Fear of a Black Universe: An Outsider's Guide to the Future of Physics

A top cosmologist argues that physics must embrace the excluded and listen to the unheard

“A brief yet undiluted history of the most groundbreaking discoveries that have shaped our understanding of the universe, peering into the unlit horizons of its future.” ―Maria Popova, The Marginalian

When asked by a legendary theoretical physicist why he had attended graduate school, cosmologist Stephon Alexander answered: “To become a better physicist.” As a young student, he could hardly have anticipated his mentor’s response: “Then stop reading those physics books.” Instead, he said, Alexander should start listening to his dreams.

This is only the first of the many lessons in Fear of a Black Universe . As Alexander explains, greatness in physics requires transgression, a willingness to reject conventional expectations. He shows why progress happens when some physicists come to think outside the mainstream, and why, as in great jazz, great physics requires a willingness to make things up as one goes along.

Taken as a whole, these lessons provide a unique look at the art of thinking big.