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From the Nobel Prize–winning physicist, a personal meditation on the quest for objective reality in natural scienceA century ago, thoughtful people questioned how reality could agree with physical theories that keep changing, from a mechanical model of the ether to electric and magnetic fields, and from homogeneous matter to electrons and atoms. Today, concepts like dark matter and dark energy further complicate and enrich the search for objective reality. The Whole Truth is a personal reflection on this ongoing quest by one of the world’s most esteemed cosmologists.What lies at the heart of physical science? What are the foundational ideas that inform and guide the enterprise? Is the concept of objective reality meaningful? If so, do our established physical theories usefully approximate it? P. J. E. Peebles takes on these and other big questions about the nature of science, drawing on a lifetime of experience as a leading physicist and using cosmology as an example. He traces the history of thought about the nature of physical science since Einstein, and succinctly lays out the fundamental working assumptions. Through a careful examination of the general theory of relativity, Einstein’s cosmological principle, and the theory of an expanding universe, Peebles shows the evidence that we are discovering the nature of reality in successive approximations through increasingly demanding scrutiny.A landmark work, The Whole Truth is essential reading for anyone interested in the practice of science.

Cosmology. --- Physics. --- Reality. --- Science --- SCIENCE / Cosmology. --- Philosophy. --- Absolute magnitude. --- Acceleration. --- Angular momentum. --- Approximation. --- Astronomer. --- Astronomy. --- Asymptotically flat spacetime. --- Atomic nucleus. --- Atomic number. --- Baryon. --- Big Bang. --- Calculation. --- Chronology of the universe. --- Classical limit. --- Classical physics. --- Comprehension (logic). --- Conservation law. --- Cosmic Evolution (book). --- Cosmological constant. --- Cosmological principle. --- Density. --- Empirical research. --- Equivalence principle. --- Existence. --- Extrapolation. --- Fred Hoyle. --- Galaxy cluster. --- Galaxy rotation curve. --- General relativity. --- George Gamow. --- Goodness of fit. --- Gravitational acceleration. --- Gravitational redshift. --- Gravity. --- Hubble's law. --- Inverse-square law. --- Jupiter. --- Kinetic energy. --- Kuiper belt. --- Length scale. --- Linear scale. --- Mach's principle. --- Mass distribution. --- Measurement. --- Metric expansion of space. --- Minkowski space. --- Modified Newtonian dynamics. --- Multiple discovery. --- NGC 2403. --- Natural science. --- Neutrino. --- Neutron. --- Newton's law of universal gravitation. --- Number density. --- Observation. --- Order of magnitude. --- Paradigm shift. --- Partial derivative. --- Particle physics in cosmology. --- Peirce (crater). --- Photon. --- Physical cosmology. --- Physical law. --- Physicist. --- Planetary nebula. --- Planetary system. --- Power law. --- Prediction. --- Predictive power. --- Present value. --- Quantum electrodynamics. --- Quantum mechanics. --- Redshift. --- Repeatability. --- Richard Feynman. --- Satellite. --- Scattering. --- Schwarzschild metric. --- Science wars. --- Scientist. --- Sirius. --- Social constructionism. --- Special relativity. --- Spiral galaxy. --- Steady State theory. --- Stellar classification. --- Supersymmetry. --- Temperature. --- Tests of general relativity. --- The Unreasonable Effectiveness of Mathematics in the Natural Sciences. --- Theoretical physics. --- Theory of relativity. --- Theory. --- Thermal radiation. --- Thomas Kuhn. --- Thought. --- Verificationism. --- Wavelength. --- White dwarf. --- Zero-point energy. --- Normal science --- Philosophy of science --- Philosophy --- Truth --- Nominalism --- Pluralism --- Pragmatism --- Natural philosophy --- Philosophy, Natural --- Physical sciences --- Dynamics --- Astronomy --- Deism --- Metaphysics --- SCIENCE / Space Science / Cosmology --- SCIENCE / History