Your Place in the Universe: Understanding Our Big, Messy Existence by Paul M. Su

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An astrophysicist presents an in-depth yet accessible tour of the universe for lay readers, while conveying the excitement of astronomy--

FORMATHardcover LANGUAGEEnglish CONDITIONBrand New Publisher Description

How is a galaxy billions of lightyears away connected to us? Is our home nothing more than a tiny speck of blue in an ocean of night? In this exciting tour of a universe far larger than we can imagine, cosmologist Paul M. Sutter emphasizes how amazing it is that we are part of such a huge, complex, and mysterious place. Through metaphors and uncomplicated language, Sutter breathes life into the science of astrophysics, unveiling how particles, forces, and fields interplay to create the greatest of cosmic dramas. Touched with the author's characteristic breezy, conversational style--which has made him a breakout hit on venues such as The Weather Channel, the Science Channel, and his own popular Ask a Spaceman! podcast--he conveys the fun and wonder of delving deeply into the physical processes of the natural universe. He weaves together the past and future histories of our universe with grounded descriptions of essential modern-day physics as well as speculations based on the latest research in cosmology. Topics include our place in the Milky Way galaxy; the cosmic web--a vast web-like pattern in which galaxies are arranged; the origins of our universe in the big bang; the mysteries of dark matter and dark energy; how science has dramatically changed our relationship to the cosmos; conjectures about the future of reality as we know it; and more.For anyone who has ever stared at the starry night sky and wondered how we humans on Earth fit into the big picture, this book is an essential roadmap.

Author Biography

Paul M. Sutter is the cosmological researcher and community outreach coordinator for the Department of Astronomy and The Ohio State University. He is also the chief scientist at the COSI Science Center (Center of Science and Industry). As a new, fresh voice in science communication and an astrophysicist, writer, speaker, producer, and on-air host of podcasts and TV programs, Sutter strives to bring science to new audiences. An established scientist, Paul has authored over sixty academic papers on topics ranging from the earliest moments of the Big Bang, to the emptiest places in the universe, to novel methods for detecting the first stars. He received his PhD in physics in 2011 as a Department of Energy Computational Science Graduate Fellow, and prior to his current position he held research fellowships in Paris and Italy. He has given over 100 seminars, colloquia, and conference talks at institutions around the world. He is the creator of the Ask a Spaceman! podcast and a contributing editor to Space.com. He is the founder of Active Galaxy Productions, a company that blends science with art in groundbreaking ways.

Review

""This excellent resource celebrates the wonders of space. Sutter's brisk, often humorous writing and gift for clear explanations make this the perfect choice for readers looking to understand the universe on scales both human and cosmic."--Publishers Weekly STARRED Review"Never before has the story of the universe been so accessible. Paul M. Sutter's Your Place in the Universe brings the cosmos down to earth and shows that you don't have to be an astrophysicist to enjoy the wonder of it all." --Tariq Malik, managing editor, Space.com"Sutter always does a fantastic job of explaining the most complicated concepts and discoveries in an easily understandable way. He's the perfect guide to help you find your place in the universe." --Fraser Cain, publisher of Universe Today"Imagine sitting around a campfire with an astrophysicist who doesn't just recount the history of cosmology, but also answers your questions. He puts them in context, and he is always understandable and never condescending. This is a wonderful read for those who are curious about big ideas--it's definitely not your daddy's intro astronomy book." --Seth Shostak, senior astronomer, SETI Institute"What a marvelous book! Sutter delights in hosing down the gory details of our inscrutable, existential place in the universe. Using pithy humor, inspired analogies, and a turbo turn of phrase, he deftly deconstructs the inner workings of everything from dark energy and black holes to stellar evolution and ultimate cosmological fate. His articulate, unorthodox style will have you smiling blithely all the way to the heat death of the universe." --Jeff Kanipe, author of The Cosmic Connection: How Astronomical Events Impact Life on Earth

Promotional

An astrophysicist presents an in-depth yet accessible tour of the universe for lay readers, while conveying the excitement of astronomy.

