This book explores a large number of resonance effects that occur both in everyday life and in scientific contexts. It is a topic that provides a cross-link between many branches of science and shows how a single scientific principle can manifest itself in many, apparently disparate, ways. Resonance covers fields as diverse as civil engineering in relation to the safety of bridges, the quality of sound from musical instruments, the behaviour of electrical circuits, lasers, the orbits of solar-system bodies, the scattering of X-rays from atoms and the exploration of the structures of molecules, atoms and nuclei. The essential mathematics included should be accessible to any science undergraduate, no matter the discipline of their study. Problems and solutions are provided for every chapter to help reinforce understanding of the material.

Product Description: This fully-updated second edition remains the only truly detailed exploration of the origins of our Solar System, written by an authority in the field. Unlike other authors, Michael Woolfson focuses on the formation of the solar system, engaging the reader in an intelligent yet accessible discussion of the development of ideas about how the Solar System formed from ancient times to the present...read more

Product Description: Since the publication of the popular first edition, stellar and planetary scientists have produced numerous new observations, theories, and interpretations, including the "demotion" of our former ninth planet Pluto as a dwarf planet...read more

It is through images that we understand the form and function of material objects, from the fundamental particles that are the constituents of matter to galaxies that are the constituents of the Universe. Imaging must be thought of in a flexible way as varying from just the detection of objects - a blip on a screen representing an aircraft or a vapour trail representing the passage of an exotic particle - to displaying the fine detail in the eye of an insect or the arrangement of atoms within or on the surface of a solid. The range of imaging tools, both in the type of wave phenomena used and in the devices that utilize them, is vast. This book will illustrate this range, with wave phenomena covering the entire electromagnetic spectrum and ultrasound, and devices that vary from those that just detect the presence of objects to those that image objects in exquisite detail. The word 'fundamentals' in the title has meaning for this book. There will be no attempt to delve into the fine technical details of the construction of specific devices but rather the book aims to give an understanding of the principles behind the imaging process and a general account of how those principles are utilized.

Product Description: The book begins with a historical review of four major theories for the origin of the Solar System in particular, or of planets in general, which highlight the major problems that need to be solved by any plausible theory. In many theories, including that which form the major theme of this book, the formation of planets and stars is intimately linked, so four chapters are devoted to the processes that can be described as the birth, life and death of stars...read more

This book traces the history of ideas about the nature of matter and also the way that mankind has used material resources that the world offers. Starting with the ideas of ancient civilizations that air, earth, fire and water were the basic ingredients of all matter, it traces the development of the science of chemistry beginning within the ranks of the alchemists. First, the idea of elements grew and then the atomic nature of matter was verified. Physicists had entered the scene, showing the nature of atoms in terms of fundamental particles and then introducing the concept of wave-particle duality that altered the basic concepts of what matter was. Finally the physicists discovered a panoply of fundamental particles, some observed within atom-smashing machines and the existence of others merely postulated. In parallel with the above there is a description of various kinds of matter as it affects everyday life - including the nature of matter associated with life itself. The way that early man used the materials directly given by nature, such as stone, wood and animal skins, is followed by the use of materials requiring some process to be employed - e.g. metals which include bronze and also concrete. Some important modern materials are discussed, such as synthetic fibres and plastics and semiconductors, and potentially important future products from new developments in nanotechnology.

Product Description: The three greatest scientific mysteries, which remain poorly understood, are the origin of the universe, the origin of life and the development of consciousness. This book describes the processes preceding the Big Bang, the creation of matter, the concentration of that matter into stars and planets, the development of simple life forms and the theory of evolution that has given higher life forms, including mankind...read more

Product Description: Probability and statistics impinge on the life of the average person in a variety of ways -- as is suggested by the title of this book. Very often information is provided that is factually accurate but intended to give a biased view...read more