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Blind Watchers of the Sky tells the story of the people
and ideas that shaped our view of the universe in a way that will open your eyes
to the human side of discovery. Everyone "knows"
that the earth travels around the sun, the universe is billions of years old,
and stars are trillions of miles away. But since it is rare to feel the earth
move, billions of years are a nearly incomprehensible time, and no one has ever
visited a star, how did we learn these things? Astronomical
facts we take for granted were once revolutionary ideas that were dismissed as
absurdities. The simple things we know about the universe are not all that obvious,
but the results of remarkable insight, hard work, and sometimes blind luck. Rocky
Kolb's colorful recreation of the lives and accomplishments of Tycho, Kepler,
Galileo, Herschel, Hubble, and other astronomers expands our image of scientists
as merely long-haired youths dreaming under apple trees, disheveled old men with
wild hair scribbling on blackboards, or bespectacled computer hackers. Contributing
to our understanding of the universe have been princes and paupers, professors
and mule drivers, solitary men and women working in isolation, and anonymous members
of large scientific teams. The only thing they all shared is an unrelenting curiosity
about the universe. The book begins in 1572 with Tycho's
startling revelation that the heavens can change, and ends with the explosive
20th-century discovery of the big bang. In an engaging, whimsical style, this
leading cosmologist shares his personal insight into the profound ideas, silly
misconceptions, and remarkable revolutions in thought that are all part of the
process of discovery. Rocky Kolb, founding head
of the NASA/Fermilab Theoretical Astrophysics Group and University of Chicago
professor, combines art, humor, music, and philosophy in writings and lectures
for the general public. He is presently involved in the production of a six-part
series on cosmology for Great Teachers Videos. |
