Prologue: The beginning of science
Section 1: The nature of knowledge : the challenges of knowing what is knowable in the universe. Coming to our senses ; On Earth as in the heavens ; Seeing isn't believing ; The information trap ; Stick-in-the-mud science
Section 2: The knowledge of nature : the challenges of discovering the contents of the cosmos. Journeys from the center of the Sun ; Planet parade ; Vagabonds of the solar system ; The five points of Lagrange ; Antimatter matters
Section 3: Ways and means of nature : how nature presents herself to the inquiring mind. The importance of being constant ; Speed limits ; Going ballistic ; On being dense ; Over the rainbow ; cosmic windows ; Colors of the cosmos ; Cosmic plasma ; Fire and ice ; Section 4: The meaning of life : the challenges and triumphs of knowing how we got here. Dust to dust ; Forged in the stars ; Send in the clouds ; Goldilocks and the three planets ; Water, water ; Living space ; Life in the universe ; Our radio bubble. Section 5: When the universe turns bad : all the ways the cosmos wants to kill us ; Chaos in the solar system ; Coming attractions ; ends of the world ; Galactic engines ; Knock 'em dead ; Death by black hole
Section 6: Science and culture : the ruffled interface between cosmic discovery and the public's reaction to it. Things people say ; Fear of numbers ; On being baffled ; Footprints in the sands of science ; Let there be dark ; Hollywood nights
Section 7: Science and God : when ways of knowing collide. In the beginning ; Holy wars ; The perimeter of ignorance.
