An account and review of "The Brief History Of Time"

“Aristotle believed that all the matter in the universe was made up of four basic elements: earth, air, fire, and water,” a quote from the popular science book The Brief History of Time, an exceptionally well-written book by Stephen Hawking.

What sparked my interest in this book was a picture I took at an elevation of about 5300 meters above sea level. The picture came out bleak and barely discernible; to the naked eye, the sky was illuminated in all its phosphorescence, full of stars and constellations. However, after carefully reviewing the image, I dejectedly rendered it useless and stowed it away with indifference.

This book is divided into eleven chapters, along with a "Conclusion" chapter. The author explores various theories ranging from "Space and Time" to "The Origin and Fate of the Universe." The publication discusses the theory of relativity, touches upon philosophical ideas from time to time, and delves into "The Big Bang Theory." The author reviews, inquires into, and reminisces about methods of identifying black holes, their characteristics, and the challenges involved in identifying them, all in detail.

The desire of humankind to find answers to the phenomena of the universe—the unknown—has been explicitly evident throughout the chapters and remains a key theme and motivation. The author elaborates in an engaging and clear manner that never becomes dull. I found his dynamic writing style descriptive and apt. The Brief History of Time is a well-researched publication, and the writing, I believe, is still relevant. Stephen Hawking, who received a first-class BA in Physics from University College, Oxford, and later earned a PhD in Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics from Trinity Hall, Cambridge, in 1966, summarizes that there is no single unified theory to explain the events of the universe but instead a collection of theories that help us understand it. If we were to find a complete theory, “for then we would know the mind of God.”

Research has come a long way since then, but the underlying principles remain very much the same. If this book had been written in this century, it would surely have included observations on the "Higgs Boson." For a casual reader interested in learning about science, it is a great resource; for a science student, it serves as a mirror into the probable history of the universe and a memento of what we have discovered so far.

After reading this book, I dug out the picture I had put away earlier and decided to restore it as much as I could. With some basic image processing and programming tools, I recovered the image. I still question the couple of green dots on what is now a mostly black-and-white image.