A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking

It surprises me that I haven't bothered to read this book before. After all, it's a classic in its genre; how could I call myself a pop-science fan without having read it? Now that I have finally done so, I really wish I'd done it sooner. A Brief History of Time is a great journey through the history and current status [as at 1988] of cosmology. It's remarkably clear and comprehensible while simultaneously being the shortest book of its type that I've ever read. In addition, reading it earlier would have saved me a whole heap of effort.

Let me explain that last point with a few lists.

My previous reading in this area has consisted of the following:

• E=mc² by David Bodanis
  Brilliantly written history of cosmological thought


• In Search Of Schrödinger's Cat by John Gribbin
  Lots of quantum


• Schrödinger's Kittens by John Gribbin
  Lots more, updated, quantum


• The Big Bang Theory by Karen C. Fox
  Thorough explanation of early-universe theories, and some of the philosophy thereof

For comparison, here are some of the features of the opening four chapters of A Brief History of Time:

• Chapter 1-2
  Brilliantly written history of cosmological thought - in less than half the space that this normally takes in any pop science book


• Chapter 3
  Thorough explanation of early-universe theories from a man who was on the very bleeding edge of creating some of them at the time


• Chapter 4
  Lots of quantum, including the only proper explanation of the Uncertainly Principle that I have ever read

And just to complete the point, here is a list of things that I never really understood until reading A Brief History of Time, but of which I now have at least a metaphorical understanding:

• The modern role of the cosmological constant


• The uncertainty principle


• Wave-particle duality


• Spin [in the particle sense]


• Entropy and the second law of thermodynamics


• Symmetry [in the theory sense]


• Lots of cool stuff about black holes

I should have read it sooner. I really, really should have. Now, though, the best I can do is to read the sequel, The Universe in a Nutshell, before that gets too out of date!