In recent years, a handful of scientists have been racing to explain a disturbing aspect of our universe: only 4 percent of it consists of the matter that makes up you, me, our books, and every planet, star, and galaxy. The rest - 96 percent - is completely unknown. Science historian Richard Panek tells the dramatic story of how astronomers reached this cosmos-shattering conclusion, and how they're currently inventing ways to try to find "dark" matter and an even more bizarre substance called dark energy. This is perhaps the greatest mystery in all of science, and solving it will bring fame, funding, and certainly a Nobel Prize. Based on in-depth, on-site reporting and hundreds of interviews, and filled with behind-the-scenes details, the book offers an intimate portrait of the bitter rivalries and fruitful collaborations, the eureka moments and blind alleys, that have redefined science and reinvented the universe.
Richard Panek's previous books include
Seeing and Believing and
The Invisible Century. The recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship in science writing, he has
often written about astronomy and cosmology for The New York Times - where
The 4% Universe began as an article in the Magazine - as well as Discover, Smithsonian, Esquire, Natural History, and many other publications. He has been a member of the Society Library since 1994.
