The Mysterious Universe: Supernovae, Dark Energy, and Black Holes by Ellen Jackson

The Mysterious Universe: Supernovae, Dark Energy, and Black Holes Reviews

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  Manybooks

  Well, from my perspective and in my humble opinion, the absolute best and very much the most useful and serviceable parts of Ellen Jackson’s 2008 illustrated astronomy tome The Mysterious Universe: Supernovae, Dark Energy, and Black Holes (which is meant for readers from about the age of ten or so onwards) are definitely the so-called back materials. For yes and indeed, the detailed bibliographies, the expansive glossary and that Jackson has actually divided her suggestions for further study and research not only into books and websites but also into three main sections meant for general reading, for students (for younger readers) and finally for teacher (and of course also for parents), this really does make supplemental study and research oh so much easier and The Mysterious Universe: Supernovae, Dark Energy, and Black Holes into a truly wonderful educational reference source.
  
  However, even though I certainly am academically ecstatic with regard to the above mentioned secondary sources encountered in The Mysterious Universe: Supernovae, Dark Energy, and Black Holes, if I then decide to turn my full attention to the author’s, to Ellen Jackson’s actual presented text (and yes, even though Jackson certainly features much educational, much enlightening information and details about the universe, about the supernovae, dark energy and black holes of the book title, and while Nic Bishop’s accompanying photographs are visually stunning and provide a very nice aesthetic mirror to and for the featured narrative), I do readily admit that I rather find in particular Ellen Jackson’s writing style, I do consider how she features her facts and figures about the universe for the most part so verbally tedious and dragging that I often am catching myself not only majorly distracted but also impatiently skimming and wishing that The Mysterious Universe: Supernovae, Dark Energy, and Black Holes would just stop and be done with (and yes, actually rather feeling myself a bit like a black hole swallowing and destroying my potential reading pleasure).
  
  And albeit that I am still rating The Mysterious Universe: Supernovae, Dark Energy, and Black Holes with three stars, this is really just because I am so totally intellectually impressed with how Ellen Jackson has presented and organised her bibliography, as if I were to mostly consider how much I have enjoyed actually reading The Mysterious Universe: Supernovae, Dark Energy, and Black Holes, Ellen Jackson’s printed words, they are in fact and definitely only two stars for me.
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  Johnny

  Author: Ellen Jackson
  Genre: Informational
  
  Summary: Discusses the importance of supernovae, and dark energy in understanding the expansion of the universe.
  
  A. The content of this book is critiqued
  
  B. The book presents several aspects of astronomy in a clear and understandable manner for older students. The phenomenon of supernovae, dark energy and black holes are made clear through vivid illustrations. The role that dark energy plays in the expansion of the universe is well illustrated (pg 38).The information is presented in a factual, but light-hearted manner allowing young students to fill comfortable reading this text. On page 5, for example it states "Wahoo!" he shouts. "We nailed it. We've got a Type 1a (One-A) supernova!” However, the appeal to young readers sometimes seems to go a bit too far, for example on page 16, the author is pictured holding a boogie board at the beach and the text refers to him eating pizza, that appears more distracting than engaging. Also, the content of the story focuses primarily on the astronomical work of one person, the author, Alex Filippenko that causes one to wonder if the information presented is shared by the wider science community.
  
  C. Appropriate for teaching a science curriculum covering astronomy basics of dark energy, black holes, super novae, and how Doppler shift can to measure the universe's speed of expansion, and how astronomers use the Doppler shift to predict the beginning of the universe.
  
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  Lisa Mason

  1.Informational
  
  2.The Mysterious Universe works to explain the existence of supernovae, dark energy and black holes through the work of Alex Filippenko, an astronomer at the University of California, Berkeley.
  
  3.A. Content B. The book uses everyday examples from Alex Filippenko’s own teachings to help explain many of the concepts surrounding astronomy while including photographs of him at work in and among the telescopes. C. Chocolate chip cookies in the oven, ping pong balls on bungee cords and Alex dressed up like a black hole are all ways in which this book helps young readers understand and identify with the science of astronomy. One photograph shows Alex with the very telescope that he got for Christmas at the age of fourteen while another shows him standing inside the dome of the massive Keck telescope in Hawaii. These additions to the book all help personalize Alex and his work for the reader.
  
  4.This book is an excellent resource for the study of astronomy and the universe. Students may also want to continue further research using the list of resources at the back of this book.
  
