Pursuing the eternal quest of Western thought to comprehend the origin and design of the universe, Davies probes into the essential nature of scientific inquiry and the role of man in interpreting the cosmos. A provocative synthesis of science, philosophy, and theology, by the bestselling author of God and the New Physics.
Sprache
Verlagsort
Verlagsgruppe
Produkt-Hinweis
Maße
Höhe: 233 mm
Breite: 154 mm
Dicke: 22 mm
Gewicht
ISBN-13
978-0-671-79718-8 (9780671797188)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Klassifikation
PAUL DAVIES is Director of the Beyond Center at Arizona State University and the bestselling author of more than twenty books. He won the 1995 Templeton Prize for his work on the deeper meaning of science. His books include About Time, The Fifth Miracle, and The Mind of God.
Contents
Preface
CHAPTER 1 REASON AND BELIEF
The Scientific Miracle
Human Reason and Common Sense
Thoughts About Thought
A Rational World
Metaphysics: Who Needs It?
Time and Eternity: The Fundamental Paradox of Existence
CHAPTER 2 CAN THE UNIVERSE CREATE ITSELF?
Was There a Creation Event?
Creation from Nothing
The Beginning of Time
Cyclic World Revisited
Continuous Creation
Did God Cause the Big Bang?
Creation without Creation
Mother and Child Universes
CHAPTER 3 WHAT ARE THE LAWS OF NATURE?
The Origin of Law
The Cosmic Code
The Status of the Laws Today
What Does It Mean for Something to "Exist"?
In the Beginning
CHAPTER 4 MATHEMATICS AND REALITY
Magic Numbers
Mechanizing Mathematics
The Uncomputable
Why Does Arithmetic Work?
Russian Dolls and Artificial Life
CHAPTER 5 REAL WORLDS AND VIRTUAL WORLDS
Simulating Reality
Is the Universe a Computer?
The Unattainable
The Unknowable
The Cosmic Program
CHAPTER 6 THE MATHEMATICAL SECRET
Is Mathematics Already "Out There"?
The Cosmic Computer
Why Us?
Why Are the Laws of Nature Mathematical?.
How Can We Know Something without Knowing Everything?
CHAPTER 7 WHY IS THE WORLD THE WAY IT IS?
An Intelligible Universe
A Unique Theory of Everything?
Contingent Order
The Best of All Possible Worlds?
Beauty as a Guide to Truth
Is God Necessary?
A Dipolar God and Wheeler's Cloud
Does God Have to Exist?
The Options
A God Who Plays Dice
CHAPTER 8 DESIGNER UNIVERSE
The Unity of the Universe
Life Is So Difficult
Has the Universe Been Designed by an Intelligent Creator?
The Ingenuity of Nature
A Place for Everything and Everything in Its Place
Is There Need for a Designer?
Multiple Realities
Cosmological Darwinism
CHAPTER 9 THE MYSTERY AT THE END OF THE UNIVERSE
Turtle Power
Mystical Knowledge
The Infinite
What Is Man?
Notes
Select Bibliography
Index
