Opinions on the large-scale structure of the early universe
range widely from primeval chaos to a well-ordered mass
distribution. P.J.E. Peebles argues that the evolution proceeded
from a nearly uniform initial state to a progressively more
irregular and clumpy universe. The discussion centers on the
largest known structures, the clusters of galaxies, the
empirical evidence of the nature of the clustering, and the
theories of how the clustering evolves in an expanding universe.
In Chapter One the author provides an historical introduction to
the subject. Chapter Two contains a survey of methods used to
deal with the Newtonian approximation to the theory of the
evolution of the mass distribution. Recent progress in the use
of statistical measures of the clustering is described in
Chapter Three. Chapters Four and Five return to techniques for
dealing with cosmic evolution, in the statistical measures of
clustering and under general relativity theory. Lastly, in
Chapter Six Professor Peebles assesses the progres