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  Krista the Krazy Kataloguer

  Well, I learned something from this book--never heard of "dark energy" before. I must read more! I love this "Scientists in the Field" series. This one describes an astronomer's search for a particular type of supernova. I especially liked seeing what modern telescopes look like, and was surprised to learn that using these telescopes requires sitting at a computer rather than looking through an eyepiece. The incredible vastness of the universe as described in the text and shown in the photographs was difficult for me to wrap my mind around. At one time in my life I thought I might want to be an astronomer, but books won out. At least I can continue reading about it in books like this one.
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  Erika

  Every so often, I pick up a random nonfiction book and try to learn something. This book was very cool, I have always loved animals, plants, rocks, space—I guess that’s science! I learned a lot, I puzzled a lot, astronomy is like time travel—thinking too hard about what temperature a white dwarf is and how they actually know it makes my brain hurt a bit....but I am glad I read it!
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  Paige

  I love the astronomy information, but the common thread about one man was off putting...just t.m.i
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  Rhiannon Hubble

  1. Genre: Juvenile Non-Fiction
  2. This book explores the mystery of the universe including supernovae, dark energy, and black holes.
  3. a) Area for comment: Style
  b) Although this book is non-fiction and deals with very complex concepts concerning the universe the text is written in a style that is appropriately suitable for young readers. Additionally, the author goes our of her way to engage the reader and present the information in other ways and uses examples that makes understanding the abstract concepts even easier to understand.
  c) Examples of style:
  "People sometimes have difficulty understanding how the universe can be expanding. Imagine a chocolate chip cake baking in the oven. As the cake rises, it gets larger. Each of the chocolate chips inside the cake moves away from every other chocolate chip. This is similar to the way galaxies all move away from each other." (Page 11)
  "Gas and dust clouds surrounding Eta Carinae can be seen in this Hubble telescope image." (Page 48) On this page there is also a picture that shows the exact photo taken by the Hubble telescope. This is just one of the many examples and illustrations used throughout the book to provide additional information into the concepts presented in the text.
  4. Because this book is non-fiction, it lends itself beautifully to be incorporated in many different science lessons concerning outer space and the planets. Also, this book can be used to introduce more abstract concepts to students. This book can be used in English/Language Arts lessons to show students what a non-fiction books look like as well as the kind of information that can be found within a non-fiction book
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  Pat Carlson

  The Mysterious Universe, by Ellen Jackson (2008, Houghton Mifflin) p.60.
  Junior book: non fiction
  
  Summary: I chose the book The Mysterious Universe by Ellen Jackson. I chose this book because I was thinking of my boys who love to learn how things work and there is a lunar eclipse this week. The book starts with an explanation that stars are as numerous as the grains of sand on a beach. Then it explains the theory of the Big Bang and why our sun could never go super nova. It explains light travel, black holes and the composition of the universe. There is a glossary in the back with the definitions of the terms used; this will be helpful to readers.
  
  a) accuracy
  
  b) The information was featured by an astronomy professor. The featured scientist Alex Fillippenko also has written over a hundred articles, and is heralded as the most quoted astronomer. The information is accurate and the description of the expanding universe has a picture demonstration that is amazing.
  
  c) On page 12 the description of the expanding universe, on page 25 an accurate description of an astronomical candle unit, pg. 44 pictures of the Lisk refractor at the Mauna Kea observatory.
  
  Curriculum connection:
  Social Studies, Christopher Columbus knowing the world was round. Aristotle, Martin Luther, Plato, Romans, navigation.
  Science: Chemistry, biology, chemical compositions, energy, mass, weight, matter, light speed, neutrons, nucleus, protons, molecules, solutions, solutes, etc...
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  Suzanne

  Mysterious Universe: Supernovae, Dark Energy, and Black Holes- Ellen Jackson
  
  This book is an introduction for elementary to middle school age children to the science of astronomy and the ways astronomers are unlocking the mysteries of the universe.
  
  Curriculum Connection:
  The book is written in a simple style and is clearly aimed at informing children. I would recommend it to 4th-8th graders with an interest in science or even as an introduction to non-fiction books.
  
  Personal Reaction:
  The book did an exceptional job explaining difficult scientific concepts like the origin of the universe and the objects that make up the universe like dark matter and supernovae. I learned SO much. My favorite idea was that these scientists believe that most of the atoms in our bodies and everything that surrounds us except for hydrogen were formed in the hearts of stars and spread through space by supernova explosions. It also will be interesting for young readers to see how these scientists got their start in science and what their daily jobs are like.
  
  
  Visual Appeal: The photographs in this book are stunning and inspire the reader's imagination about what could be possible with space exploration.
  
  Intended Audience: 4th to 8th grades.
  
  Genre: Informational.
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  Cindi

  My son originally checked out this book because Nic Bishop took the photographs.
  
