Black Holes and Baby Universes by Steven Hawking - Book Report/Review Example

Black Holes and Baby Universes by Stephen Hawking Table of contents Chapter 4. 2. Chapter 5. 3. Chapter 6 In chapters 4, 5, and 6 of his book Black Holes and Baby Universes Steven Hawking addresses the audience of usual readers who are not keen of strict scientific explanations and mathematical equations. Hawking's audience is people who are interested in the Universe structure and processes taking part in the Universe, but these people don't have sufficient mathematical knowledge, so Hawking explains these processes in simple language clear for large amount of people.

The main idea of the fourth chapter of the book which is called Public Attitude towards Science is that people should have correct attitude of science. Science is developing rapidly, and people should know basic scientific elements which are very important and concern everybody of us, such as acid rains, the greenhouse effect, nuclear weapons, and genetic engineering1. Another important idea is that people should stop nuclear weapon extending as it can destroy the life on our planet. In his argumentation Hawking uses such rhetorical methods as logos, ethos and pathos.

He explains that there is too much of nuclear weapon, so we must prevent its extending (p.30) - it is the example of logos. He writes that he avoids including equations in his book - it is the example of ethos. The author playfully writes that "the reason we have not been contacted by an alien civilization is that civilizations tend to destroy themselves when they reach our stage" (p.31) - it is the example of pathos.2. The main idea of the fifth chapter of the book which is called A Brief History of a Brief History is that the author tends to write about such difficult things as the Universe processes in simple language.

Many people want to know about the Universe, but they don't have appropriate mathematical education and knowledge for understanding complicated formulas and equations. So, it is very important to describe such ideas in easier language. Another idea is that he wants to write popular scientific books but not the books about himself. Hawking writes that if he would write a book he should address as many people as possible and the book must reach mass market (p.34) -- it is the example of logos.

The author writes about his reasons of writing books (partly to earn money for his daughter, but basically he wants people to know more about the Universe) (p.34) -- it is the example of ethos. Hawking writes about his impression of the scientific TV program The Ascent of Man; he wanted to convey similar feeling of the Universe understanding (p.35) -- it is the example of pathos.3. The main idea of the sixth chapter of the book which is called My Position is that theoretical physicists can better explain the Universe processes than philosophers.

Another important idea is that it needs to have clear scientific theories such as Einstein's one which can describe the processes around us. A theory must prove the reason of a phenomenon and must be based on the scientific explanations and observations. Hawking writes that "we ought to be telling people about the modern understanding of such basic concepts as space and time" (p.44), explaining that these theories can tell more about the Universe than Newtonian one -- it is the example of logos.

He writes that he "has been variously called a nominalist, an instrumentalist, a positivist, a realist" (p.42), but these "ists" don't play role for him -- it is the example of ethos. The author writes that it seems ridiculous that "the speed of light was always the same no matter how the source of the observer was moving" (p.43) -- it is the example of pathos. SourcesHawking, Steven. Black Holes and Baby Universes. Chapters 4 - 6, pages 27 - 47;http://atom.servnow.com/tat/blackholes.pdf.