Cosmology is an ancient and young subject. As a higher creature in the universe, human beings are not satisfied with their own survival and the extension of race, but also explore the meaning of existence and life from generation to generation. However, the evolution of human thought is extremely slow and arduous. It took 2000 years from Aristotle-Ptolemy's geocentric theory to Copernicus-Galileo's Heliocentrism evolution. Surprisingly, although people know that everything in the world is moving, it was not until Hubble discovered the law of red shift in the 1920s that the concept of the evolution of the universe entered human consciousness. People never even thought that the universe would evolve. Newton's law of universal gravitation shows that the matter in the universe cannot be in a stable state under the action of gravity. Even in Einstein's general theory of relativity, the situation is not much better. In order to get a stable model of the universe, he introduced the cosmological constant into his theory. They all hope to find a stable model of the universe in their own theories. It can be seen that the concept of the evolution of the universe was not produced in the minds of these geniuses.
It is fair to regard Hubble's discovery as the birth of modern cosmology. Hubble found that it can be inferred from the red shift of the galaxy spectrum that the farther the galaxy is from us, the faster it is from us, which indicates that the whole universe is expanding. Going back in time, it is estimated that an epoch-making event happened from 10 billion years to 20 billion years ago, that is, the universe broke out from an extremely dense and extremely hot state. Gamov made an amazing prediction in an article about the thermal big bang model published in 1948. The radiation of the early Big Bang still exists around us, but its absolute temperature is only a few degrees due to the red shift caused by the expansion of the universe. At this temperature, the radiation is in the microwave band. But before penzias and Wilson observed the cosmic microwave background radiation of 1965, people did not take this prediction seriously.
It is generally believed that Einstein's general theory of relativity is the correct theory to describe the evolution of the universe. In the framework of classical general relativity, Hawking and Penrose proved that under very general conditions, there must be singularities in space-time. The most famous singularities are the singularities in black holes and the singularities in the Big Bang. At the singularity, all laws and predictability fail. Singularity can be regarded as the edge or boundary of space and time. Only by giving the boundary conditions at the singularity can we get the evolution of the universe from Einstein's equation. Because the boundary conditions can only be given by the creator outside the universe, the fate of the universe is in the hands of the creator. This is the first question that has puzzled human wisdom since Newton's time.
If there is no boundary between space and time, there is no need to disturb God with the first push. This can only be done in the theory of quantum gravity. Hawking believes that the quantum state of the universe is in the ground state, and space-time can be regarded as a finite and unbounded four-dimensional surface, just like the surface of the earth, but with two more dimensions. All structures in the universe can be reduced to the minimum fluctuation allowed by the uncertainty principle of quantum mechanics. From some simple model calculations, we can draw inferences consistent with astronomical observations, such as the cluster structure of galaxies and stars, the large-scale isotropy and uniformity, the flatness of time and space, that is, time and space are basically flat, which makes the development of galaxies and even life possible, the direction arrow of time and so on. The significance of Hawking's quantum cosmology lies in that it really makes cosmology a mature science. It is a self-sufficient theory, that is, in principle, we can predict everything in the universe only through scientific laws.
Hawking, the author of this book, is the most important contemporary general relativist and cosmologist. In 1970s, together with Penrose, he proved the famous singularity theorem. For this reason, they all won the Wolf Prize in Physics in 1988. He also proved the area theorem of black holes, that is, the area of black holes does not decrease with the increase of time. This naturally makes people associate the area of a black hole with the entropy of thermodynamics. 1973, he considered the quantum effect near the black hole, and found that the black hole would emit radiation like a blackbody, and the temperature of the radiation was inversely proportional to the mass of the black hole, so that the black hole would gradually become smaller because of the radiation, but the temperature was getting higher and higher, and finally it ended in a last-minute explosion. The discovery of black hole radiation is of great significance, which unifies gravity, quantum mechanics and statistical mechanics.
1974, his research turned to the theory of quantum gravity. Although people haven't got a successful theory, they have found some characteristics of it. For example, space-time is not flat on the Planck scale (10-33 cm), but in a bubble state. There is no pure state in quantum gravity, the law of causality is broken, and the unknowability rises from classical statistical physics and quantum statistical physics to the third level of quantum gravity.
After 1980, his interest turned to quantum cosmology.
The subtitle of this book is From BIGBANG to Black Hole. Hawking believes that the contribution of his life lies in that, within the framework of classical physics, the inevitability of black holes and big bang singularities has been proved, and black holes are getting bigger and bigger; However, under the framework of quantum physics, he pointed out that black holes became smaller and smaller due to radiation, and the singularity of the Big Bang was not only smoothed out by quantum effects, but the whole universe also started from here.
The details of theoretical physics will change in the next 20 years, but as far as concept is concerned, it is quite complete now.