  I'm really proud of myself for reading this after he finished. Although I love astronomy in general, physics is the bane of my existence. (That's my husband's department. I made him sit in on my physics class and help me do my homework, just to get a B.)
  
  Since this is a juvenile book, it's o.k. to just sit back and enjoy the ride. This book was fascinating. Dark energy? Dark matter? Did you know that the room that you are sitting in contains dark energy? Did you know that 1% of the static on your t.v. is radiation left over from the big bang? The universe is amazing and full of mystery. I loved hearing about supernovae, neutron stars, etc. I still can't wrap my brain around the idea that the universe may have started out smaller than an atom and then exploded into what we see (and don't see) now.
  
  Do you ever get to the end of a book and just can't help smiling, because it was so amazing? Read this book. I think you'll smile!
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  Abby Johnson

  A supernova is a star that's ending its life in a fantastic explosion. They are so far away that light from a supernova can take billions of years to reach human eyes. Looking at a supernova is like looking back in time, seeing it how it was many, many years ago. Alex Filippenko studies supernovae. He also studies black holes.
  
  Why study supernovae and black holes? Scientists have determined that most of the universe is made up of things called dark matter and dark energy... and no one is sure exactly what those are. The more we study them, the closer we come to knowing what makes up our universe and possibly how it started and what will happen to it in the future.
  
  With brilliant photographs and informative sidebars, this is a great entry in the Scientists in the Field series. It describes the mysterious objects in our universe and makes it plain that there is lots that we don't know. A bibliography, list of resources for students and teachers, and an index round out the book.
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  Inoli

  I'm going to put this somewhere between 3-1/2 and 4 stars. This is a rating in the context of the age group it was written for which is listed in the resource I use for age considerations as 8 to 12 year olds. It seems to me that the intention was to cover the subject in a way that would spark an interest in those just being introduced to science in general and astronomy/physics in particular. I believe it would do an excellent job of that. If you have any knowledge of the subject at all you probably won't get much out of it. It was a little hard sticking with this for me but some of the things I read are for the sake of evaluating whether I want to pass them on to a couple young friends. This will definitely be one that I pass on.
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  Brandon

  I picked this book off the shelf at the library to read with my 5 year old daughter. She seemed to enjoy the book and I learned quite a bit as well. In fact, my complaint with the book is that the cover did not disclose it was a "Scientists in the Field" book. As I read, I was puzzled why they would focus so much on Alex instead of talking more generally about supernovae and discoveries across the board. However, once it became clear that this book is more about astronomers studying the universe, I realized it covers its subject quite well. Perhaps the best tribute to this book is that my daughter wants to get another book about the universe for us to read together.
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  Brooke Shirts

  I don't know what's more interesting: the book's (very well written) explanation of supernovae, or Jackson's profile of astrophysicist Alex Filipenko, the kind of guy who likes to be a black hole for Halloween and radiate candy. I love that this book (and indeed, the entire "Scientists in the Field" series) not only shows how scientists find information (what DO they do in those observatories?) but what they do with their research, and what being a scientist is like (i.e. they are usually fun, smart people who love their work). Nic Bishop's photographs are, as always, top-notch.
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  Maria

  A winning combination of astronomical information, (predominately about stars, supernovas, and black holes) and insights into the life of a practicing astronomer. Ideas were clearly explained with concrete examples and illustrations.
  
  This would work for advanced learners in upper elementary, but would be good for any age beyond that.
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  Sarah

  An excellent book about specific astronomy info. It traces an astronomer's days trying to find supernovae and explains what they are. It left me wanting to learn more about dark energy and find out--just like everyone else, I guess--what dark energy is. Beautiful pictures, excellent explanations and wonderfully simple and engaging text.
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  Jenny

  More like 3.5 stars. This was a fun book to read aloud to my 7-year-old. Very high level stuff (middle school?), but with some support, she was able to understand quite a bit of it.
  
  I always loved astronomy as a kid, so it's neat to pass some of that along to my daughters.
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  Lilla

  A great book for kids and pre-teens on dark energy and dark matter!
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  Tara

  I would guess a middle school level astronomy book. Very advanced as far as concepts (standard candles etc) but has the usual vibrant pictures and text that is relatively easy to follow.
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  Julian

  This was a very informative book. I liked it a lot.
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  Steve

  audio
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  TJ Martin

  This book goes over things like Black holes, dark matter and supernovas, just to name a few. I liked this book, and think it could be good in the later grades to maybe introduce some of these topics, but part of me thinks there may be some concepts in the book that students this age might not need/want to go over.