{"product_id":"battle-of-the-big-bang-the-new-tales-of-our-cosmic-origins-hardcover","title":"Battle of the Big Bang: The New Tales of Our Cosmic Origins - Hardcover","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eNiayesh Afshordi\u003c\/b\u003e (Author), \u003cb\u003ePhil Halper\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eA thrilling exploration of competing cosmological origin stories, comparing new scientific ideas that upend our very notions of space, time, and reality.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e By most popular accounts, the universe started with a bang some 13.8 billion years ago. But what happened before the Big Bang? And how do we know it happened at all? Here prominent cosmologist Niayesh Afshordi and science communicator Phil Halper offer a tour of the peculiar possibilities: bouncing and cyclic universes, time loops, creations from nothing, multiverses, black hole births, string theories, and holograms. Along the way, they offer both a call for new physics and a riveting story of scientific debate. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Incorporating insights from Afshordi's cutting-edge research and Halper's original interviews with scientists like Stephen Hawking, Roger Penrose, and Alan Guth, \u003ci\u003eBattle of the Big Bang\u003c\/i\u003e compares these models for the origin of our origins, showing each theory's strengths and weaknesses and explaining new attempts to test these notions. \u003ci\u003eBattle of the Big Bang \u003c\/i\u003eis a tale of rivalries and intrigue, of clashes of ideas that have raged from Greek antiquity to the present day over whether the universe is eternal or had a beginning, whether it is unique or one of many. But most of all, Afshordi and Halper show that this search is filled with wonder, discovery, and community--all essential for remembering a forgotten cosmic past.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eNiayesh Afshordi\u003c\/b\u003e is professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Waterloo and associate faculty at the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics in Ontario, Canada. He has contributed to \u003ci\u003eScientific American \u003c\/i\u003eand was a consultant to PBS's \u003ci\u003eNOVA\u003c\/i\u003e, and his work has been featured in numerous popular media outlets, such as the covers of \u003ci\u003eScientific American\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eScience\u003c\/i\u003e, as well as in \u003ci\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e. \u003cb\u003ePhil Halper\u003c\/b\u003e is a fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society and a science popularizer. He is the creator of the popular YouTube series \u003ci\u003eBefore the Big Bang\u003c\/i\u003e. His astronomy images have been featured in major media outlets including \u003ci\u003eThe Washington Post\u003c\/i\u003e, the BBC, and \u003ci\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/i\u003e, and he has published several papers in peer-reviewed journals. He lives in London.\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 360\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 1.27 x 8.96 x 6.46 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e May 29, 2025\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45582928085036,"sku":"9780226830476","price":32.5,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0618\/6260\/8940\/files\/lJ0O0vOX_Y9780226830476.webp?v=1780105816","url":"https:\/\/littleredgeneralstore.com\/products\/battle-of-the-big-bang-the-new-tales-of-our-cosmic-origins-hardcover","provider":"Little Red General Store","version":"1.0","type":"link"}