Astrophysics for People in a Hurry

I sort of liked this book, but it was too short on each topic that by the end it barely made sense to me reading it when most of the things are 2 seconds away on a web search. Actually, that was what I did for basically every chapter, as a way to know what else is missing and also explains why it took me longer to finish it. It does not go deep on anything and give you a very surface level understanding of the universe.

I guess that was the point of the book at the end, and I am being too picky here. Despise my rating, it was entertaining and enjoyable, just that I was expecting a bit more substance.

Delivers on its promise! I listened to this in the car, which gave me cruisin' astronaut feels.

Fantastic. This is not an Astrophyiscs for Dummies book. It is a concise and inspiring survey of the state of the field. Well done.

Learned some things I didn't know.

The book has a bit of a strange tempo. Sometimes I needed a more in-depth explanation, and other times it felt long-winded.

“Looking more closely at Earth's atmospheric fingerprints, human biomarkers will also include sulfuric, carbonic, and nitric acids, and other components of smog from the burning of fossil fuels. If the curious aliens happen to be socially, culturally, and technologically more advanced than we are, then they will surely interpret these biomarkers as convincing evidence for the absence of intelligent life on Earth.”

A solid introduction. I'm still no more sure how much I believe the theories of evolution and the Big Bang, which were both relied on at certain points. Overall, though, it is what it's titled, and I appreciated it.

(Via audiobook) A beautiful celebration of our atomic kinship with the universe indeed. A great introduction to the cosmic perspective. A journey that made me feel small, yet full of wonder, filled me with curiosity and perked a few smiles.

As someone who wanted to learn more about astrophysics, this was an incredible read because it's accessible and well-written. Love how beautiful Neil deGrasse Tyson placed me in the world of astrophysics, beauty, and math all in one book that's less than 300 pages.

You will feel at home if you are familiar with Neil deGrasse Tyson and his content. If you have only heard of him, you may miss some of the subtleties and musings that one would notice otherwise. Either way, "Astrophysics for People in a Hurry" is a fabulous book for those who have only recently started plunging into the depths of science and astrophysics and for those who are more seasoned.

The book covers topics all too familiar in the context of astrophysics, such as how the Universe came to be, what is dark matter or dark energy, and exoplanets -- you will all find it there. Neil does not go too heavy on any of them, but there are breadcrumbs and clues for the curious mind to go deeper. You may know what planets are roaming our solar system, but do you know how the names of the planets came to be? Or how about learning what was Einstein's greatest blunder? The book connects facts from science and history to build a coherent story of the cosmos.

In the last chapter, called Reflections on the Cosmic Perspective, Neil deGrasse Tyson brings the reader to a humbling conclusion. He reflects on the scale between humans and the Universe. Human curiosity should always be at the forefront. As Neil puts it, "the day our knowledge of the cosmos ceases to expand, we risk regressing to the childish view that the universe figuratively and literally revolves around us". It is very reminiscent of Carl Sagan and that, in a sense, seems to be the point.

"Astrophysics for People in a Hurry" touches on the most common astrophysics topics just enough to not overstay their welcome, yet engages you in craving for more.

8/10

Excellent selection of essays. Together they spark wonder.

নীল ডেগ্র্যাস টাইসনের চমৎকার সরস লেখনীর গুণে প্রায় একনিঃশ্বাসে পড়ে ফেললাম বইটা। জটিল বিষয়কে সহজ এবং আকর্ষণীয়ভাবে উপস্থাপনার ব্যাপারে টাইসনের পারদর্শিতার পরিচয়, Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey নামের ডকুসিরিজের কল্যাণে, আমরা অনেকেই ইতিমধ্যে পেয়েছি। টাইসনের স্বভাবসম্মত সেই wit এবং স্মার্টনেসের ছাপ এই বইতেও পুরোদস্তুর রয়েছে।

অ্যাস্ট্রোফিজিক্সের কথা বলতে হলে, প্রায় প্রত্যেকদিন নতুন বিষয় আবিষ্কার হয়ে চলেছে। পুরোনো সিদ্ধান্ত খারিজ হচ্ছে, নতুন ধারণা উঠে আসছে। টেলিস্কোপের আয়নায় রোজ ফুটে উঠছে নতুন নতুন জগৎ। তবুও আশ্চর্যের কথা হলো, প্রকৃতপক্ষে আমরা এখনও প্রায় কিছুই জানিনা! এক বিপুল বিশাল অজ্ঞাত মহাদেশের কিনারে আমরা হতবাক হয়ে দাঁড়িয়ে আছি।

কতটুকু এখনও জানতে বাকি আছে, সেটা জানতে পারাটাও একটা দুর্দান্ত অভিজ্ঞতা। ছোট্ট একটা বইয়ের ২২০ পৃষ্ঠার মধ্যে টাইসন সেই চেষ্টাই করেছেন। মহাবিশ্বের ব্যাপারে সামান্য যা-কিছু জানতে পেরেছে মানুষ, সেটুকু সংক্ষেপে জানিয়েছেন। এবং একইসঙ্গে, নিঃসীম উত্তেজক রহস্যময়তার দিকে পাঠককে ঠেলে দিয়েছেন।

“And yes, every one of our body's atoms is traceable to the big bang and to the thermonuclear furnaces within high-mass stars that exploded more than five billion years ago.

