“DEATH is an essential element in the progress of science,” Simon Singh writes, “since it takes care of conservative scientists of a previous generation reluctant to let go of an old, fallacious theory and embrace a new and accurate one.” Which is good for the reader, because the history of big bang theory is peppered with animosity, arrogance, harsh debates and unexpected triumphs.
Drafting a scientific version of the book of Genesis is one of the major accomplishments of 20th-century astronomy. An eternal, never-changing universe is suddenly transformed into a young, evolving cosmos that began with a big bang. Little…
