Understanding the Universe : a conversational introduction to cosmology / Yen Chin Ong.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Ong, Yen Chin, author.

Contributor:

Institute of Physics (Great Britain), publisher.

Series:

AAS-IOP astronomy. 2024 collection.

AAS-IOP astronomy. [2024 collection], 2514-3433

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Cosmology.

Physics.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (various pagings) : illustrations (some color).

Other Title:

Conversational introduction to cosmology.

Place of Publication:

Bristol [England] (Temple Circus, Temple Way, Bristol BS1 6HG, UK) : IOP Publishing, [2025]

System Details:

Mode of access: World Wide Web.

System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader, EPUB reader, or Kindle reader.

Biography/History:

Prof. Yen Chin Ong earned his PhD in Astrophysics from National Taiwan University in 2014, where his thesis received the Springer Theses Award. He was awarded the Excellent Young Scholars Fund of the National Natural Science Foundation of China and the Jiangsu Specially-Appointed Professorship in 2019. Listed among the top 2% most-cited scientists since 2020, his research centers on black hole physics, thermodynamics, cosmic censorship, and quantum gravity. He is currently a professor at Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics.

Summary:

Cosmology is the study of our entire Universe: how it begins, evolves, and might eventually end. This book prepares the reader with some basic background in physics, such as thermodynamics and quantum mechanics, but with focus on their eventual applications in astrophysics and cosmology. It tackles big questions such as "Why is the night sky dark?" and "What are dark matter and dark energy?" Rather than a traditional textbook, it serves as a companion, emphasizing conceptual understanding and historical context over detailed calculations. A key theme is the interplay between science, philosophy, and the arts. The book also introduces mathematical modeling, using examples like Kepler's Solar System model and Olbers' Paradox.

Contents:

1. Science as a human endeavor

1.1. Our attempts to understand the Universe

1.2. Motivations and questions : how science evolves

1.3. Cautionary tales from "failed science"

1.4. The role of mathematics

1.5. Mathematical modeling : a crucial skill for physics

1.6. Exercises

2. Celestial spheres and planetary motions

2.1. Modeling the heaven : geocentrism vs heliocentrism

2.2. Case study : Kepler's models

2.3. Our changed view of the Cosmos

2.4. Exercises

3. The infinite Universe and the dark sky

3.1. Is the Universe finite or infinite?

3.2. Newtonian cosmology and its problems

3.3. The dark sky and Olbers' paradox

3.4. Exercises

4. Thermodynamics : the science of heat

4.1. The laws of thermodynamics

4.2. Equipartition law, virial theorem, and partition function

4.3. The arrow of time

4.4. Exercises

5. Our changing Cosmos

5.1. General relativity : gravity as spacetime curvature

5.2. Equivalence principle and its perils

5.3. Dynamical Universe : the Friedmann equation

5.4. Modern cosmology at a glance

5.5. Exercises

6. The dark sector

6.1. Dark matter

6.2. Dark energy

6.3. Modified gravity

6.4. Some lessons from history

6.5. Exercises

7. Light : particle, wave, and both

7.1. The nature of light

7.2. Light bending from Newtonian gravity to cosmology

7.3. Electromagnetism, special relativity, field and the uther

7.4. From the dual nature of light to atomic models

7.5. Exercises

8. From quantum mechanics to imaginary time

8.1. The Schrödinger equation and imaginary time

8.2. Path integral and Wick rotation

8.3. Quantum entanglement, bell inequality and its cosmic test

8.4. Quantum mechanics in astrophysics and cosmology

8.5. Exercises

9. Staring into the abyss : black holes

9.1. Black holes in general relativity

9.2. Physics near black holes

9.3. Black hole shadow, accretion, and jet

9.4. Compact objects and black hole mimickers

9.5. Exercises

10. Beyond black hole horizons

10.1. What's inside a black hole?

10.2. Thermodynamics of black holes : more than an analogy?

10.3. Hawking radiation, singularities, and paradoxes

10.4. Different types of horizons

10.5. Exercises

11. Making sense of spacetime

11.1. Properties of spacetime

11.2. Gravitational waves

11.3. What is spacetime?

11.4. Exploration

12. Modifying physics : case studies

12.1. From modified gravity to modified entropies

12.2. Barrow entropy and cosmological implications

12.3. How generalized entropy affects gravity

12.4. Generalized and extended uncertainty principles

12.5. Exercises

13. The big questions

13.1. Why is there something rather than nothing?

13.2. Universe or multiverse?

13.3. Was there an inflation?

13.4. How might the Universe end?

13.5. Are we alone? Where is everybody else?

13.6. Are wormholes, hyperdrives, and white holes possible?

13.7. Are we living in a simulation?

13.8. Are physical constants really constant?

14. Afterthoughts : humanity and the Cosmos.

Notes:

"Version: 20251201"--Title page verso.

Includes bibliographical references.

Title from PDF title page (viewed on January 8, 2026).

ISBN:

0-7503-6219-7

0-7503-6218-9

9780750362184

OCLC:

1535172619