Brian Cox's Wonders Of The Universe Review

One of the many beauties of the iPad is its ability to bring education to life, immediately making even the most staid material fascinating. Discovering all there is to know about the Universe and its origins is hardly dull to begin with but Brian Cox's Wonders of the Universe makes it all the more exciting with a huge wealth of information on the subject.

It's all brought to life through a huge number of interactive articles and video clips, courtesy of famous and popular British physicist Professor Brian Cox.

The app is laid out in an attractive manner that still feels like a book but with the strength of interactivity that the iPad can offer. 7 different sections are available for viewing, starting with the analysis of particles and the Big Bang, continuing into the origin of life, what stars are made of and a breakdown of all things to do with the Milky Way and galaxies.

Over 50 3D models of planets, galaxies and nebulae bring such concepts to life, along with the 200 interactive articles and two and a half hours of video footage, taken from the BBC TV series Wonders of the Solar System and Wonders of the Universe.

Brian Cox's Wonders of the Universe sounds weighty and potentially intimidating, but this couldn't be further from the truth. It opens up such potentially complicated material in a way that will appeal to almost all people vaguely interested in the subject.

On a technical level, the app works well. It's easy to browse and swipe around. One limitation does come in the form of the need for an internet connection in order to stream videos, but at least other content is accessible regardless of a Wi-Fi or 3G spot.

As a reference tool, Brian Cox's Wonders of the Universe is a little simplistic at times, clearly aimed at getting novices interested rather than building hugely upon any basic knowledge. I found myself keen to learn more on certain subjects within the app, but this makes it an ideal introduction to such important topics.