Horizons of Cosmology

"If you want to plunge into the complex and intriguing issues that engage modern cosmologists, rather than skim the surface of easy description, take this journey with Joseph Silk, who will lead you on a tour through dark matter, dark energy, black holes, galaxy formation, and the inflating and accelerating universe. Professor Silk, who knows these topics intimately from his long research career, does not hesitate to take his readers to the heart of the matter, allowing full comprehension to those who travel with him."--Donald Goldsmith, coauthor of the script and companion volume for the PBS television program Four Hundred Years of the Telescope Horizons of Cosmology: Exploring Worlds Seen and Unseen is the fourth title published in the Templeton Science and Religion Series, in which scientists from a wide range of fields distill their experience and knowledge into brief tours of their respective specialties. In this volume, highly esteemed astrophysicist Joseph Silk explores the vast mysteries and speculations of the field of cosmology. Joseph Silk is a professor at Oxford University. He has written six popular books on cosmology, including The Big Bang, A Short History of the Universe, and The Infinite Cosmos. His research specialties include dark matter, the formation of the galaxies and the big bang theory. He previously taught at the University of California at Berkeley. He has received numerous awards, including the Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society, and honorary degrees from the University of Rome and the Ecole Normale Superieure de Lyon. He is an honorary member of the French Physical Society and is a fellow of the Royal Society, the Institute of Physics, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the American Physical Society.