itsgs's review against another edition
2.0
The low rating for this book is not a reflection on its content - it is just a consequence of it being 2022 now. Weinberg wrote this book in 1970s. Early universe cosmology discussed in it seems ancient, given what we know today.
Here are the things I realized based on the introductory chapters: The ideas covered in this DO NOT include inflationary cosmology, dark matter, accelerated expansion/ dark energy (gasp). It was written before Planck, WMAP or even COBE took at look at CMB!!!! So while this book might be interesting from the POV of comprehending how far we have come in our knowledge of early universe in the last 50 years (assuming you know the current state of knowledge in the field from other sources), it is NOT a good book for someone in its target audience who is presumably using this book to get a "modern view of the origin of the universe". It is simply highly incomplete given what we know today, and does not provide the promised modern view.
There is supposed to be an afterword that adds some of the recent information, but I'd say skip the book instead and look elsewhere if you want to understand early universe cosmology as it stands today.
PS: Full disclosure - I did not finish the book - did not continue once I realized how outdated it is. I know early universe cosmology from the technical sources, had picked this book up simply because I will read anything Weinberg writes :)
Here are the things I realized based on the introductory chapters: The ideas covered in this DO NOT include inflationary cosmology, dark matter, accelerated expansion/ dark energy (gasp). It was written before Planck, WMAP or even COBE took at look at CMB!!!! So while this book might be interesting from the POV of comprehending how far we have come in our knowledge of early universe in the last 50 years (assuming you know the current state of knowledge in the field from other sources), it is NOT a good book for someone in its target audience who is presumably using this book to get a "modern view of the origin of the universe". It is simply highly incomplete given what we know today, and does not provide the promised modern view.
There is supposed to be an afterword that adds some of the recent information, but I'd say skip the book instead and look elsewhere if you want to understand early universe cosmology as it stands today.
PS: Full disclosure - I did not finish the book - did not continue once I realized how outdated it is. I know early universe cosmology from the technical sources, had picked this book up simply because I will read anything Weinberg writes :)
irinagoldberg1's review against another edition
4.0
The last chapter: The First One-Hundredth Second us the best part. The rest of the book is less entertaining.
brad_mckay's review against another edition
2.0
Quite technical despite saying it was not so in the preface.
rocky1650's review against another edition
4.0
It may have been written 45 years ago, but it is far from inaccurate. It is true that today we know in more detail what has happened since the beginning of the universe, but this book does not dissapoint, it is very precise and elegantly written.
jolibon4e's review against another edition
informative
slow-paced
3.5
Interesting to read but sometimes I got post in the details
dethros's review against another edition
5.0
The book that inspires. This one is easy to read the cosmological classic by Steven Weinberg. The book can act as a good intro for a person if you want to know more about the field of cosmology and the big bang.
The book is old and too much more has been introduced in the field with the new data but this book is a really good starting point a must read if you want to read more about nucleosynthesis and dark matter and dark energy although it does not deal with these topics but will certainly provide you with the required tools.
The book is old and too much more has been introduced in the field with the new data but this book is a really good starting point a must read if you want to read more about nucleosynthesis and dark matter and dark energy although it does not deal with these topics but will certainly provide you with the required tools.
ramsfan1963's review against another edition
informative
slow-paced
2.0
I didn't expect this to be Cosmology 101, but this book was written so far above the casual science readers knowledge, bombarded with theorems and mathematical equations.
tofugitive's review against another edition
2.0
About halfway through it got a little too complicated for the every man, but it was still interesting
dolorsitamet's review against another edition
4.0
Quiet good (required reading for 8.286, The Early Universe, A. Guth)
It was somewhat technical, but also not so much that anything would go over one's head in a careful reading. The subject matter is perhaps not so interesting to the general public (the particles involved in the very early universe, and deriving in a broad sense how we know things about times so early in the universe's history) but it is presented in as engaging a manner as one could hope for, given the material. I was surprised to find, 8/9 through the book, that he cited himself as co-founder of the electroweak theory. I guess I don't expect those Nobel prize winners to write books for the general public, or be this welcoming to the (semi-)layperson when doing so. And I was pleased with the way the eighth chapter ended.
Probably won't be reading it again, or recommending it to anyone, but it was quite tolerable - even enjoyable - as a supplementary textbook.
It was somewhat technical, but also not so much that anything would go over one's head in a careful reading. The subject matter is perhaps not so interesting to the general public (the particles involved in the very early universe, and deriving in a broad sense how we know things about times so early in the universe's history) but it is presented in as engaging a manner as one could hope for, given the material. I was surprised to find, 8/9 through the book, that he cited himself as co-founder of the electroweak theory. I guess I don't expect those Nobel prize winners to write books for the general public, or be this welcoming to the (semi-)layperson when doing so. And I was pleased with the way the eighth chapter ended.
Probably won't be reading it again, or recommending it to anyone, but it was quite tolerable - even enjoyable - as a supplementary textbook.