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Infinity in the Palm of Your Hand: Fifty Wonders That Reveal an Extraordinary Universe Kindle Edition
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A mind-bending journey through some of the most weird and wonderful facts about our universe, vividly illuminating the hidden truths that govern our everyday lives.
Fact: You could fit the whole human race in the volume of a sugar cube.
Fact: The electrical energy in a single mosquito is enough to cause a global mass extinction.
Fact: You age more quickly on the top floor than on the ground floor.
So much of our world seems to make perfect sense, and scientific breakthroughs have helped us understand ourselves, our planet, and our place in the universe in fascinating detail. But our adventures in space, our deepening understanding of the quantum world, and our leaps in technology have also revealed a universe far stranger than we ever imagined.
With brilliant clarity and wit, bestselling author Marcus Chown examines the profound science behind fifty remarkable scientific facts that help explain the vast complexities of our existence.
“The tone is consistently light and breezy...An addictive, intriguing, and entertaining read...A handy guide for anyone yearning to spice up their conversational skills.”—Booklist
“Heavy stuff lightly spun―just the thing for the science buff in the house.”―Kirkus Review- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherDiversion Books
- Publication dateApril 23, 2019
- File size2567 KB
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Editorial Reviews
Review
A genial tour of the universe and its mysteries.
According to Einsteinian and other theories of relativity, light should take about 8.5 minutes to zoom from the sun to Earth. Yet, as New Scientist cosmology consultant Chown (The Ascent of Gravity: The Quest to Understand the Force that Explains Everything, 2017, etc.) notes, it takes much longer―30,000 years, in fact. The delay has to do with the density of the sun and the circuitous route that light must take in order to leave: “Photons are like Christmas shoppers fighting their way down a crowded street,” writes the author. “They cannot go in a straight line but are forced to zigzag.” In the case of light from the sun, it can advance no more than a centimeter before pinging elsewhere, and before you know it―well, as Chown notes, the light now bathing us was born during the last Ice Age. The author writes with gods-for-clods, rocks-for-jocks enthusiasm: “Some slime molds have thirteen sexes. (And you think you have difficulty finding and keeping a partner!).” Though the rhetorical ploy gets old, there’s plenty for more advanced students to ponder, such as Chown’s passing note that all life is really cellular life. Indeed, there are lots of moments that will stir the imaginations of meditative stoners. For example, the air we breathe was also very likely breathed by Marilyn Monroe, Julius Caesar, and “the last Tyrannosaurus Rex ever to have stalked the earth.” Also, the laws of probability suggest that the number of possible earths and their possible inhabitants are uncountably unknowable: “There are an infinite number of galaxies that look just like our own galaxy containing an infinite number of versions of you, whose lives, up until this moment, have been absolutely identical to yours.”
Heavy stuff lightly spun―just the thing for the science buff in the house. ― Kirkus Review
"[Chown is] a science popularizer in the [Carl] Sagan mold…The reason Infinity in the Palm of Your Hand works so well is that it does not ‘dumb down’ abstruse science: instead, it shows how utterly wonderful and wonder-filled scientific discoveries are, even when (especially when) applied to mundane life and things we generally accept without thinking much about them. There is something exhilarating in Chown’s writing, something captivating in the way he casually tosses about a variety of fascinating facts and discoveries while explaining how many things remain unknown and perhaps, given the inherent limitations of the human mind, unknowable (although don’t bet on it).”―InfoDad blog
"This book describes fifty wondrous phenomena of the Universe. Topics range from the indivisibly small to the unknowably vast. No chapter exceeds a half-dozen pages, and readers will never feel bogged down in convoluted or technical language…This popular-science overview of the Universe is perfect for lay readers with inquiring minds.”―Internet Review of Books
About the Author
Product details
- ASIN : B087WXGTWF
- Publisher : Diversion Books (April 23, 2019)
- Publication date : April 23, 2019
- Language : English
- File size : 2567 KB
- Text-to-Speech : Enabled
- Screen Reader : Supported
- Enhanced typesetting : Enabled
- X-Ray : Enabled
- Word Wise : Enabled
- Print length : 236 pages
- Best Sellers Rank: #243,980 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- Customer Reviews:
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Learn more how customers reviews work on AmazonCustomers say
Customers find the book engaging and easy to read. They describe the writing style as well-written, lucid, and easy to understand. The content is thought-provoking, with interesting facts and suggestions for further exploration.
AI-generated from the text of customer reviews
Customers enjoy reading the book. They find it fun and thought-provoking, with bite-sized units that make it more palatable.
"Great read in bite sized units...." Read more
"I enjoyed the book from the very first page because the author has such a clever writing style...." Read more
"Lots of fun snippets and temptations to dig deeper" Read more
"I truly enjoyed reading this. When I come to the last page and want more, I know I've been affected. Great job!" Read more
Customers find the writing style readable and easy to understand. They appreciate the short chapters that provide interesting topics. The presentation is good, though some readers found some flaws.
