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yates9's review against another edition
4.0
The story of the people behind the Gravity wave experiments is brought to life. I liked the vivid depiction of the characters involved and the workings of science. The book was missing some insight and conjecture: more ideas about the phenomenon that I didn't already know.
superpetemo's review against another edition
4.0
At its best in the skilled rendering of the sheer magnitude of both cosmic events and the scientific ingenuity, rigour, and organization necessary to observe them.
At its (admittedly tolerable) worst when waxing rhapsodic about grad student pub nights.
At its (admittedly tolerable) worst when waxing rhapsodic about grad student pub nights.
librarimans's review against another edition
5.0
This book explores the history of gravitational waves and the development of the LIGO program that was developed to detect the sound of black holes colliding in space. I loved absolutely everything about this book, and on an alternate Earth, there is a version of me who can actually do math and is working in a similar field. I cannot recommend this enough to anyone who is interested in space and/or physics.
davidjordan's review against another edition
4.0
The author, a theoretical cosmologist, describes the event that is at the heart of this worthwhile volume with these words: "Somewhere in the universe two black holes collide, an event as powerful as any since the origin of the universe, outputting more than a trillion times the power of a billion Suns. That profusion of energy emanates from the coalescing holes in a purely gravitational form, as waves in the shape of spacetime, as gravitational waves."
Professor Levin's book is the tale of the scientists who theorized and developed a means for detecting these gravitational waves, first predicted by Albert Einstein just over one hundred years ago. It is an intriguing and entertaining account of the creation of one of the largest and most sophisticated (but startlingly theoretically simple) projects in the last half century. Levin's particular gift is communicating for the reader the fascinating personalities and eccentricities of the scientists involved with the creation of the gravitational wave observatories.
A satisfying read on its own, but a good complementary story is "The Particle at the End of the Universe" by Sean Carroll, the story of the creation of the facility which detected the Higgs Boson particle.
Professor Levin's book is the tale of the scientists who theorized and developed a means for detecting these gravitational waves, first predicted by Albert Einstein just over one hundred years ago. It is an intriguing and entertaining account of the creation of one of the largest and most sophisticated (but startlingly theoretically simple) projects in the last half century. Levin's particular gift is communicating for the reader the fascinating personalities and eccentricities of the scientists involved with the creation of the gravitational wave observatories.
A satisfying read on its own, but a good complementary story is "The Particle at the End of the Universe" by Sean Carroll, the story of the creation of the facility which detected the Higgs Boson particle.
obsessivelybookishjojo's review against another edition
5.0
Fantastic tribute to the decades-long effort towards LIGO and the succesful detection of gravitational waves! One of humanity’s best and most epic endeavors.
kevenwang's review against another edition
4.0
I probably enjoyed it more with a broader physics background. But good writing
realityczar's review against another edition
3.0
Levin’s book is interesting. I was initially more interested in the science of gravity waves than the personalities behind the LIGO project. It turns out the more-or-less oral history that this book largely comprised of includes some intriguing elements. However, the story is also banal in long stretches, and the use of he-said/he-said counterpoints with unsatisfying resolutions causes the story to drag for stretches.
Levin writes well, even beautifully in places, but sometimes uses flights of rhetoric unsupported by the drama of the story and which, in turn cannot lift the narrative structure on its own. In places, the writing is desperately, almost incomprehensibly, overwrought:
For me, that paragraph is merely something to trip over on the way through the story.
Meanwhile, the science is inexplicably neglected. As far as I can tell, the “songs” of the subtitle are mostly a device for explaining gravity waves (though they can, in fact, be made audible). Unfortunately, that metaphor is only superficially explained, and while I cheer for the success of the efforts documented, I don’t feel like I understand them much better than I did when I picked up the book. I have a better understanding of office politics at Caltech, which is something, but I expected something altogether else from an astrophysicist and professor.
Levin writes well, even beautifully in places, but sometimes uses flights of rhetoric unsupported by the drama of the story and which, in turn cannot lift the narrative structure on its own. In places, the writing is desperately, almost incomprehensibly, overwrought:
Kip aspired to drive a snowplow, but his career redirected at the age of eight when his mother took him to an astronomy lecture. The introduction could not have been so fortuitous. As though too well inscribed with a mathematical ability nurtured under Utah’s firmament, Kip seemed destined for astrophysics. By the time he met his influential mentor, John Archibald Wheeler, no dreams of snowplows complicated his determination.
For me, that paragraph is merely something to trip over on the way through the story.
Meanwhile, the science is inexplicably neglected. As far as I can tell, the “songs” of the subtitle are mostly a device for explaining gravity waves (though they can, in fact, be made audible). Unfortunately, that metaphor is only superficially explained, and while I cheer for the success of the efforts documented, I don’t feel like I understand them much better than I did when I picked up the book. I have a better understanding of office politics at Caltech, which is something, but I expected something altogether else from an astrophysicist and professor.
davecapp's review against another edition
5.0
For science nerds who also love a good story, this one's a keeper.
