All too easily, we ignore or dismiss the fascinating possibilities of emptiness and non-existence. But without nothing, or rather what we've long taken to be nothing – we'd be nowhere. For centuries, scientists have known that it may be the key to understanding everything from why particles have mass to the expansion of the universe. The start – and end – of the universe, dark energy, superconductivity, consciousness – all these scientific issues are players in the drama surrounding nothing. Including writing by Ian Stewart on zero, Marcus Chown on the Big Bang, Nigel Henbest on deep space, Michael Brooks on the placebo effect, Paul Davies on the origin of time and David E. Fisher on noble gases, this will please and enlighten anyone interested in the cutting edge of science – or simply in the greatest mysteries of our world. Shakespeare had it right all along: it's time to make much ado about nothing.
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