"50 very short, well written, chapters, each providing sometimes startling, always thought provoking, facts or speculations regarding the past,..." Read more
"...The author wrote in simple terms and gave real life examples of what he was talking about...." Read more
"Lucid and easy to read. A topic a chapter. Mostly two to three pages to a chapter Stunned by the facts previously unknown to me...." Read more
"...the book from the very first page because the author has such a clever writing style...." Read more
Customers find the book thought-provoking and engaging. They appreciate the simple language and real-life examples that make the concepts accessible. Readers also mention that the book provides interesting facts and challenges them to expand their knowledge.
"...written, chapters, each providing sometimes startling, always thought provoking, facts or speculations regarding the past, present, or future of our..." Read more
"...The author wrote in simple terms and gave real life examples of what he was talking about...." Read more
"Lots of fun snippets and temptations to dig deeper" Read more
"...and very readable short essays on some of the strange and fascinating things in the world of modern physics." Read more
Top reviews from the United States
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- Reviewed in the United States on October 12, 202250 very short, well written, chapters, each providing sometimes startling, always thought provoking, facts or speculations regarding the past, present, or future of our universe. It made me pause and reflect differently on what I believe I am experiencing as “reality.”
- Reviewed in the United States on February 6, 2024Infinity in the Palm of Your Hand was a book I didn't have problems picking up. The chapters are about individual amazing physics facts. The author wrote in simple terms and gave real life examples of what he was talking about. I read a chapter a night and enjoyed learning weird facts.
Toward the end, I had trouble, I think a couple of facts were beyond my brain to comprehend. But I enjoyed the book and can see myself re-reading the last 2 chapters, just to see if I can glimpse what the author is conveying.
- Reviewed in the United States on September 1, 2023Great read in bite sized units. I wish the issues (not the purpose of this book) the book addresses were much more developed, bc I get awfully curious wanting to get answers to my “why’s!”
- Reviewed in the United States on November 4, 2023I was eagerly devouring the book until the chapter on the Carrington event. He started the chapter with this arresting statement: "...people on Earth were electrocuted by a solar flare." I had heard about the Carrington event, but not about anyone being electrocuted. So I went hunting. Yes, electrocution is defined as hurt or killed. On that basis, so far, his statement is tolerable - not how I interpreted it, but not inaccurate, by that definition. However, in all the sources I read, to include a paper published by NIH, only one telegraph operator, in the US, was reported as being hurt by a shock. It sounded like a pretty significant shock, but one person does not "people all over the world" make. Apparently most of the operators had no problem except for, in some circumstances, a several-hour interruption in being able to transmit messages. In addition, telegraph service had not even been installed "all over the world."
So now I have to question every single "fact" he presents, and all his back-up explanations. His writing style is interesting and entertaining (so three stars). I really wish I could trust what he writes. :(
- Reviewed in the United States on September 18, 2022Lucid and easy to read. A topic a chapter. Mostly two to three pages to a chapter Stunned by the facts previously unknown to me. Lured to read on chapter after chapter. A treasure trove indeed.
- Reviewed in the United States on April 21, 2022I enjoyed the book from the very first page because the author has such a clever writing style. I especially liked the material being presented in short burst of 4 or 5 pages. It takes a great deal of skill and plain hard work for one who has such a vast knowledge of the scientific world make this ideas simple for us.
This work could easily have earned five stars from me except the author could not control his hatred for former president Trump. On at least two occasions he made demeaning remarks about President Trump that had absolutely nothing at all to do with science. I really don't think introducing hatred in a book of science does any positive except make the author feel good. It detracts from some excellent writing.
- Reviewed in the United States on April 9, 2022Lots of fun snippets and temptations to dig deeper
- Reviewed in the United States on September 15, 2022Well written and very readable short essays on some of the strange and fascinating things in the world of modern physics.
Top reviews from other countries
- jarchowReviewed in Canada on September 29, 2024
5.0 out of 5 stars Makes you think
This short book opens the world of quantum to your imagination. As usual though there are more questions than answers.
- Chris HjeltReviewed in the United Kingdom on March 18, 2022
5.0 out of 5 stars An Intelligent book written for readers with This is fascinating and an inquisitive mind
This is a fascinating and rewarding book for everyone who wish to learn and understand more about the natural world and universe we live in. I like the short chapters because at the end of each chapter I needed time to reflect on the rich content I had just absorbed. Read and savour this book slowly, say a chapter a day.
The writer is clear and concise and very skilled in presenting facts and information that could be hard to understand from another writer.
- Amazon CustomerReviewed in Australia on March 15, 2024
5.0 out of 5 stars A great book
Book is not mathematical or complex - almost conversational - yet it highlights and explains some of the greatest conundrums of our existence. A truly enjoyable, easy and thought provoking book
- Patric GlodekReviewed in Canada on March 19, 2022
4.0 out of 5 stars Redable
Mostly basic. But the advanced make up for an interesting book, plainly written.
- JohnReviewed in the United Kingdom on November 16, 2022
5.0 out of 5 stars Imagination required
The facts in this book are mind boggling
It was a very enjoyable and humbling glimpse into our current understanding of existence