The inflationary universe : the quest for a new theory of cosmic origins
This is a first-hand account of Alan Guth's theory of the origins of the universe. Regarded as one of the most important contributions to 20th-century science, it states that the big bang was set into motion by hyper-rapid inflation, lasting only a billion-trillion-billionth of a second.
xv, 358 pages : illustrations, portraits ; 24 cm
9780201328400, 0201328402
38941224
* The Ultimate Free Lunch * The Cosmic Vista from Ithaca, New York * The Birth of Modern Cosmology * Echoes of a Scorching Past * Condensation of the Primordial Soup * Matters of Matter and Antimatter * The Particle Physics Revolution of the 1970s * Grand Unified Theories * Combating the Magnetic Monopole Menace * The Inflationary Universe * The Aftermath of Discovery * The New Inflationary Universe * Wrinkles on a Smooth Background * Observational Clues from Deep Below and Far Beyond * The Eternally Existing, Self-Reproducing Inflationary Universe * Wormholes and the Creation of Universes in the Laboratory * A Universe Ex Nihilo * Epilogue