Dark Matter and the Dinosaurs: The Astounding Interconnectedness of the Universe in Science and Inquiry

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Dark Matter and the Dinosaurs: The Astounding Interconnectedness of the Universe

Lisa Randall

Start date: July 1, 2016

Finish date: July 30, 2016

Discussion: Book Club 2016

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Book Club 2016

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May 17, 2016 David Rubenstein rated it really liked it

Shelves: archaeology, paleontology, science, physics, geology

I really enjoy science books that are well-written, by a scientist who has personally contributed to the field. This book certainly fits into this category, as Lisa Randall is a good writer. This book relates some of the research that she and her collaborators have been doing. Much of the book sets the stage so that lay readers can understand her speculative new hypothesis, and put it into perspective.

Randall鈥檚 hypothesis is that dark matter is not exclusively arranged in a big halo around the I really enjoy science books that are well-written, by a scientist who has personally contributed to the field. This book certainly fits into this category, as Lisa Randall is a good writer. This book relates some of the research that she and her collaborators have been doing. Much of the book sets the stage so that lay readers can understand her speculative new hypothesis, and put it into perspective.

Randall鈥檚 hypothesis is that dark matter is not exclusively arranged in a big halo around the Milky Way galaxy. There is a distinct concentration of dark matter in the central plane of our galaxy. As our solar system periodically oscillates up and down with respect to the central plane, it is especially perturbed by the concentration of dark matter. The period of this oscillation is about 32 million years. Comets in the outer reaches of our solar system are perturbed in their orbits. They are so far from the sun that a small gravitational perturbation can kick a comet into an orbit that intersects the inner solar system, in the vicinity of the Earth. One such comet collided with the Earth about 66 million years ago, creating a crater in Mexico鈥檚 Yucatan peninsula. The comet was 10 or 20 kilometers in diameter, and was responsible for the extinction of most of the living species on Earth, including the dinosaurs.

Now, this hypothesis might be totally wrong. But, Randall explains how she tested it, and how a future spacecraft mission (GAIA) will provide additional experimental tests. In fact, the GAIA spacecraft mission will measure the positions and velocities of billions of stars in our galaxy. It is very fortuitous that the spacecraft was being launched at just the right time, and with exactly the purpose that will test Randall鈥檚 hypothesis. She notes how very lucky she is in this regard.

The book reads a bit like a detective story. Lisa Randall takes the reader step by step through the process she and her collaborators took, to formulate and test their hypothesis. This is science writing at its best, because science is not a bunch of facts. Science is a process. And this book shows exactly how the process can work. Most notably, Randall shows how serendipity can often play a role in science. Fortunate coincidences can come together at opportune moments, guiding the research to productive results.

Some reviewers find this book to be somewhat dry. I disagree; it is written in a straightforward style, with none of the cutesy stuff that some science journalists stick in to dumb down their books and .to bring in mass readership. That鈥檚 not to say that the book is devoid of humor. I got a big kick out of the photograph in Figure 35. I won鈥檛 spoil your fun by giving it away鈥攜ou will have to read the book to see it!

My only complaint about the book, is that its organization seems to be a bit strange at times. The full synopsis of the hypothesis does not appear until the very end of the book. I guess, that is how it was intended, sort of the denouement of a detective story. And, I was almost ready to write a scathing review, because a clear explanation of the hypothesis seemed to be missing from the book. But in the end, the full story is told, and it all makes sense. Also, I must remark that this book covers a broad range of fields; particle physics, astronomy, cosmology, and paleontology. I heartily recommend this book to everyone who is interested in learning about how modern science is really done these days.
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Sep 27, 2015 Charlene rated it really liked it

Shelves: history, biology, chaos-complexity-emergence, evolution, space, physics, general-science, origins-of-life, geology, climate

Randall is the first to warn her reader that her new hypothesis is speculative and in need of more testing. However, she is excited about the kinds of questions this new direction is taking her. Randall has been investigating how dark matter might be involved in not only the creation of matter itself, but possibly in the evolution of humans as well. The presence of dark matter is not at all speculative. It has been detected using a variety of tools and methods. What is speculative is the notion Randall is the first to warn her reader that her new hypothesis is speculative and in need of more testing. However, she is excited about the kinds of questions this new direction is taking her. Randall has been investigating how dark matter might be involved in not only the creation of matter itself, but possibly in the evolution of humans as well. The presence of dark matter is not at all speculative. It has been detected using a variety of tools and methods. What is speculative is the notion that some dark matter might interact with itself. Just as ordinary matter comes in different varieties (different sizes, charges, etc) dark matter too might come in different varieties, some of which might not make a halo, but rather a dense disc that cuts through the the Milky Way and provides an extra gravitational force that might throw a comet off its trajectory and allow it to plunge toward and into earth, thus changing the temperature and atmosphere of Earth.

Randall has a mixed style of writing. At times she makes analogies that are so fantastic, they seem among the best I have read. At times though, her writing is dry. For example, I found the chapter on Cuvier (who I actually love) and catastrophe to be so dry, I had trouble paying attention. But, her chapters on the structure of the universe-- how matter was formed, how matter collapses into a disc, how clumping follows the rich get richer power laws,how heavy elements actually help in cooling so that large objects like our sun can form, etc-- were actually page turners for me. I reread some of those sections more than once because they were so exciting.

One of my favorite parts of the book was her discussion of Occam's Razor. She prosed a table setting around core function. It was brilliant. Also wonderful, she treated her reader to a version of human's are not special that went way beyond most things associated with the Copernican revolution. She suggested that matter, everything we have ever seen in the universe, is not special. So great to be reminded of that. I actually laughed audibly while reading that section.

I cannot wait to see what the telescope Gaia finds. Of course I am hoping it will support Randall and Reece's hypothesis. If it does not, I am still excited to continue hearing about the questions that continue to drive Randall's work. ...more

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Mar 05, 2024 Mark rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Harvard theoretical particle physicist Lisa Randall hypothesizes the existence of a disk of self-interacting dark matter roughly on or within the plane (baryonic matter) of the Milky Way galaxy. As the Sun oscillates above and below the galactic plane in its 250 million year orbit around the center of the galaxy, it passes through this dense dark matter disk as well. The resulting gravitational disturbances destabilize bodies in the Oort cloud, which is loosely gravitationally bound to the sun i ...more

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