Long Description

An astrophysicist presents an in-depth yet accessible tour of the universe for lay readers, while conveying the excitement of astronomy.How is a galaxy billions of lightyears away connected to us? Is our home nothing more than a tiny speck of blue in an ocean of night? In this exciting tour of a universe far larger than we can imagine, cosmologist Paul M. Sutter emphasizes how amazing it is that we are part of such a huge, complex, and mysterious place. Through metaphors and uncomplicated language, Sutter breathes life into the science of astrophysics, unveiling how particles, forces, and fields interplay to create the greatest of cosmic dramas. Touched with the author's characteristic breezy, conversational style--which has made him a breakout hit on venues such as The Weather Channel, the Science Channel, and his own popular Ask a Spaceman! podcast--he conveys the fun and wonder of delving deeply into the physical processes of the natural universe. He weaves together the past and future histories of our universe with grounded descriptions of essential modern-day physics as well as speculations based on the latest research in cosmology. Topics include our place in the Milky Way galaxy; the cosmic web--a vast web-like pattern in which galaxies are arranged; the origins of our universe in the big bang; the mysteries of dark matter and dark energy; how science has dramatically changed our relationship to the cosmos; conjectures about the future of reality as we know it; and more.For anyone who has ever stared at the starry night sky and wondered how we humans on Earth fit into the big picture, this book is an essential roadmap.

Review Text

""This excellent resource celebrates the wonders of space. Sutter's brisk, often humorous writing and gift for clear explanations make this the perfect choice for readers looking to understand the universe on scales both human and cosmic."--Publishers Weekly STARRED Review"Never before has the story of the universe been so accessible. Paul M. Sutter's Your Place in the Universe brings the cosmos down to earth and shows that you don't have to be an astrophysicist to enjoy the wonder of it all." --Tariq Malik, managing editor, Space.com"Sutter always does a fantastic job of explaining the most complicated concepts and discoveries in an easily understandable way. He's the perfect guide to help you find your place in the universe." --Fraser Cain, publisher of Universe Today"Imagine sitting around a campfire with an astrophysicist who doesn't just recount the history of cosmology, but also answers your questions. He puts them in context, and he is always understandable and never condescending. This is a wonderful read for those who are curious about big ideas--it's definitely not your daddy's intro astronomy book." --Seth Shostak, senior astronomer, SETI Institute"What a marvelous book! Sutter delights in hosing down the gory details of our inscrutable, existential place in the universe. Using pithy humor, inspired analogies, and a turbo turn of phrase, he deftly deconstructs the inner workings of everything from dark energy and black holes to stellar evolution and ultimate cosmological fate. His articulate, unorthodox style will have you smiling blithely all the way to the heat death of the universe." --Jeff Kanipe, author of The Cosmic Connection: How Astronomical Events Impact Life on Earth

Review Quote

"What a marvelous book! Sutter delights in hosing down the gory details of our inscrutable, existential place in the universe. Using pithy humor, inspired analogies, and a turbo turn of phrase, he deftly deconstructs the inner workings of everything from dark energy and black holes to stellar evolution and ultimate cosmological fate. His articulate, unorthodox style will have you smiling blithely all the way to the heat death of the universe." --Jeff Kanipe, author of The Cosmic Connection: How Astronomical Events Impact Life on Earth

Promotional "Headline"

An astrophysicist presents an in-depth yet accessible tour of the universe for lay readers, while conveying the excitement of astronomy.

