The Creation of the Universe

George Gamow

Viking Press, 1961 - Cosmogony - 147 pages

This lively and authoritative survey by an internationally famous physicist offers captivating perspectives on the origins of the galaxies, stars, chemical elements, and planetary systems. Illustrated with diagrams and the author's own drawings, it explains complex concepts in a simple manner. "Fascinating." -- "San Francisco Chronicle." 40 figures." "1961 edition.

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Non Fiction, Science, Astronomy, Astrophysics, Cosmogony, The Big-bang theory - first formulated by Georges Lemaître, The universe was formed in a colossal explosion that took place 17 billions of ...

Contents

• Introduction: 3
• The Great Expansion: 21
• The Making of Atoms: 44
• The Hierarchy of Condensations: 74
• The Private Lives of the Stars: 112
• Conclusion: 137
• Index: 145

About the author

Born in Odessa, Russia, George Gamow, the son of a teacher, studied at the University of Leningrad, becoming professor of physics in 1931. He emigrated to the United States in 1933 and taught at George Washington University (1934-56) and at the University of Colorado (1956-68). His scientific work covered many fields, mostly related to nuclear physics. In the field of molecular biology, Gamow suggested the triplet mechanism for coding DNA. He and his associate Ralph Alpher developed a detailed model of the early stages of cosmic evolution in the "big bang" theory. Although Gamow's basic assumption that the primordial universe contained only neutrons was incorrect, this assumption stimulated a great deal of subsequent work in cosmology. Gamow wrote 30 popular books on astronomy, physics, and related sciences. In his "Mr. Tompkins" series (one of the most famous), Gamow used the figure of a curious, interested bank clerk as a protagonist for various journeys into quantum physics and gravity. His sense of humor is evident in his books and in his scientific career. For example, one of the key papers on the "big bang" theory is called the alpha-beta-gamma paper. In 1956, UNESCO awarded Gamow the Kalinga Prize for science writing.

Bibliographic information

• Title: The Creation of the Universe
• Author: George Gamow
• Edition: 2, revised
• Publisher: Viking Press, 1961
• Original from: the University of California
• Digitized: Oct 1, 2008
• ISBN: 067024600X, 9780670246007
• Length: 147 pages