Nothing: Surprising Insights Everywhere from Zero to Oblivion

Zero, zip, nada, zilch. It's all too easy to ignore the fascinating possibilities of emptiness and non-existence, and we may well wonder what there is to say about nothing. But scientists have known for centuries that nothing is the key to understanding absolutely everything, from why particles have mass to the expansion of the universe - so without nothing we'd be precisely no...

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Zero, zip, nada, zilch. It's all too easy to ignore the fascinating possibilities of emptiness and non-existence, and we may well wonder what there is to say about nothing. But scientists have known for centuries that nothing is the key to understanding absolutely everything, from why particles have mass to the expansion of the universe - so without nothing we'd be precisely nowhere.

Absolute zero (the coldest cold that can exist) and the astonishing power of placebos, light bulbs, superconductors, vacuums, dark energy, 'bed rest' and the birth of time - all are different aspects of the concept of nothing. The closer we look, the bigger the subject gets. Why do some animals spend all day doing nothing? What happens in our brains when we try to think about nothing?

With chapters by 20 science writers, including top names such as Ian Stewart, Marcus Chown, Nigel Henbest, Michael Brooks, Paul Davies and David Fisher, this fascinating and intriguing book revels in a subject that has tantalised the finest minds for centuries, and shows there's more to nothing than meets the eye.

Introduction 1 (4)
1 Beginnings
The big bang 5 (11)
Marcus Chown
Secret life of the brain 16 (9)
Douglas Fox
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Introduction 1 (4)
1 Beginnings
The big bang 5 (11)
Marcus Chown
Secret life of the brain 16 (9)
Douglas Fox
From zero to hero 25 (8)
Richard Webb
Heal thyself 33 (11)
Jo Marchant
2 Mysteries
The day time began 44 (11)
Paul Davies
Placebo power 55 (10)
Michael Brooks
Wastes of space? 65 (9)
Laura Spinney
Banishing consciousness 74 (10)
Linda Geddes
3 Making sense of it all
Out of thin air 84 (9)
Per Eklund
Busy doing nothing 93 (8)
Jonathan Knight
The hole story 101(9)
Richard Webb
Into the void 110(8)
Nigel Henbest
Zero, zip, zilch 118(8)
Ian Stewart
4 Surprises
The turbulent life of empty space 126(7)
Paul Davies
When mind attacks body 133(9)
Helen Pilcher
Ride the celestial subway 142(7)
Ian Stewart
Vacuum packed 149(9)
David Harris
Nothing in common 158(6)
Ian Stewart
5 Voyages of discovery
Absolute zero 164(10)
Michael de Podesta
Boring-ology: a happy tedium 174(9)
Valerie Jamieson
Putting the idle to work 183(9)
David E. Fisher
Get up, get out of bed 192(6)
Rick A. Lovett
6 Conclusions
The workout pill 198(9)
Andy CoghIan
The world of superstuff 207(9)
Michael Brooks
Pathways to cosmic oblivion 216(14)
Stephen Battersby
Acknowledgements 230(2)
About the contributors 232(5)
Notes 237(9)
Index 246
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