Michael Rowan-Robinson : The Nine Numbers of the Cosmos

An encapsulation in nine numbers of all that modern astronomy has learnt about the universe. These cosmic numbers appear to be independent characteristics of our universe and include its age, the Hubble constant (a measure of its rate of expression), and the density of matter in the universe. Only one of the nine numbers is known with real precision, and four of them only poorly known. Difficult ideas like the origin of the elements, the General Theory of Relativity, quantum theory, and the standard model of particle physics, ideas which underpin modern cosmology, are explained in a simple way. While most of what we know has been learnt during the 20th century, Rowan-Robinson provides a historical perspective, paying homage to the achievements of the Greeks, Renaissance astronomers, and the age of Newton. The book ends with predictions of when all nine numbers will be accurately known.