The Very First Light: The True Inside Story Of The Scientific Journey Back To The Dawn Of The Universe by John C. MatherMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
The anisotropy of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) consists of the small temperature fluctuations in the blackbody radiation left over from the Big Bang. This is the story of the COBE satellite experiment platform that definitively documented this state. From one of the scientists involved, this is the inside story of the years of effort involved in getting this accepted by the scientific community at large, NASA specifically (even after the mission-limiting Challenger disaster) and the ultimate vindication of discovery. From the cover of the first edition of Wrinkles in Time, Stephen Hawking calls this event "the scientific discovery of the century, if not all time". So, it is worth reading to see how the battle of bureaucracy versus vision is how such discoveries are made, now.
View all my reviews
No comments:
Post a Comment