thing: Beyond our perception lies a world very different from our own. This book, says Brian Greene, is about "the men and women of science, who have peeled back layer after layer of the cosmic onion, enigma by enigma, and revealed a universe that is at once surprising, unfamiliar, exciting, elegant, and thoroughly unlike what anyone ever expected." Filled with details about what reality looks like to current physicists (and how they arrived at their conclusions), this book talks about high concepts in a clear and easy-to-understand manner. Michael Prichard lends a comfortable, authoritative voice to the fascinating topic. S.D. (c) AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine


Stephen Hawking may be the more renowned scientist, but when it comes to explaining cutting-edge physics to the lay reader, he comes second to Brian Greene. This recording introduces superstring theory, an attempt to solve one of science's most perplexing problems: how to reconcile general relativity and quantum mechanics. Not only is Greene a superb stylist who introduces these concepts without jargon or mathematics, he also has a grab bag of imaginative analogies for ideas that are impossible to visualize--such as the extra spatial dimensions that superstring theory requires. Erik Davies may not be a physicist, but he's entirely comfortable with the material, and he delivers it at just the right pace. Most importantly, he feeds on Greene's enthusiasm and passes it along to the listener. D.B. (c) AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine