Strange New Worlds Review
By DeVon Hawkins
SUMMARY
In Strange New Worlds, astronomer Ray Jayawardhana brings news from the front lines of the epic quest to find planets and alien life beyond our solar system. Like most other astronomers, address the absurdity that a “dwarf planet” is by definition a planet, just as a dwarf tree is still a tree, a dwarf horse is still a horse, and a dwarf human is still a human. Strange New Worlds provides an insider's look at the cutting-edge science of today's planet hunters, our prospects for discovering alien life, and the debates and controversies at the forefront of extrasolar-planet research. Chapter 4 multiple worlds, " observatories are like monuments to humankind's curiosity about the universe. Everything else seemed inconsequential in comparison". This book covers all the most scientific findings that pertain to new like planet from the past 15 years.
Life beyond our solar system?
Personal opinion
Strange New Worlds is not a bad book, just not an epochal one. It is a solid history of one of science’s most recent sagas. it explains the meanings and relevance of terms and ideas, such as Hot Jupiters and Super Earths, among others. Also There are the clichés like “revolution in science,” “the implications,” “we will see ourselves differently." Jayawardhana seems to be a creature of habit, and the biggest habit that the book reveals is his conservative biases. Also that scientific assumptions and biases before hand in such speculative matters, are almost always outstripped by the accumulated evidence
Related topic
Most of the story is related to the topic size and scale and Astronomical numbers ,"That 5 astronomical units could shrink enough to carry it a hundred times closer". Another topic is explain the potential of having extraterrestrial life on planets. In our course we talk about different ways to look for our planets and in this book it devotes a lot of time talking about different ways look at planets, by using micro lens.