Fine-Tuning in the Physical Universe
Published on 29. October 2020
Book
Hardback
568 pages
978-1-108-48454-1 (ISBN)
Description
Is the universe fine-tuned for complexity, life, or something else? This comprehensive overview of fine-tuning arguments in physics, with contributions from leading researchers in their fields, sheds light on this often used but seldom understood topic. Each chapter reviews a specific subject in modern physics, such as dark energy, inflation, or solar system formation, and discusses whether any parameters in our current theories appear to be fine-tuned and, if so, to what degree. Connections and differences between these fine-tuning arguments are made clear, and detailed mathematical derivations of various fine-tuned parameters are given. This accessible yet precise introduction to fine-tuning in physics will aid students and researchers across astrophysics, atomic and particle physics and cosmology, as well as all those working at the intersections of physics and philosophy.
Reviews / Votes
'... the questions posed here are of strong interest to many ... Recommended' C. Palma, ChoiceMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
Cambridge
United Kingdom
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
sewn/stitched
Cloth over boards
Illustrations
Worked examples or Exercises
Dimensions
Height: 249 mm
Width: 174 mm
Thickness: 32 mm
Weight
1200 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-108-48454-1 (9781108484541)
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 Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
David Sloan | Rafael Alves Batista | Michael Townsen Hicks
Fine-Tuning in the Physical Universe
E-Book
10/2020
Cambridge University Press
€57.99
Available for download
Persons
David Sloan is a Lecturer in Physics at Lancaster University. Following his PhD at Penn State, he has held positions at Utrecht, Oxford and Cambridge universities. Rafael Alves Batista is a research fellow at Radboud University. He obtained his PhD from the University of Hamburg. He was previously a postdoctoral researcher at the Universities of Sao Paulo and Oxford. Michael Townsen Hicks is a researcher in the philosophy of science and philosophy of physics at the University of Birmingham. He completed his PhD at Rutgers University and has held postdoctoral positions at the Universities of Oxford and Cologne. Roger Davies is the Philip Wetton Professor of Astrophysics at the University of Oxford. He is former Head of the Physics Department at Oxford, a past President of the Royal Astronomical Society and current President of the European Astronomical Society.
Content
Part I. Introduction: 1. Fine-Tuning, Complexity, and Life in the Multiverse Mario Livio and Martin Rees; 2. Hierarchy of Fine-Structure Constants Bernard Carr; Part II. Cosmological Fine-Tunings: 3. Naturalness, fine-tuning, and observer selection in cosmology John A. Peacock; 4. Cosmic Inflation: Trick or Treat? Jerome Martin; 5. Is the Universal Matter- Anti-matter Asymmetry Fine tuned? Gary Steigman and Robert J. Scherrer; 6. Structure Formation Adrianne Slyz; Part III. Fine-tuning in Particle and Nuclear Physics: 7. Nuclear physics and its impact on primordial and stellar nucleosynthesis Jean-Philippe Uzan; 8. Fine-Tunings at Particle Scales Giulia Zanderighi; 9. Dark Matter Edward W. Kolb; Part IV. Fine-tuning for life: 10. Fine-tuning: from stars to galaxies formation Joseph Silk; 11. How Special Is the Solar System? Mario Livio; 12. On the Temporal Habitability of Our Universe; 13. Climbing up the theories of Nature: Fine-Tuning and Biological Molecules Abraham Loeb.