A Briefer History of Time |  | Authors: Stephen Hawking, Leonard Mlodinow
Publisher: Bantam
List Price: $22.00
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Seller: HPB-043
Rating:  82 reviews
Sales Rank: 5539
Media: Paperback
Pages: 176
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.9
Dimensions (in): 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.6
ISBN: 0553385461
Dewey Decimal Number: 523.1
EAN: 9780553385465
ASIN: 0553385461
Publication Date: May 13, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
From One of the Most Brilliant Minds of Our Time
Comes a Book that Clarifies His Most Important Ideas
Stephen Hawking’s worldwide bestseller, A Brief History of Time, remains one of the landmark volumes in scientific writing of our time. But for years readers have asked for a more accessible formulation of its key concepts—the nature of space and time, the role of God in creation, and the history and future of the universe.
Professor Hawking’s response is this new work that will guide nonscientists everywhere in the ongoing search for the tantalizing secrets at the heart of time and space.…
Although “briefer,” this book is much more than a mere explanation of Hawking’s earlier work. A Briefer History of Time both clarifies and expands on the great subjects of the original, and records the latest developments in the field—from string theory to the search for a unified theory of all the forces of physics. Thirty-seven full-color illustrations enhance the text and make A Briefer History of Time an exhilarating and must-have addition in its own right to the great literature of science and ideas.
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Showing reviews 1-5 of 82
 briefer brief history October 24, 2009
A. Yan (provo, utah)
I really enjoyed the book entitled A Briefer History of Time by Stephen Hawking. I would rate this book as a 4 out of 5 stars. Stephen was able to expound on the technical concepts of the physics in nature throughout time. He explains things from the beginning starting with why people thought the Earth was at first flat and then ends with more up-to-date scientific studies and observations. The main theme of this book is the search for a new theory that will incorporate both relativity and the quantum theory of gravity.
This book really helped me understand what people's understanding of the universe was from the very beginning. It helped me visualize the big picture of the physics of the universe. I thought that this was a pretty easy book to follow especially because it reflected a lot of the concepts learned in class. However, if I did not take this class, the book would have been more confusing. However, I think someone who is interested in the science of the world would enjoy reading it. Something I really enjoyed from the book was all the examples he used to explain the viewpoints and principles. These examples helped me visualize exactly what was going on and helped me understand specific principles better.
One of my favorite chapters was when he talked about the stars in the solar system and why we are able to see what we see here on Earth. (Chapter 7) It's really neat that you can find out how far the star is just by measuring the luminosity. Also it was interesting for me to hear that if a star were a grain of salt, then the amount we would be able to see can fill a teaspoon! This is only one specific part I enjoyed while reading this book. There were some confusing parts in the book, but overall, I enjoyed reading it.
 Brief, but Brilliant October 24, 2009
K. Black (Provo, UT)
In A Briefer History of Time, Stephen Hawking does an amazing job introducing many difficult physics related topics in only 142 pages. He takes concepts such as relativity, time, and quantum theory and simplifies them to a level that is more comprehendible to the average person. Although he is able to break down the concepts to a simpler level, many of them are still difficult to grasp because of how brief the book is. I still did learn an extraordinary amount from this book.
Hawking's first book A Brief History of Time, is a best seller with over nine million copies sold, but too difficult for many people to understand; A Briefer History of Time fixes that problem. Though it still is difficult to understand in many concepts, the language that he uses is simple and easy to understand. He constantly gives examples to back up theories and statements, which make them more comprehendible. He compares today's theories with the theories of great physicists in the past, tracing the evolution of physics.
Overall I really enjoyed this book. I am not a huge fan of reading, but I found myself glued to this book. Hawking does such an incredible job making quantum theory, relativity, and other concepts understandable. If you are looking for a book that is a good introduction to these topics, then this is the last place you need to look. This was the first Hawking book that I have read, and I enjoyed every minute of it. On top of everything else, Hawking is funny. He incorporates humor, albeit very dry, into his reading, which makes it even better I think. I highly recommend this book to anyone!
True to its title October 20, 2009
E. Winters
The book is a great read for those interested in a brief history and overview of modern physics. Hawking uses simple language and basic metaphors to help any level of reader understand most difficult concepts. The book chronicles the study of the stars beginning with the Greeks and every major scientific discovery in the field of physics. Hawking also spends several chapters on the current models and theories of the universe. He answers loads of difficult questions and helps the lay-man understand the Big Bang. The last chapter talks about physicists' goal of finding a "Grand Unified Theory" which will reconcile the discrepancies between the quantum model and general relativity. It was a quick read-only a couple of hours but very interesting and worthwhile.
The several attempts at humor were witty and acceptable, albeit dry or predictable. The main fault I found with the book was Hawking's inability to "change gears" from rudimentary, Newtonian physics to modern, multi-dimensional theories. It feels like the superficial concepts were given unnecessary metaphors and paragraphs while the more interesting and complex aspects were too brief. It seemed that on one page I could easily have skipped paragraphs because the point had already been made, processed and further metaphors were superfluous. While on other pages I felt that every sentence was an encyclopedia of unexplained words and concepts.
Overall, the book is a fantastic read and the 4 star rating is well deserved. I wouldn't spend time on it if you were moderately familiar with quantum theory and relativity. There are many more books written by Hawking and others that will satisfy your curiosity to a greater extent. I would certainly recommend the work to those unfamiliar with our universe and to those looking for a summary of current models and theories. This book is welcome instruction from a true genius of our day.
Very Brief August 31, 2009
Steinar Fosse
The book is en elegant way to learn the complexity of cosmology for the first time. "A Brief History of Time" was much more extensive and elaborate and I doubt that the reader of that book needs to read "A Briefer History of Time" although there are some new subjects.
Stephen Hawking book---A Briefer History of Time August 23, 2009
Kenneth W. Blessinger (Farragut, TN)
0 out of 5 found this review helpful
I ordered this product for a friend, so I didn't personally read it. It arrived in a timely way.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 82
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