Space Universe

In The Universe in a Box, cosmologist Andrew Pontzen explains how physicists model the universe’s most exotic phenomena, from black holes and colliding galaxies to dark matter and quantum entanglement, enabling them to study the evolution of virtual worlds and to shed new light on our reality.

What came before the Big Bang, and what exists outside of the universe it created? Until recently, scientists could only guess at what lay past the edge of space-time. However, as pioneering theoretical physicist Laura Mersini-Houghton explains, new scientific tools are now giving us the ability to peer beyond the limits of our universe and to test our theories about what is there. And what we are finding is upending everything we thought we knew about the cosmos and our place in it.

Years ago, cosmologist Stephon Alexander received life-changing advice: to discover real physics, he needed to stop memorizing and start taking risks. In Fear of a Black Universe, Alexander shows that great physics requires us to think outside the mainstream - to improvise and rely on intuition. His approach leads him to three principles that shape all theories of the universe: the principle of invariance, the quantum principle, and the principle of emergence. Alexander uses them to explore some of physics' greatest mysteries.

Does alien life exist? Is time travel possible? How did the universe begin, and how will it end? Is the future predetermined? These are just some of the fascinating questions posed in this book, which stretches across physics, the life sciences and cosmology. Each chapter considers a separate question and ends with either an answer or, if there is insufficient evidence, a ‘best guess’ answer.

Fleeing the scene of his latest mission, Val Con yos'Phelium finds himself saving the life of ex-mercenary Miri Robertson, a young Tarren on the run from interplanetary assassins. Thrown together by circumstances, Val Con and Miri struggle to elude their enemies and stay alive without slaying each other - or surrendering to the unexpected passion that flares between them.

The Ragger and Sekar aliens have pushed humanity to the brink of annihilation. Two hopes for survival - genetic modifications to protect against the Sekar, and the death pulse generator - are years from completion. With no other choice, Fleet Admiral Stone is forced to make a deal with the devil in the form of a mutually beneficial exchange of technology with the back-stabbing Raggers. Naturally, the Raggers haven’t changed. However, the aliens are about to discover that when humanity is pushed into a corner, anything goes.

Clan Jade Falcon’s war efforts draw closer to Terra, but to conquer this ultimate prize, the Falcons’ vicious Khan, Malvina Hazen, must be able to trust all of her warriors to carry out her commands without hesitation—no matter how much death or collateral damage they will cause. For Malvina, victory is the only thing that matters, and those who stand in her way suffer swift and brutal elimination.

Exarch Devlin Stone, hero of the Word of Blake Jihad and architect of the Republic of the Sphere, has returned only to find his beloved nation under siege and in danger of breaking apart. As threats bear down on the Republic from all sides, Stone and his inner circle must move fast to bolster Terra’s defenses from all who seek to conquer the birthplace of humanity. However, not all of his allies have heeded Stone’s call to arms.

How big is the universe? In the early twentieth century, scientists took sides. One held that the entire universe was contained in the Milky Way galaxy. Their champion was the strong-willed astronomer Harlow Shapley. Another camp believed that the universe was so vast that the Milky Way was just one galaxy among billions—the view that would prevail, proven by the equally headstrong Edwin Hubble.

As a Mech Warrior of the Draconis Combine, Minobu Tetsuhara was bound by Bushido, a code that demands loyal service to the devious Warlord Grieg Samsonov. But when Minobu came upon a strange blue and gold Archer, Bushido also dictated that he not destroy the honorable but helpless warrior. And so he rescued Jaime Wolf.

Harry Cliff - a University of Cambridge particle physicist and researcher on the Large Hadron Collider - sets out in pursuit of answers. He ventures to the largest underground research facility in the world, deep beneath Italy's Gran Sasso mountains, where scientists gaze into the heart of the Sun using the most elusive of particles, the ghostly neutrino. He visits CERN in Switzerland to explore the "Antimatter Factory," where the stuff of science fiction is manufactured daily (and we're close to knowing whether it falls up).

Star-trading Clan Korval - known to Terrans as the Tree-and-Dragon Family and to the locals simply as the Dragon - has been convicted of crimes against the homeworld. No matter that one of the "crimes" consisted of saving the elitist planet of Liad from very real internal threats, the Council of Clans wanted Korval heads to roll. Unfortunately for the council, the Dragon's allies conspired to impose a milder punishment for saving the world: banishment rather than execution.

When Charlie, a young boy, is suddenly terrorized by a creature beneath his bed, he turns to his parents for help. But his father no longer lives at home, and his mother believes his wild imagination has run away with him. He is on his own against this predator until help arrives from an unlikely place. With his life on the line, Charlie uncovers the truth about his parents, his new friends, and the beast that hunts him. But will this be enough to help him face his fear and survive the night?

Follow a core group of characters known as the Trailblazers as they use alien technology and knowledge discovered in Antarctic ruins to obtain limited immortality and lead humanity out into the galaxy, encountering, befriending, and fighting hundreds of alien races all the while desperately trying to prepare Earth for the unbeatable threat at the core of the Milky Way that is destined to return and reclaim their lost colony and their former human slaves.

For more than a decade, the Republic of the Sphere’s army hid in silence behind the mysterious, impregnable Wall of Fortress Republic. But now the Wall has come down, and Paladin Max Ergen, commander of Operation Eruptio, has his sights set on an invaluable prize. His target: Dieron, a Draconis Combine military district capital, a former Republic world harboring secrets from past wars. His troops have spent years training in isolation behind the Wall, and they are hungry for battle, ready to remind the Inner Sphere that the wounded Republic is still a force to be reckoned with.

Bethany Anne Nacht was changed on Earth almost 200 years in the past. The Kurtherians engage in the cosmic great game, where whole worlds are torn asunder in their efforts to prove their own supremacy. For hundreds of millennia, the Kurtherians at the top have reigned unfettered as they destroyed countless civilizations time and time again. Now, a new group is entering the game. Bethany Anne and her people are playing against extreme odds, but when has that ever stopped the Queen Bitch? It’s time to fight for the future of the universe.

New novel in the Liaden Universe series. Over a quarter million copies sold in this series to-date! Space ships, action, adventure – all tied together with a strong dollop of romance and family saga – make this a compelling series for a wide range of readers, from romance to military SF lovers alike.

Star Wars: Heir to the Empire: Behind the Scenes is a special recording that features new commentary by author Timothy Zahn and editor Betsy Mitchell, written for the 20th anniversary edition of Heir to the Empire, read by Zahn and Mitchell. Included here is audio from the that new unabridged recording to enhance their comments.

Hope ran deep when Smith left humanity’s first generation ship to lay roots with his wife and son in the open air of a new planet. When the colony ship broke apart on entry, however, countless lives were lost, including Smith’s beloved wife. He now fights to keep his son and his colony alive, all the while fighting off alien-induced hallucinations. Meanwhile, Smith’s apprentice Tashon seeks to discover what happened to his beloved mentor and the colony. He soon learns that the expedition’s leaders are focused on a much more imminent danger.

The sequel to New York Times best sellers Avenger and The Return, Spectre is an unforgettable saga peopled by old friends and ancient enemies, that propels Kirk on a journey of self-discovery every bit as harrowing as the cataclysmic new adventure that awaits him. Written and read by William Shatner!