We are stardust brought to life, then empowered by the universe to figure itself out — and we have only just begun.”

লেখকের মতো আমারও একটা টিশার্ট বানানোর ইচ্ছে আছে যেটাতে লেখা থাকবে : OBEY GRAVITY.

not gonna rate this since it felt like it required some previous knowledge. but i don't doubt that spending decades in the field of astrophysics makes it hard for him to ‘dumb it down'. overall i liked it <3

3.5 stars.

I sincerely hope the whipped cream story was made up for this book, because if some entitled jerk told me that either he was right or the laws of the universe were different in my restaurant, I would simply invite him to shove his hot chocolate somewhere his precious stars don't shine.

It was a GoodRead.

I love Neil deGrasse Tyson's passion and enthusiasm. It's wonderful to listen to him read his book. He really finds astrophysics beautiful, amazing and awesome and manages to convey it. I'm at awe by the magnificence of... all this. Physics, science, people who figured all this out... Absolutely wonderful.

I also love the nods to the popular culture :-) It was very easy to listen, with all the humor inserted.

BUT

“What happened before all this? What happened before the beginning? Astrophysicists have no idea. Or, rather, our most creative ideas have little or no grounding in experimental science. In response, some religious people assert, with a tinge of righteousness, that something must have started it all: a force greater than all others, a source from which everything issues. A prime mover. In the mind of such a person, that something is, of course, God.”

A compact book, explaining the universe.

Listened to the audio book. Neil deGrasse Tyson's soothing voice telling you about supernovas, black holes and everything in between.

The only downside was that it was just 3.5 hours long.
Not complaining because it took a week to finish, you have to drop everything you're doing and really listen to grasp the information.

Especially loved the last chapter where he reflects on how lucky we are to be alive. Just how incredibly lucky to be able to witness technological advancements and to be present on a planet that soon won't be as habitable.

I both read and listened to this book, and by far listening to NDGT talking astrophysics was best! highly recommend either way for the curious..

The first chapter or two were a bit of an info dump. Tyson doesn't shy away from the numbers, and the basic scientific principles underlying the concepts he is attempting to drive across, and therefore assumes some basic knowledge of chemistry and physics right from the get-go. From the third chapter or so onwards, he eases into a more laypeople-friendly tone, inserting everyday analogies to help us understand the concepts or the scales at which he is describing astrophysics. Overall, an entertaining and educational book on one of my favourite non-fiction topics which I thoroughly enjoyed - though it's probably not for everyone.

This book is very good for people who is starting to learn about cosmology. It is very light for me, then i give it to my father, and he loves it.

Neil Degrasse Tyson, equipped with his uniquely soothing voice, takes readers on an intellectual journey exploring the Universe from a fraction of a second after the Big Bang to the ever-expanding edges of the cosmos. A great read for those who possess a reasonable amount of scientific knowledge and lukewarm curiosity about our natural world and the physical laws that govern it.

As much as it is a book marketed to the layperson, I would personally argue that it's not necessarily a book written for the layperson. Tyson, in an attempt to cover many of the major topics in astrophysics, swiftly introduces the reader to a wealth of scientific concepts without lingering too much on the details of any particular one. Thus, I found the audiobook version of Astrophysics for People in a Hurry to be a bit too much in a hurry (pun-intended), and I suspect the book would be much more easily digested in a written format.

There are parts I have to return to, to understand better, but Neil de Grasse's sense of wonder at the vast universe, and the science it contains, is palpable and draws you in as surely and relentlessly as a gravitational pull (could not resist that!). I may not still be able to understand pulsars or quarks perfectly, but I do understand how little we know of the space we occupy and how insignificant earth is, in the vastness of it all.

Forever regretting not going with astrophysics in university. Oh well, at least I still went the STEM route, which allows me a good understanding of the science of space, and at least I can revel in the wonders of the universe through books and documentaries. Ah, I love space.

Waste of time for anyone with basic education

medium: audiobook
this book urges you, encourages you and helps you develop a cosmic perspective. This one is definitely going in for a second read some time in future as one time isn't going to be enough to remember the details.
I learnt a lot of new facts and discoveries in the field of Astrophysics and Cosmology. I absolutely love the writing by Tyson. His writing is simple, scientifically detailed and draws in the bigger philosophical picture while discussing all aspects of our big vast universe.
I listen to it for five days while getting ready in morning and stepped out feeling like an important yet humble entity in our giant universe. This one also inspired me to pick up a Carl Sagan.

The first few chapters were a little abstract for my head, but the rest was easy to digest. I loved the approach Tyson takes to make the universe a little less out of touch for results folks. Enjoy the facts sprinkled with stories. :)