The three greatest scientific mysteries, which remain poorly understood, are the origin of the universe, the origin of life and the development of consciousness. This book describes the processes preceding the Big Bang, the creation of matter, the concentration of that matter into stars and planets, the development of simple life forms and the theory of evolution that has given higher life forms, including mankind.

There are many popular and excellent science books that present various aspects of science. However, this book follows a narrow scientific pathway from the Big Bang to mankind, and depicts the causal relationship between each step and the next. The science covered will be enough to satisfy most readers. Many important areas of science are dealt with, and these include cosmology, particle physics, atomic physics, galaxy and star formation, planet formation and aspects of evolution. The necessary science is described in a narrative form that general-interest readers should understand, without the use of equations or formulae.

This 2nd edition includes several updates on the subjects that form the pillars of this book. They are: cosmology and astronomy, the features and formation of the solar system, the origin of life, and genetics and evolution. This book will appeal to readers with an interest in biology and those curious about the origins of the universe.

Contents:MusingThe Universe:Christian Doppler and His EffectMeasuring Distances in the UniverseEdwin Hubble's Expanding UniverseA Weird and Wonderful UniverseMatter and the Universe:The Nature of MatterThe Big-Bang HypothesisHow Matter Can Clump TogetherThe Universe Develops StructureStars, Stellar Clusters and Galaxies:The First Stars are Born, Live and DieThe Formation of Globular ClustersMaking the Sun — and Similar StarsA Crowded EnvironmentThe Solar System:Understanding the Nature of the Solar SystemIntroducing the PlanetsSatellites Galore'Vermin of the Sky' and Other Small BodiesPlanets GaloreForming the Solar System:Making PlanetsShrinking Orbits and the SurvivalNow Satellites FormWhat Can Be Learnt from Meteorites?A Little-Bang Theory and the Terrestrial PlanetsThe Moon — Its Structure and HistoryThe Very Small Planets — Mars and MercurySmaller Bodies of the Solar SystemThe Origin of Isotopic Anomalies in MeteoritesLife on Earth:The Earth Settles Down — More-or-LessWhat is Life?Forms of LifeNineteenth Century Genetics — The Survival of the FittestTwentieth Century Genetics — The Alphabets of LifeLife Begins on EarthThe Restless EarthOxygen, Ozone and LifeThe Evolution of Life — From Archaea to Early MammalsEarly Mammals to ManMan and the EarthMusing Again
Readership: Members of the general public who have an interest in popular science.

Michael Mark Woolfson