Description

What are the mysterious numbers that unlock the secrets of the universe?

In Fantastic Numbers and Where to Find Them, leading theoretical physicist and YouTube star Tony Padilla takes us on an irreverent cosmic tour of the most extraordinary numbers in physics, using them to build a picture of how the universe works. These include Graham’s number, which is so large that if you thought about it in the wrong way, your head would collapse into a singularity; TREE(3) and the mathematical games that could carry on until the universe reset itself; and 10^{-120}, which measures the desperately unlikely balance of energy the universe, and you, need to exist.

Leading us down the rabbit hole to the inner workings of reality, Padilla demonstrates how these unusual numbers-big, small and worryingly infinite-are the key to unlocking such mind-bending phenomena as black holes, the holographic truth and the problem of the cosmological constant, where our two best theories of the universe come together with embarrassing consequences. Combining cutting-edge science with an entertaining cosmic quest, Fantastic Numbers and Where to Find Them is an electrifying, head-twisting guide to the most fundamental truths of the universe.

Publisher Review

This delightful book purports to be about numbers, but is really a window onto the astonishing scope and scale of the universe in which we live. You will be amazed at the mind-bending ideas science has proposed in order to grasp reality, and be impressed that our minds are able to bend that far -- Sean Carroll, author of SOMETHING DEEPLY HIDDEN This is an extraordinary book. Tony Padilla has been able to weave a remarkable set of mathematical facts into a mesmerising story that kept me gripped throughout. He has an intensity and passion that I haven't seen for a long time in popular science -- Pedro G. Ferreira, author of THE PERFECT THEORY It was said of the famous Indian mathematician Ramanujan that he knew every number as his personal friend. If you'd like to get to know some of the most charismatic of these characters then Antonio Padilla has written a beautiful Who's Who of the world of numbers and their role in the make-up of our universe -- Marcus du Sautoy, author of THINKING BETTER