Brief Answers to Big Questions

The 10 questions addressed here include

1. Is there a God?
2. How it all began?
3. Is there other intelligent life in the universe?
4. Can we predict the future?
5. What is inside a black hole?
6. Is time travel possible?
7. Will we survive on Earth?
8. Should we colonise space?
9. Will artificial intelligence outsmart us?
10. How do we shape the future?

I was skeptical about this book. I wasn’t sure if I would grasp everything about cosmology, quantum physics, black holes, and string theory. That’s the amazing thing about Hawkings. He simplifies things for you, and you get the gist. His answers are straightforward, factual, and funny. He never misses an opportunity to throw in a joke. What a remarkable person and a remarkable life, and he is so honest about everything he thinks and has experienced.

© 2026 Sindhuja Cheema Enzinger. All Rights Reserved.

Six Easy Pieces - Essentials of Physics Explained by Its Most Brilliant Teacher

I really enjoyed the book, simply because it wasn’t explained so beautifully. The book begins by emphasizing that Physics is one of the most inaccurate sciences, with much of it based on assumptions, and there’s always the possibility that what you believe in today could be disproved tomorrow.

It makes you appreciate things around you differently and fosters an open mind toward many new discoveries and technologies. The author explains the fundamentals beautifully, starting with atoms and their influence on everything around us. He then explores quantum mechanics and how the study of atoms has revolutionized the rules of physics. Then, he delves into gravitational forces and energy conversion before returning to quantum theory. The book highlights how Physics is present in everything, including chemistry, biology, astronomy, psychology, and more. Science is wonderful, and human beings’ curiosity to know and discover more is what keeps us progressing. It’s crucial not to accept things as they are and to question why they are the way they are, and if that’s how they should be.

© 2026 Sindhuja Cheema Enzinger. All Rights Reserved.