{"product_id":"battle-of-the-big-bang-niayesh-afshordi-9780226830476","title":"Battle of the Big Bang: The New Tales of Our Cosmic Origins","description":"\u003cb\u003eA thrilling exploration of competing cosmological origin stories, comparing new scientific ideas that upend our very notions of space, time, and reality.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e By most popular accounts, the universe started with a bang some 13.8 billion years ago. But what happened before the Big Bang? Here prominent cosmologist Niayesh Afshordi and science communicator Phil Halper offer a tour of the peculiar possibilities: bouncing and cyclic universes, time loops, creations from nothing, multiverses, black hole births, string theories, and holograms. Along the way, they offer both a call for new physics and a riveting story of scientific debate. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Incorporating Afshordi's cutting-edge research and insights from Halper's original interviews with scientists like Stephen Hawking, Roger Penrose, and Alan Guth, \u003ci\u003eBattle of the Big Bang\u003c\/i\u003e compares these models for the origin of our origins, showing each theory's strengths and weaknesses and explaining new attempts to test these theories. \u003ci\u003eBattle of the Big Bang \u003c\/i\u003eis a tale of rivalries and intrigue, of clashes of ideas that have raged from Greek antiquity to the present day over whether the universe is eternal or had a beginning, whether it is unique or one of many. But most of all, Afshordi and Halper show that this search is filled with wonder, discovery, and community--all essential for remembering a forgotten cosmic past.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Niayesh Afshordi, Phil Halper\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0226830470\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780226830476\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e University of Chicago Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 05\/29\/2025\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 360\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.00lbs","brand":"Niayesh Afshordi","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":46384104571135,"sku":"9780226830476","price":32.5,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_3ed21c13-97ee-4e2f-a557-b515fa5c81fa.jpg?v=1733282714","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/battle-of-the-big-bang-niayesh-afshordi-9780226830476","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}