Excerpt from Book

PROLOGUE PERHAPS THIS WAS ALL A BIG MISUNDERSTANDING How the heck do you write a book about the whole entire universe? And not just all the gory physics on scales small and great, but how our knowledge of the cosmos has changed in the past few hundred years, and how that''s influenced our views of the heavens, the Earth, and ourselves? And how we got to know what we know now, through all the twists and turns and dead ends and blind alleys and just-kiddings of scientific research? I honestly have no idea, so I suppose we''re about to find out together. If you''re already familiar with at least some aspects of the cosmic tapestry that I''m about to unfurl (unfold? I''m unsure here of fabric storage techniques), then I sincerely hope you appreciate the slightly warped perspective I have on the history of cosmology and the history of the universe. When it comes to the past four hundred years, and the past 13.8 billion years, certain stories, certain people, and certain physics have always captured my attention more than others, and naturally I wrote about those and pretended the uninteresting stuff doesn''t matter. If you''re completely new to matters cosmological, well, then you''re in for a real treat. You''re going to encounter some interesting (to put it mildly) characters, crazy physical processes, and, of course, seriously intensive and possibly therapeutic discussions on deeply enigmatic mysteries of the cosmos. I promise I''m doing my best to hit the right level between blow-your-mind and hold-your-hand. But I don''t know your background, your interests, or when you dropped out of school, so don''t worry if a section or two (or heck, the entire book) gets a little confusing. Go ahead and give it another shot--I won''t mind. Of course I need to toss in an obligatory thanks to a good fraction of the human race. From the dedicated scientists (or protoscientists, in some cases), both named and unnamed, who actually figured out all this stuff , to all the people who have supported me, guided me, taught me, told me I was wrong (that happened a lot), and generally helped make me, me and this book, this book. You know who you are--and thank you for buying this book out of a sense of obligation--so you''ll understand why I won''t bother listing all your names. My publisher set a word limit, after all. I''m sure that in some way I owe you a deep and sincere apology after you read this book. If you''re a fan of history, then my choices to ignore/simplify/disregard certain aspects of the complicated and intertwined nature of human lives and pursuits might irritate you. If you''re a fan of physics, then my choices to ignore/simplify/disregard certain aspects of the complicated and intertwined nature of natural processes might irritate you. If you''re a fan of formal writing and good grammar, then you probably haven''t even made it this far. Depending on your own personal belief and/or philosophical system, there''s a really solid chance at some point you will read something that will deeply, terribly offend you, causing you to hurl the book at the nearest wall. It''s cool, we all do it. I just hope you know that it''s not my intention to offend you--either with my style or my substance--but to play a game of show-and-tell with the universe. This is the story of the cosmos as revealed by the tools of scientific inquiry, which have so far proven to be pretty awesome in that regard. I personally find the heavens above us deeply profound, awe-inspiring, and worthy of further study, and I hope the humble paragraphs you''re about to encounter (a) do the universe justice and (b) spark a similar passion in you. But besides being a story of how we look at the universe, this book is also a tale of how the universe looks back at us--about our relationship with the night sky and how we (mostly mistakenly) think it intersects with our daily lives. Some of you (not necessarily you , but somebody) might take that as a critique on a particular religious or philosophical or other nonscientific belief. OK, fine. That''s not the point of the book; but I''m not your boss and I''m not going to tell you what to do. Is this book important? Is it necessary? Is cosmology--the study of our entire universe--vital to the advance of human civilization? Well, are you important and necessary and vital? In the grand sense of things, probably not. But we still keep you around and take you out to dinner, don''t we? The game of science isn''t to make the world a better place--although some scientists are, thankfully, engaged in exactly that--it''s to make a better understanding of the world. Science itself is a method, a tool, for studying nature. That tool can be applied in many cases, from what''s causing your migraine (besides chapter 4) to the origins, history, and contents of the universe. Trying to figure out how nature works, even in literally unreachable parts of our cosmos, is an end in itself. That''s exactly the point: to learn more, because being curious and learning stuff is kind of fun, if learning stuff is your kind of fun. And it''s my kind of fun, so that''s why this book exists. I have loved learning all these facets of cosmological matters through my youth and professional career. Beyond that, I owe it to you. It''s you--the taxpayer, the friend, the supporter--who makes science happen. It''s you who keep the lights on and the streets clean and the accounts in order and the beans sprouting, enabling a small percentage of the population to follow a particularly odd passion for wrestling with nature on a daily basis. This book is yours--in a certain sense, you own the collective knowledge summarized in these pages. You also literally own this book, unless you stole it, in which case shame on you. The most important thing to remember, above all else, no matter your level of familiarity, your personal beliefs, the ease with which you get offended, or any other trait that might affect your perception of this work, is to purchase many copies of this book to distribute to your friends, family, coworkers, acquaintances, mail carriers, local fire department, students, teachers, priests/rabbis/imams, pets, strangers, landscape architects, interior designers, representatives of the local AFL-CIO chapter, and government leaders, and of course a backup copy for yourself. Science is for sharing, people. So let''s get moving.

Details ISBN1633884724 Author Paul M. Sutter Publisher Prometheus Books ISBN-10 1633884724 ISBN-13 9781633884724 Format Hardcover Imprint Prometheus Books Subtitle Understanding Our Big, Messy Existence Country of Publication United States Place of Publication Amherst DEWEY 523.1 Illustrations 0 Illustrations, unspecified Short Title Your Place in the Universe Language English Pages 288 Year 2018 Publication Date 2018-11-20 NZ Release Date 2018-11-20 US Release Date 2018-11-20 UK Release Date 2018-11-20 Audience General AU Release Date 2018-11-14 We've got this

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