Black Hole Blues and Other Songs from Outer Space - Softcover

Janna Levin is a Professor of Physics and Astronomy at Barnard College of Columbia University and Director of Sciences at Pioneer Works, a centre for art and innovation in Brooklyn. She has contributed to the understanding of black holes, the cosmology of extra dimensions and gravitational waves. She was the first scientist-in-residence at the Ruskin School of Fine Art and Drawing at Oxford University with an award from NESTA, and was recently named a Guggenheim fellow. Her previous books are How the Universe Got Its Spots and a novel, A Madman Dreams of Turing Machines, which won the PEN/Bingham prize. She has also appeared at TED and contributes to numerous radio and television programmes.

"Gripping ... very, very well written ... I reached the beautiful ending of this book with a little sob of gratitude ... heartbreaking ... brilliant" -- Bryan Appleyard Sunday Times "It is hard to imagine that a better narrative will ever be written about the behind-the-scenes heartbreak and hardship that goes with scientific discovery. Black Hole Blues is a spectacular feat - a near-perfect balance of science, storytelling and insight ... It is as inevitable as gravity that this book will win a swath of awards" -- Michael Brooks New Statesman "Astonishing ... superb ... Ms Levin is able to tell the tale so soon, and so well, because she has had privileged access to the experiment. She has also known the experimenters for several years ... Ms Levin is herself a scientist, which explains her access, but more than that she is a writer ... readers feel as if they are sitting in on her interviews or watching over her shoulder as she describes two black holes colliding ... A splendid book that I recommend to anyone with an interest in how science works and in the power of human imagination and ability" -- John Gribbin Wall Street Journal "A superb storyteller. This is the most vivid account I can remember of science policy in action ... I'll be surprised if anyone brings out a more readable book on gravitational waves in the near future" -- Clive Cookson Financial Times "The definitive account of how we completed the hundred-year hunt for gravitational waves ... Punchy, witty, timely and deeply insightful; I haven't read a better book on the realities of doing science" -- Michael Brooks New Statesman, Books of the Year