A Big Bang in a Little Room by Zeeya Merali

'In her elegant and perceptive book, Merali unpacks the science behind what we know about our universe's beginnings and traces the paths that many renowned researchers have taken to translate these insights to new heights: the creation of a brand-new 'baby' universe, and not an empty one, either, but one with its own physics, matter, and (possibly) life.'- Kirkus, 'Is it possible to create a universe in a lab? Is it moral? In this fascinating and provocative book, Merali walks a delicate line between physics and theology with charm, integrity, and wit. What has driven them to continue on what would seem, at first glance, to be a quixotic quest? This mind-boggling book reveals that we can nurse other worlds in the tiny confines of a lab, raising a daunting prospect: Was our universe, too, brought into existence by a daring creator?

Beyond simply explaining the science, A Big Bang in a Little Room also tells the story of the people who have been laboring for more than thirty years to make this seemingly impossible dream a reality. A Big Bang in a Little Room takes the reader on a journey through the history of cosmology and unravels-particle by particle, theory by theory, and experiment by experiment-the ideas behind this provocative claim made by some of the most respected physicists alive today. An award-winning science writer takes us into the lab to answer some of life's biggest questions: How was the universe created? And could we create our own? What if you could become God, with the ability to build a whole new universe? As startling as it sounds, modern physics suggests that within the next two decades, scientists may be able to perform this seemingly divine feat-to concoct an entirely new baby universe, complete with its own physical laws, star systems, galaxies, and even intelligent life.

A Big Bang in a Little Room by Zeeya Merali