Although the science was fairly incomprehensible, especially in the last third of the book or so, I feel like I leave this book having learned two or three things, at least. Most of all the book confirmed that even the best scientists in the world pretty quickly run out of firm answers on what the universe is like or why it exists. Even the wild speculations and theories run out eventually, and all you can do is shrug your shoulders and tell yourself that you really didn't really need to know that much anyway. ( )

Although the science was fairly incomprehensible, especially in the last third of the book or so, I feel like I leave this book having learned two or three things, at least. Most of all the book confirmed that even the best scientists in the world pretty quickly run out of firm answers on what the universe is like or why it exists. Even the wild speculations and theories run out eventually, and all you can do is shrug your shoulders and tell yourself that you really didn't really need to know that much anyway. ( )

I did not think I was going to like this book at first. The author quotes overwhelmingly male authors, playwrights, scientists, scholars, etc., to the point where it seems like it would have been easier to find one or two women to quote. OK, you argue, that was just the blurb starting each chapter, get over it. Until the author literally quoted a sci-fi book where the male protagonist travels through stopped time and looks up women's skirts. WHY WOULD YOU INCLUDE THAT IN A POPULAR SCIENCE BOOK? I mean, come on, I can think of at least one (I'm sure there are more) Star Trek episodes that aren't horribly objectifying that he could have used instead. And to follow that up, within one or two chapters the author quotes from a Woody Allen movie. 🤦🏻‍♀️

Once I got past the sexist references, the book picked up some steam and it was really fascinating. The actual science was easy to follow, captivating, and I found myself just reading hundreds of pages at a time.

I guess it just goes to show how much things have changed (in a good way) since 2010. ( )

This is some very impressive stuff.

I've read a lot of nonfiction science books that sometimes had equations but mostly did not, but what I really wanted was a cohesive drive, an arrow to spear right through some of the biggest questions of our time... such as What Is Time.

Sean Carroll manages to keep things very sharp between what is perfectly understood and all of the theories that are somewhat understood, and the other Cosmology stuff that's mostly just baffling. :)

Any way you look at it, though, this is not a book that gets derailed or goes off into super strange directions. He lays out all the foundations, from the opening definitions of Time and what we think it means, from the average to the rather advanced notions of space-time and curvature, Einstein's energy equation, speed of light, diliation, moving all the way to Black Holes. This is very solid stuff.

Plus, we have a very coherent definition of Time as Entropy, showing us just how complicated it can get when time's arrow might just be the illusion that Hawking says it is. I really enjoyed that discussion.

Of course, we come up with lots of possibilities and digressions that are always explored in SF, too, but most of these are just bylines, moving quickly by the Grandfather paradox, etc, to get right back on the main track.

Yes. We have Equations. :) Fortunately, the author does a very good job about explaining them and even getting deeper into the extra areas that made this rather more interesting for me since I've read many science books and have heard most of this already.

I recommend this for anyone interested in Time. :) Not time management. Just Time. :) We do touch rather heavily upon Cosmology by the end, too, which was a blast and a half, getting into many-universes theory and string theory, to name a few. And he makes it clear! :)

Seriously. This was some sharp stuff. Very readable. It's not a general overview. You might say it's putting time's arrow right through the heart of a big question and staying on track all the way to the end.
( )

A lucid, reasonably understandable look at relatively, quantum mechanics, and time. The author seeks to understand and explain time's arrow, and trace time back to the Big Bang...or before, if possible. There are some points where it appears the author does not understand biology (nothing unusual for a physicist; most don't), but otherwise the work is interesting, comprehensible, and thorough. His solution to the problems posed by the current state of physical knowledge is interesting, and he almost convinces me it could be possible. I am at least leaving an open mind. There are a couple of chapters in which the explanations get a bit tedious, but most of the book reads well, though for some inexplicable reason, it took me a longer time than usual. Perhaps some sort of cosmic irony, considering the topic. ( )