The Janus Point: A New Theory of Time - Couverture souple

Barbour, Julian

Couverture souple

ISBN 10 : 1847924735 ISBN 13 : 9781847924735

Editeur : Bodley Head, 2020

Synopsis

In The Janus Point renowned physicist Julian Barbour presents a major new solution to one of the most profound questions in physics - what is time? - with ground-breaking implications for the origin and destiny of our universe.

'Both a work of literature and a masterpiece of scientific thought' Lee Smolin

Time is perhaps the greatest mystery in physics. Despite the fact that the fundamental laws of physics don't distinguish between past and future, we do. And so, for over a century, the greatest minds have sought to understand why time seems to flow in one direction, ever forward. In The Janus Point, Julian Barbour, author of the classic The End of Time, offers a radically new answer: it doesn't.

Most physicists believe that the second law of thermodynamics, and the increase of disorder that it describes, forces an irreversible, unidirectional flow of time. Barbour shows why that argument fails and demonstrates instead that our universe isn't heading for disorder; rather, it emerged from it. At the heart of his argument is a new vision of the Big Bang that Barbour calls the Janus Point, from which time flows in two directions, its currents driven by the expansion of the universe and the growth of order in the galaxies, planets, and life itself.

Monumental in vision and scope, The Janus Point is not just a new theory of time: it's a hopeful argument about the destiny of our universe. While most physicists predict that the universe will become mired in disorder, Barbour sees the possibility that order - the stuff of life - can grow without bound.

A propos du livre

À propos de l?auteur

Julian Barbour is a former Visiting Professor in Physics at the University of Oxford and author of the highly regarded The Discovery of Dynamics and the bestseller The End of Time. His papers have been published in the world's most prestigious scientific journals, including Nature, Proceedings of the Royal Society and Physical Review Letters and he has made numerous appearances on national radio, television and in various documentaries. The Janus Point is his first book in twenty years and the culmination of five decades' work.

Détails de l'édition

• Éditeur: Bodley Head
• Date d'édition: 2020
• Langue: anglais
• ISBN 10: 1847924735
• ISBN 13: 9781847924735
• Reliure: Broché
• Nombre de pages: 400
• Coordonnées du fabricant: non disponible
• Personne responsable: non disponible