Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 91
 laymen's March 20, 2010
Don Hudson (Shreveport, LA. USA)
A little more of the same. This book maybe is written a little more in language that the average Joe can get into the mindset of Stephen Hawking. I have almost every word Stephen has put to print. His tenacity despite his handicap inspires me.
This book is still very good reading for anyone, not just the scientists.
Where did we come from? How did we get here? How long will it all last? What, how, when, where did it begin?
Was there a supreme being at the controls? Is there another "you" living in a "brane" a billionth of an inch away? And, will we ever get the ultimate answer, the proven theory of everything? Time before and at the beginning of time!
 Excellent but too Brief! February 19, 2010
Youssef Ragab
Questions about the universe have intrigued intelligent individuals throughout human existence. Luckily for our time, these questions are no longer confined to the realm of philosophy and speculation. Science has come a long way and may now provide basic answers to these questions. Unluckily, answers given by science are usually too technical to be understood by anyone but a small population of experts. This created a need for simplified texts targeted to the general population. Of course those texts can't wish to provide more than a general appreciation of modern scientific theories making many of them rather superficial. On the other hand, delving in the details would do nothing but put off most readers. Achieving balance between clarity and detail is therefore the hallmark of a good general science book.
This book by Stephen Hawking is certainly one of the most remarkable books in this category; definitely a classic! It is informative, clear, easy to follow and a whole lot of fun to read. The book sacrifices detail for simplicity making it ideal for people with little or no background. Nevertheless, there is enough detail to keep the more informed reader interested.
The authors' goal of making the book as "brief" as possible came with heavy sacrifices. First: some topics needed more explanation to make them accessible to the uninitiated reader. Second: many interesting topics related to quantum mechanics and string theory were not mentioned. I would have preferred if they opted for writing "a more detailed" history of time rather than "a briefer" one. That said, the books still accomplishes a lot for its size and the minor amount of time one has to spend to get through it.
BOTTOM LINE: If you are looking for a first book on the implications of modern physics on our understanding of the universe, I can't recommend this one more. If you have read similar books in the last five years, I can't see much that this book can offer.
 Filled the gaps of science with God February 18, 2010
Lance Finfrock (San Diego, CA USA)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I found that this book was easy to read and came to the subject from a different perceptive. I choose to read this book because I was hoping for a different perceptive of relativity, which I did find. If you are looking for a book to explain Relativity I would suggest "Relativity Simply Explained" by Martin Gardner. I did find that the last portions of the book to be harder to understand. But I would not find blame in the author, because they were new and tough subjects for me.
The only problem I found in the book was that every frontier of science or unexplained scientific results, the author choose to fill the gaps with God. Throughout the whole book every topic that was explained had scientific references, but then when one thing was not fully explained with science the author would take it upon himself to explain with the use of God. I did not think that the use of God in this book was appropriate.
Was a gift for someone & they loved it. January 29, 2010
J. Barnes (Houston, TX)
I got this book for my boyfriend because he loves Stephen Hawking. He's read all of his other works. If you enjoy the inner workings of physics/theories/universe/etc, I'm sure you'd love this book.
Very Simple, well written December 13, 2009
bhell (Utah)
Stephen Hawking's book, A Briefer History of Time, is a very well written teaching on the basics of the universe that deserves a 4 star rating. It does an excellent job of teaching about the basics of physics and the universe in a very clear, simple, and enjoyable way. Those with little or no previous knowledge of either subject will not only gain a greater understanding of the world around them, but will also find it rather enjoyable. Too often scientists bore their audience with big words or try to make everyone else excited about some strange detail that no one other than the author cares about. Hawking never makes you feel uncomfortable or stupid. He avoids using any math or equations to explain the principles.
In the introduction, Hawking says that the purpose of the book is to answer the questions, "What do we really know about the universe? How do we know it? Where did the universe come from, and where is it going?" He answers these questions by showing the history of universal thought by many different astronomers and physicists. He shows how subsequent discoveries changed and built upon the discoveries of yesterday. Although he never makes you feel really stupid he never really makes you feel really smart either. After reading in the book, I felt like I had to know more than I did originally but I couldn't always remember everything I had learned. There weren't a ton of lightbulbs going off in my head that made this book particularly memorable. Anyone interested in learning a lot may want to look at another boo
There were a few parts of the book that were a little boring. I thought the discussion on relativity was really dry and seemed really long. He might have done better by sharing more information. By making it so simple, sometimes I was left with questions about how it worked. The topics such as time travel and black holes were a lot more interesting. Some other topics covered include quantum mechanics, scientific theory, and the basics of Newton's Gravity theory.
If you want to learn a lot about physics, you may want to look for a more complete source, but if you want to feel like you understand a little more about what's going on the universe, then you've found the right book.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 91
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