The Fabric of the Cosmos Audiobook By Brian Greene cover art

The Fabric of the Cosmos

Space, Time, and the Texture of Reality

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The Fabric of the Cosmos

By: Brian Greene
Narrated by: Michael Prichard
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From Brian Greene, one of the world's leading physicists, comes a grand tour of the universe that makes us look at reality in a completely different way.

Space and time form the very fabric of the cosmos. Yet they remain among the most mysterious of concepts. Is space an entity? Why does time have a direction? Could the universe exist without space and time? Can we travel to the past?

Greene uses these questions to guide us toward modern science's new and deeper understanding of the universe. From Newton's unchanging realm in which space and time are absolute, to Einstein's fluid conception of spacetime, to quantum mechanics' entangled arena where vastly distant objects can bridge their spatial separation to instantaneously coordinate their behavior or even undergo teleportation, Greene reveals our world to be very different from what common experience leads us to believe. Focusing on the enigma of time, Greene establishes that nothing in the laws of physics insists that it run in any particular direction and that "time’s arrow" is a relic of the universe's condition at the moment of the big bang. And in explaining the big bang itself, Greene shows how recent cutting-edge developments in superstring and M-theory may reconcile the behavior of everything from the smallest particle to the largest black hole. This startling vision culminates in a vibrant eleven-dimensional "multiverse," pulsating with ever-changing textures, where space and time themselves may dissolve into subtler, more fundamental entities.

Sparked by the trademark wit, humor, and brilliant use of analogy that have made The Elegant Universe a modern classic, Brian Greene takes us all, regardless of our scientific backgrounds, on an irresistible and revelatory journey to the new layers of reality that modern physics has discovered lying just beneath the surface of our everyday world.

Cover photograph by DB Image/Brand X Pictures Astronomy & Space Science Education History & Philosophy Philosophy Cosmology Astronomy Science Black Hole Mathematics

Critic reviews

“Forbidding formulas no longer stand between general readers and the latest breakthroughs in astrophysics: the imaginative gifts of one of the pioneers making these breakthroughs has now translated mathematical science into accessible analogies drawn from everyday life and popular culture. . . . Nonspecialists will relish this exhilarating foray into the alien terrain that is our own universe.” –Booklist (starred review)

“This is popular science writing of the highest order. . . Greene [has an] unparalleled ability to translate higher mathematics into everyday language and images, through the adept use of metaphor and analogy, and crisp, witty prose. . . He not only makes concepts clear, but explains why they matter.” –Publishers Weekly (starred review)
Clear Explanations • Accessible Physics Concepts • Engaging Analogies • Comprehensive Coverage • Thought-provoking Content

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No one in the physics world can bring such a concise yet approachable view to non-physicists like Brian Greene. As a closet astrophysicist, I really enjoy Greene's prose and analogies that allow me to jump into the microscopic and macroscopic universe and understand topics that are very hard to grasp when you're lacking the upper level mathematics about which he speaks.

The problem with the book is that the last few chapters become very difficult to understand, especially after an exciting and truly riveting first 3/4 of the book.

Unlike in Fabric of the Cosmos, his first book, a lot of the information is punctuated with good narration rather than a high dependence on diagrams (which is good considering that this is an audiobook).

I think if you're absolutely shellshocked and intrigued by the way physics has evolved and how it continues to evolve, there is really no other book out there that brings such a friendly and approachable viewpoint as Greene's.

Excellent narration by Michael Prichard (who even sounds like Greene) makes it a perfect purchase.

If only I could wrap my brain around branes and such. But that limitation is more mine than the book's.

Classic Greene!

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I loved this book. It explained a lot and cleared up many questions I had wondered about. But it was very challenging to follow not because of the way it was written but because of the complexity of the subject matter. I occasionally had to fight the urge to Fast Forward to avoid being lost in the details. I highly recommend this book to anyone who has an interest in science and the cosmos. Just be prepared to work hard at listening and absorb as much as you can. I probably will have to listen to this at least one more time just to get what I missed the first time. An excellent book.

Difficult but Intriguing

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I wish Greene had read this himself. None of his lively personality and eagerness is apparent in the flat reading by someone who apparently has no comprehension of what he is reading. Maybe the abridged version is better since the material is fascinating and only the narration makes it hard to finish.

Poor narration dilutes the impact

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I am amazed that this book could even be done. I have an interest in math and physics, neither of which was needed to absolutely love this book. Completely interesting, absorbing and educational. If you like the idea of knowing or trying to know the secrets of our universe you will love this book. Reader was excellent.

If you have any interest you will love it.

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This is quite simply one of the best popular-science books I've ever read. In the tradition of Stephen Hawking and Richard Dawkins, Brian Greene is one of those rare scientists who is both a key contributer to his field and can speak in a lucid and entertaining way to the layman. Moreover, this is the first book I've read that actually clarified for me how and why time-dilation occurs according to the theory of relativity. Highly recommended.

Terrific!

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