Hawking's life is very legendary. In terms of scientific achievements, he is one of the most outstanding scientists in history. His contribution was made when he was confined to a wheelchair by Luger's disease for 20 years, which was really unprecedented. Because his contribution has a far-reaching impact on the concept of human beings, there are many descriptions in the media about how he struggled with total paralysis. Nevertheless, the scene when one of the translators first met him in 1979 is still vivid. It was my first time to attend the seminar on general relativity of Hawking Group in Cambridge. After the door was opened, a very weak electric sound suddenly sounded behind my head. Looking back, I saw a scrawny man reclining in an electric wheelchair and turning on the electric switch himself. The translator tries to be polite and not too surprised, but he is used to being surprised at the degree of disability of people who meet for the first time. He needs a lot of effort to raise his head. Before he lost his voice, he could only speak in a very weak deformed language, and he could only understand it after working and living with him for several months. He can't write, and reading must rely on a page-turning machine. When reading literary works, he must spread out every page on a big desk, and then he drives a wheelchair to read page by page like a silkworm eating mulberry leaves. People have to pay deep respect to the human soul who pursues the ultimate truth with such a strong will. From his help to the translator's private affairs, we can realize that he is a person. Every day, he drives a wheelchair from his home at No.5 Cambridge West Road, crosses the beautiful Jianhe River and the ancient King's College, and arrives at the office of the Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics in Silver Street. A slope was specially built in the department to facilitate him to take a wheelchair.
At Cambridge University, which is rich in academic tradition, he currently holds perhaps the highest professorship ever, namely Lucas Professor of Mathematics, who was once held by Newton and Dirac.
One of the translators of this book was taught by Hawking for four years and completed his doctoral thesis under his guidance. This book was translated into Chinese at Hawking's request, so that one fifth of the human population could understand his theory.
Stephen william hawking, born on 194218 October, graduated from Oxford University and Trinity College of Cambridge University successively, and obtained a doctorate in philosophy from Cambridge University. In the later stage of college study, I began to suffer from "amyotrophic lateral sclerosis" (motor neuron disease) and paraplegia. He overcame the difficulty of disability and entered gonville and Caius College of Cambridge University as a researcher on 1965. During this period, he founded the famous theory that the beginning of the universe is "a point of infinite density" on the study of the origin of the universe. Since 1969, he has been a researcher of outstanding scientific achievements in gonville and Caius College. 1972- 1975 has been engaged in research work in the Institute of Astronomy and the Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics of Cambridge University, 1975- 1977 as a senior lecturer in gravitational physics, and 1977- 1979 as a professor. In the meantime, 1974 was elected as the youngest member of the Royal Society. 1974- 1975 is a meritorious scholar in fairchild lecture of California Institute of Technology. 1978 won the Einstein Prize, the highest prize in theoretical physics research in the world. Hawking's fame began with the research results of black holes. After the integration of Einstein, another great theory of the 20th century-quantum theory. He thinks that the universe is limited, but it can't find the margin, just as the earth's surface is limited but it can't find the margin. Time also has a beginning, from about 654.38+0.5 billion years to 20 billion years ago. 1988 won the Wolf Prize in Physics.
Hawking lost his language ability in 1985, and the only tool to express his thoughts was a computer speech synthesizer. He used a few movable fingers to manipulate a special mouse to select letters and words on the computer screen to make sentences, and then played the sound through the computer. Usually it takes 5 or 6 minutes to make a sentence, and it takes 10 day to synthesize an hour of recorded speech. A Brief History of Time was written in 1988. By the end of 1995 and 10, the book has been translated into dozens of languages and the Chinese version has been published.
1990 divorced his wife Jane Wilde after 25 years of marriage. 1September 199516th, married his nurse Elaine Mei Sen.
Professor Stephen Hawking is one of the great men with high reputation in the contemporary era, and is called the greatest scientist alive today, Einstein. He took an important step in unifying the two basic theories of physics in the 20th century-Einstein's theory of relativity and Planck's quantum theory. 1989 was awarded the honorary title of British Jazz. He is a student of the Royal Society and a foreign academician of the American Academy of Sciences.
