The atom of the universe : the life and work of Georges Lemaitre /

The atom of the universe : the life and work of Georges Lemaitre /

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Bibliographic Details
Author / Creator:Lambert, Dominique, 1960- author.
Uniform title:Atome d'univers. English
Imprint:Kraków : Copernicus Center Press, 2015.
Description:1 online resource : illustrations
Language:English
Subject:Lemaître, Georges, -- 1894-1966.
Lemaître, Georges, -- 1894-1966.
Mathematicians -- Belgium -- Biography.
Astronomers -- Belgium -- Biography.
Astrophysics -- History.
Big bang theory -- History.
Cosmology -- History.
Religion and science.
BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY -- Science & Technology.
SCIENCE -- Astronomy.
Astronomers.
Astrophysics.
Big bang theory.
Cosmology.
Mathematicians.
Religion and science.
Belgium.
Electronic books.
Electronic books -- Biography -- History.
Electronic books.
Biographies.
History.
Format: E-Resource Book
URL for this record:http://pi.lib.uchicago.edu/1001/cat/bib/11244161
Hidden Bibliographic Details
Other authors / contributors:Peebles, P. J. E. (Phillip James Edwin), writer of preface.
Ampleman, Luc, translator.
Van Bibber, Karl A., editor.
ISBN:9788378860501
8378860507
9788378860716
837886071X
Notes:Includes bibliographical references and index.
Online resource; title from PDF title page (EBSCO, viewed July 21, 2015).
Summary:This biography takes readers from the early childhood to the last days of Georges Lemaitre, the man behind the theory of the primeval atom, now better known as the Big Bang theory. But, who was Georges Lemaitre? He was a clergyman, a genius astronomer, an audacious cosmologist, a computer enthusiast ahead of his time, a professor with his head in the clouds, a bon vivant mathematician, and a gourmand. The book peels away these layers, chapter by chapter, from the adventures of a boy from Charleroi (Belgium), who became Monseigneur Lemaitre and influenced contemporary cosmology. The Atom of the.
Other form:Print version: Lambert, Dominique. Atom of the Universe : The Life and Work of Georges Lemaitre. Portland : Copernicus Center Press, ©2015 9788378860716
Review by Choice Review

This is an exhaustive (and somewhat exhausting) biography of Georges LeMaître (1894-1966), Belgian priest, cosmologist, mathematician, and professor at the University of Louvain (Belgium). It is hard to tell if the dry tone is a result of the translation from the French or if it was present in the original, but this book is definitely not a casual read, despite the author's seeming attempt to keep it mostly at a general readership level. As with most biographies, it is told in roughly chronological order, but with thematic chunks broken out. For instance, chapters 12-14 all cover different aspects of LeMaître's life during the period 1940-44, while chapter 10 is an overview of mathematical achievements from 1931 to 1957. (Speaking of mathematics, while the introduction says chapter 10 is accessible to those with a standard background in algebra, this does not mean 100-level college algebra. One would need a solid grounding in linear algebra, matrices, and tensors to follow chapter 10.) This biography is thoroughly researched, and if anything one wants to know about LeMaître is not found here, one can be sure that a footnote exists that will lead one in the right direction. Lambert has written a dense, scholarly work, but a leisurely read it is not. Summing Up: Recommended. Researchers/faculty. --David John Van Domelen, Amarillo College

Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review

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