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The big picture on the origins of life, meaning, and the universe itself

"Sean Carroll is emerging as one of the greatest humanist thinkers of his generation as he brings his extraordinary intellect to bear not only on Higgs bosons and extra dimensions but now also on our deepest personal questions. Where are we? Who are we? Are our emotions, our beliefs, and our ho...

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Main Author: Carroll, Sean M., 1966- (Author)
Format: Books Print Book
Language: English
Published: New York, New York : Dutton, [2016]
Subjects:
Stein, Sylvia tribute
Life > Origin.
Meaning (Philosophy)
Cosmology.
Naturalism.
Discoveries in science.
Evolution > Philosophy.
Physical laws.
Summary: "Sean Carroll is emerging as one of the greatest humanist thinkers of his generation as he brings his extraordinary intellect to bear not only on Higgs bosons and extra dimensions but now also on our deepest personal questions. Where are we? Who are we? Are our emotions, our beliefs, and our hopes and dreams ultimately meaningless out there in the void? Does human purpose and meaning fit into a scientific worldview. In short chapters filled with intriguing historical anecdotes, personal asides, and rigorous exposition, readers learn the difference between how the world works at the quantum level, the cosmic level, and the human level -- and then how each connects to the other. Carroll's presentation of the principles that have guided the scientific revolution from Darwin and Einstein to the origins of life, consciousness, and the universe is dazzlingly unique. Carroll shows how an avalanche of discoveries in the past few hundred years has changed our world and what really matters to us. Our lives are dwarfed like never before by the immensity of space and time, but they are redeemed by our capacity to comprehend it and give it meaning."--Dust jacket.
Physical Description: ix, 470 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm
Bibliography: Includes bibliographical references (pages 443-453) and index.
ISBN: 9780525954828
0525954821
Author Notes: Sean Carroll was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on October 5, 1966. He received his PhD in astronomy and astrophysics from Harvard University (1993) and worked as an assistant professor at the University of Chicago. Currently he is a research faculty member at Caltech.

His television appearances include the The Universe on the History Channel, Through the Wormhole with Morgan Freeman on the Science Channel and The Colbert Report on Comedy Central.

He is the author of Spacetime and Geometry, From Eternity to Here, The Particle at the End of the Universe (2013 winner of the Royal Society Winton Prize for Science Books), and The Big Picture: On the Origins of Life, Meaning, and the Universe Itself.

(Bowker Author Biography)

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