In September 2015 the LIGO project made the first direct measurement of gravitational waves and observed the first ever binary black hole system. Black Hole Blues is the amazing tale of the 50 year project to validate Einstein’s 1915 predictions on gravity, and the incredible story of the people and personalities behind the effort.
Janna Levin writes with humor, insight, compassion, but with a scientists discerning eye towards separating truth from perception, and avoiding the trap of rewriting history based on those who won. For anyone with a love of science, and history, and the amazing people behind the stories, this book is a must read, and to top it all off, it has an amazing ending.
For those in love with astronomy or astrophysics, it’s on par with Lonely Hearts of the Cosmos (Dennis Overbye – 1992).
In September 2015 the LIGO project made the first direct measurement of gravitational waves and observed the first ever binary black hole system. Black Hole Blues is the amazing tale of the 50 year project to validate Einstein’s 1915 predictions on gravity, and the incredible story of the people and personalities behind the effort.
Janna Levin writes with humor, insight, compassion, but with a scientists discerning eye towards separating truth from perception, and avoiding the trap of rewriting history based on those who won. For anyone with a love of science, and history, and the amazing people behind the stories, this book is a must read, and to top it all off, it has an amazing ending.
For those in love with astronomy or astrophysics, it’s on par with Lonely Hearts of the Cosmos (Dennis Overbye – 1992).
shivani_maurya's review against another edition
4.0
Levin is right next to Tyson on my favorite scientist list. If you haven't heard her talk about black holes and higher dimensions, I would highly recommend watching (or listening to) her interviews on StarTalk. I had thought only personalities like Sagan or Tyson were capable of evoking the wonder for science. But Levin's enthusiasm and scientific fervor for her field puts her squarely in the same ranks. The way she tells it, I could listen to her talk of black holes and what not for hours on end.
On StarTalk, this book gets name dropped a LOT. Not exaggerating. So I decided to give it a try. And now, having finished and slept on this book, I can confidently declare that I enjoyed it. Contrary to the title, it has little to do with black holes. What it centers on instead is the evolution of LIGO from its conception to implementation. Levin offers a peak into the post war multi-national race to verify the existence of gravitational waves as predicted by Einstein in the 1916. I was mildly surprised to find how human centric the account was. It fleshes out the scientists who were directly and indirectly involved in the endeavor. Levin goes into details of problems facing any ambitious scientific inquiry of this proportion, where doubts abound and biases/mistakes can be destructive both personally and academically.
One can't help but admire the pioneering efforts and sympathize with the angst that comes with them. Every year we pay cursory attention to the Nobel prize winners. This here, is the account of what leads to one such win. There is human drama, a lot of red tape, technical obstacles, battle with doubts etc. Things one can't associate with Nobel prize wins when one reads in the papers. Levin brings the LIGO into the forefront against the backdrop of people who joined in or dropped off as it edged closer to its objective over decades. A slow crawl, that will test the patience of many a seasoned scientists. What becomes quite clear by the end? That the shift from theoretical to experimentally verifiable is not a easy one. It is cost prohibitive and at times even personally damaging. But scientists are known to persevere to the end, bitter or sweet. Through her records Levin allows the readers to participate in the joys and frustrations of the arduous journey that culminates in its true beginning in September 2015.
Reading this book made me wonder, how dramatic and of import each scientific discovery actually is. Contrary to the public opinion of people trudging away in the labs, this book paints a picture of the scientists that many would find surprising and humanizing. I wish to read other accounts like this one in the future. And for now, I thank Janna for the taste of wonder.
On StarTalk, this book gets name dropped a LOT. Not exaggerating. So I decided to give it a try. And now, having finished and slept on this book, I can confidently declare that I enjoyed it. Contrary to the title, it has little to do with black holes. What it centers on instead is the evolution of LIGO from its conception to implementation. Levin offers a peak into the post war multi-national race to verify the existence of gravitational waves as predicted by Einstein in the 1916. I was mildly surprised to find how human centric the account was. It fleshes out the scientists who were directly and indirectly involved in the endeavor. Levin goes into details of problems facing any ambitious scientific inquiry of this proportion, where doubts abound and biases/mistakes can be destructive both personally and academically.
One can't help but admire the pioneering efforts and sympathize with the angst that comes with them. Every year we pay cursory attention to the Nobel prize winners. This here, is the account of what leads to one such win. There is human drama, a lot of red tape, technical obstacles, battle with doubts etc. Things one can't associate with Nobel prize wins when one reads in the papers. Levin brings the LIGO into the forefront against the backdrop of people who joined in or dropped off as it edged closer to its objective over decades. A slow crawl, that will test the patience of many a seasoned scientists. What becomes quite clear by the end? That the shift from theoretical to experimentally verifiable is not a easy one. It is cost prohibitive and at times even personally damaging. But scientists are known to persevere to the end, bitter or sweet. Through her records Levin allows the readers to participate in the joys and frustrations of the arduous journey that culminates in its true beginning in September 2015.
Reading this book made me wonder, how dramatic and of import each scientific discovery actually is. Contrary to the public opinion of people trudging away in the labs, this book paints a picture of the scientists that many would find surprising and humanizing. I wish to read other accounts like this one in the future. And for now, I thank Janna for the taste of wonder.