Hawking 1942 1.8 was born in Oxford, England, which happened to be the 300th anniversary of Galileo's death. Probably because he was born during World War II, he was particularly fascinated by models when he was a child. When he was ten years old, he not only liked making model planes and ships, but also made many different kinds of war games with his classmates, reflecting his desire to study and manipulate things. This desire drove him to pursue a doctorate and made great achievements in the study of black holes and cosmology. Hawking made up his mind to study physics and astronomy when he was thirteen or fourteen. At the age of seventeen, he won a natural science scholarship and successfully entered Oxford University. After graduating from college, he transferred to Cambridge University to study cosmology. 1963, Hawking, 2 1 year old, was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. 1965 received his doctorate in theoretical physics. In 1970s, he and Penrose proved the famous singularity theorem, for which they both won the Wolff Prize in Physics of 1988. He is therefore known as the most famous scientific thinker and the most outstanding theoretical physicist in the world after Einstein. "He also proved the area theorem of black holes. In March 1974, 1, he published a paper in Nature, expounding his new discovery that black holes have radiation (the radiation referred to is called Hawking radiation). His new discovery is regarded as the most important progress in the field of theoretical physics for many years. This paper is called "one of the most profound papers in the history of physics". In the same year, he became a member of the Royal Society. During the period of 1975- 1976, he won the Eddington Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society of London, the 11th Medal of the Vatican Papal Science Society, the Hopkins Award, the Danny O 'Heinemann Award of the United States, the Maxwell Award of the Royal Society and the Hughes Medal. 1978, he won the Albert Einstein Prize, the most prestigious prize in physics. 1979 was appointed as the most noble professor in the history of the famous Cambridge University, that is, Newton and Dirac were both Lucasen professors of mathematics. 1979 published Review of General Relativity: Commemorating Einstein's Centennial Birthday. 1988, Hawking's amazing work A Brief History of Time: From the Big Bang to the Black Hole was released. Based on the study of black holes, this paper explores the origin and destination of the universe and answers the questions that human beings have been exploring: Does time have a beginning and does space have a boundary? This is a landmark masterpiece in the history of human science. The book has been translated into more than 40 languages, with more than 6.5438+million copies published, and 25 million copies have been sold so far. Professor Hawking's popular speeches are also very famous internationally, with footprints all over the world. He tried to communicate his thoughts with the world through his books and popular speeches. 1993 published papers on black holes and baby universes. In early 2000, Hawking gave a speech at the White House as part of the Millennium Party. President Clinton cordially met with him and congratulated him. 200 1 10 Another masterpiece, The Universe in the Shell, was published. This book is a companion to A Brief History of Time. In this book, Hawking reveals the great breakthrough in theoretical physics since the publication of A Brief History of Time.
Hawking's charm lies not only in his legendary physical genius, but also in his convincing life force. His constant pursuit of scientific spirit and brave and tenacious personality strength deeply attracted everyone who knew him.
Research areas:
Theoretical physics: Hawking and Penrose proved the famous singularity theorem in 1970s, and he also proved the area theorem of black holes. Hawking's life is very legendary. In terms of scientific achievements, he is one of the most outstanding scientists in history. He has transcended the theory of relativity, quantum mechanics and the Big Bang and entered the "geometric dance" to create the universe. Although he was so helpless in a wheelchair, his thoughts traveled brilliantly in the vast space and time, and solved the mystery of the universe.
Professor Hawking is a modern popular science novelist. His masterpiece is A Brief History of Time written in 1988, which is an excellent astronomical popular science novel. The author's imagination is rich, his ideas are wonderful, his language is beautiful and his words are meticulous, which is even more surprising. The outside world, the future changes are so magical and wonderful. This book has a cumulative circulation of 25 million copies and has been translated into nearly 40 languages. 1992 The film of the same name cost 3.5 million pounds. Hawking firmly believes that the basic ideas about the universe and the origin of life can be expressed without mathematics, and the world should be able to understand his profound theory through the audio-visual media such as movies. This book is a popular reading about exploring the nature of time and the frontier of the universe. It is the most important classic work about the scientific thought of the universe, which has changed the concept of the universe. As the undisputed authority of cosmology, the sequel of A Brief History of Time has always attracted readers with its research results and life. The sequel to A Brief History of Time is for readers who want to know more about Professor Hawking's life and his theory. The book describes Professor Hawking's life course and research work in the form of frank and sincere personal interviews, and shows the real "people" behind the huge theoretical framework. This book is not an ordinary oral history, but an extremely touching and charming portrait and description of one of the greatest thoughts of mankind in the twentieth century. For non-professional readers, this book is undoubtedly an opportunity for them to enjoy the fruits of human civilization and a source of valuable inspiration. Hawking's Lecture-Black Hole, baby universes and Others is a collection of articles and speeches written by Hawking during1976-1992 * *13. This paper discusses the birth of baby universes caused by virtual time and black holes, and the efforts of scientists to seek a completely unified theory, and puts forward unique views on free will, the value of life and death.
The essence of time and space was expressed in a complete mathematical form 80 years ago, and the basic principles of quantum theory appeared 70 years ago. However, can these two most accurate and successful theories in the whole physics be unified in a single quantum gravity? Two of the most famous physicists in the world debated this question. This book is based on six speeches and final debates given by Hawking and Penrose at Cambridge University.