Understanding the Universe with Timothy Ferris

New Thinking Allowed with Jeffrey Mishlove Feb 6, 2026 This video is a special release from the original Thinking Allowed series that ran on public television from 1986 until 2002. It was recorded in about 1990. It will remain public for only one week. Timothy Ferris is an American science writer. He is best known for Coming of Age in the Milky Way (1988), a history of astronomy for which he was awarded the American Institute of Physics Prize and nominated for the Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction. He also wrote The Whole Shebang: A State-of-the-Universe(s) Report (1997), a popular overview of cosmology. Timothy explores modern cosmology through the Big Bang, cosmic expansion, and the observational evidence that supports a universe with a finite origin. He discusses time, space, black holes, and the deep mysteries that arise when relativity and quantum physics approach their limits. Ferris also opens philosophical questions about consciousness, self-awareness, and humanity’s role in an evolving universe. 00:00:01 Introduction 00:02:45 The big bang framework 00:04:29 Expansion of the universe 00:06:17 Cosmic background radiation 00:09:05 Origin of time and space 00:11:07 The mystery of time 00:12:26 Seeing the past of the universe 00:16:04 Black holes and curvature of space 00:19:03 Unifying physics theories 00:28:02 Conclusion

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