Katherine J. (Katie) Mack is a theoretical cosmologist who holds the Hawking Chair in Cosmology and Science Communication at the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. She is the author of The End of Everything (Astrophysically Speaking).
Katie Mack is a theoretical cosmologist specializing in the connections between astrophysics and particle physics … so that’s the very BIG and the very SMALL. She also works on topics related to the early universe, black holes and the formation of the first galaxies. She’s also a well-known science communicator. Her 2020 book is called The End of Everything (Astrophysically Speaking) … which begins at the Big Bang and then delves into some fates for the universe you might have heard of, such as the Big Crunch, heat death and the Big Rip … and much more. A review of this book at EarthSky.org said it was the perfect combination of a little scary and a little amusing. Katie will be speaking with EarthSky’s founder and editor-in-chief Deborah Byrd.
WHAT: Interview with cosmologist Katie Mack, on The End of Everything
DATE: Monday, June 24 (LIVE)
TIME: 12:15 p.m. central (17:15 UTC)
A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK * AN NPR SCIENCE FRIDAY BOOK CLUB SELECTION * NAMED A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR BY THE WASHINGTON POST, THE ECONOMIST, NEW SCIENTIST, PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, and THE GUARDIAN
From the cohost of the podcast The Universe with John Green and one of the most dynamic stars in astrophysics, an “engrossing, elegant” (The New York Times) look at five ways the universe could end, and the mind-blowing lessons each scenario reveals about the most important concepts in cosmology.
We know the universe had a beginning. With the Big Bang, it expanded from a state of unimaginable density to an all-encompassing cosmic fireball to a simmering fluid of matter and energy, laying down the seeds for everything from black holes to one rocky planet orbiting a star near the edge of a spiral galaxy that happened to develop life as we know it. But what happens to the universe at the end of the story? And what does it mean for us now?
Dr. Katie Mack has been contemplating these questions since she was a young student, when her astronomy professor informed her the universe could end at any moment, in an instant. This revelation set her on the path toward theoretical astrophysics. Now, with lively wit and humor, she takes us on a mind-bending tour through five of the cosmos’s possible finales: the Big Crunch, Heat Death, the Big Rip, Vacuum Decay (the one that could happen at any moment!), and the Bounce. Guiding us through cutting-edge science and major concepts in quantum mechanics, cosmology, string theory, and much more, The End of Everything is a wildly fun, surprisingly upbeat ride to the farthest reaches of all that we know.
At Amazon: The End of Everything (Astrophysically Speaking)
Bottom line: Join EarthSky’s Deborah Byrd and theoretical cosmologist Katie Mack at 17:15 UTC (12:15 p.m. Central) on Monday, June 24, as they discuss the end of everything!
The post The End of Everything, LIVE, with Katie Mack first appeared on EarthSky.
