Book Description

This collection of review lectures on topics in theoretical high energy physics has few rivals for clarity of exposition and depth of insight.Delivered over the past two decades at the International School of Subnuclear Physics in Erice, Sicily, the lectures help to organize and explain material that a the time existed in a confused state, scattered in the literature.At the time they were given they spread new ideas throughout the physics community and proved very popular as introductions to topics at the frontiers of research. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

A wonderful book to supplement one's QFT knowledge
This 400-page book contains eight lectures of varying length (some are quite long). The first two are not very useful, but the remainder of the book is wonderful. It covers topics like scale invariance, Callan-Symanzik (RG) equations, renormalization theory (Hepp's theorem), spontaneously broken symmetries, classical and quantum solitons, instantons (in QM and in gauge theories), and 1/N expansion. These are all useful topics and must be understood by those in the field, and yet not all of them are covered by ordinary quantum field theory books like Peskin & Schroeder. The style is very friendly and readable and includes a lot of endnotes, appendices, and references. This book does not "read" like Peskin/Schroeder or Weinberg or Itzykson/Zuber; those books don't read. This one does. The equations are easy to follow and this book showcases the strength of Coleman's pedagogical style. In fact I can vouch that the tone and content of these lectures serves as a close substitue for Coleman's lectures themselves. The topics were all basically developed in the 1970s, and were themselves all quite hot research areas before supersymmetry and string theory revolutionized high-energy physics. However, the majority of this book is not an anachronism -- the renormalization group, spontaneously broken symmetries, solitons, instantons, and 1/N expansion all pervade modern physics.

A Classic
Coleman is one of the best field theorists and a great lecturer. His style in both research and lectures can be summarized as "turning obvious into trivial". Every topic is presented in the simplest possible way without loss of deep insights, which makes the book extremely comprehensible. The chapter on instantons is absolutely classic.

unconventional QFT book
Many physicists say that Coleman is one of the great field theoriest in time. This is the collection of what he had lectured. Each chapter has own its importance. The advantage of the book is that he avoided the mathematical complication to explain the real physics. It is very unique feature in the QFT books. So you can get the concept of field theory without mathematical jargon which most students hate. ... Read more

Book Description

Experts in their fields provide up-to-date, comprehensive information on the physics underlying modern nuclear medicine and imaging using radioactively labeled tracers. They examine every aspect of the field--from basic atomic physics through radioactivity, isotope production, interaction of radiation with matter, radiation detection, and imaging systems. Examples are presented with solutions worked out in step-by-step detail, illustrating important concepts and calculations. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

The "Standard text" for nuclear medicine physics
"Sorenson and Phelps" is now "Cherry, Sorenson and Phelps." It is still the standard text for nuclear medicine physics, covering the topics well for the radiology resident, nuclear medicine resident or fellow, or a beginning medical physicist. While clearly (in my opinion) the best text in its field, I would suggest that the authors give future consideration for a companion CD ROM (as in many new texts) that helps the reader understand some of the more complex topics, and that they give more treatment to quantiative PET scanning (including a "cookbook" on Patlak analysis using either arterial sampling or modified for venous sampling with left ventricular or aortic region of interest measurement with PET/CT). Sadly, little PET/CT information is available, perhaps the "hottest" topic in nuclear medicine.

All in all, though, it is still the standard text in the field. I am glad to see (and own) the latest edition, and highly recommend it for purchase.

superb information content explained well
Sorenson and Phelps have compiled all of the relative and essential physics of nuclear medicine in such a way that is easy to understand. This text also contained graphs that illustrated points and made them much clearer. The pictures of hardware, although somewhat outdated, also were helpful in the learning process. This is an excellent text for any course of study related to nuclear medicine.

The bible for nuclear medicine physics...a "must have" book.
This is one of those books that should be in the
library of every medical and health physicist, radiologist, residents and students. A little dated by now (published in 1986), but it still provides excellent coverage of the basic physics of nuclear medicine which haven't really changed.
Topics covered include radiation, radiation detectors and instrumentation, radionuclide production, dosimetry, Anger cameras and imaging systems, tracer kinetics and radiation safety. ... Read more

Book Description

This textbook covers elements of quantum field theory, symmetry principles, gauge field theories and phenomenological descriptions of hadrons, with special emphasis on topics relevant to hadron and nuclear physics. Written at an introductory level, it is aimed at nuclear physicists in general and experimentalists in particular who need a working knowledge of field theory, symmetry principles of elementary particles and their interactions and the quark structure of hadrons. It will also be of benefit to graduate students who need an understanding of the basics of these topics for their work in other fields. ... Read more

Book Description

Weapons of mass destruction (WMD) are the greatest threat to national security in the twenty-first century. How to Build a Nuclear Bomb explains what it takes for a rogue state or terrorist group to obtain and use them. But nuclear weapons and terrorism expert Frank Barnaby has not written a collection of scare stories. His purpose in How to Build a Nuclear Bomb is to counteract the "misinformation, often put out for propaganda purposes" and general ignorance on this most urgent of topics. Barnaby describes, in straightforward, non-sensational terms what is involved when a state or a terrorist group sets out to make a weapon of mass destruction, what they are capable of doing, and what is needed to produce one. By outlining the parameters of the problem, Barnaby is able to accurately gauge the threat that WMD pose, arguing that counterterrorist measures urgently need to be stepped up to meet the challenges of a new era of international terror. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A decent study of the problem of WMD
I have read quite a lot on this subject so I almost did not buy it because I thought from a quickscan that I knew almost all this stuff and it would be too simple.

However I certainly learnt much from it. If you are looking for a good book to state the current world situation this book will do the trick in a quite readable form. ... Read more

Book Description

This monograph describes plasma physics for magnetic confinement of high temperature plasmas in nonaxisymmetric toroidal magnetic fields or stellarators. The author covers all aspects of magnetic confinement, formation of magnetic surfaces, magnetohydrodynamic equilibrium and stability, single charged particle confinement, neoclassical transport and plasma heating. ... Read more

Book Description

High-level treatment offers especially clear discussions of the general theory and its applications. Basic principles, coupling coefficients for vector addition, transformation properties of the angular momentum wave functions under rotations of the coordinate axes, irreducible tensors and Racah coefficients. Also, applications involving oriented nuclei, coupling schemes in nuclear reactions, more. References. 1957 edition.
... Read more

Reviews (1)

Want to know angular momentum? Read this book!
This book is a good self-contained exposition of the theory of angular momentum for students at advanced undergraduate or early graduate level. Covers many of the same areas as Brink and Satchler, but the explanations and approach are different (less formal). The two books complement each other very well. ... Read more

Book Description

(preliminary): Embedded in an autobiographic framework, this book retraces vividly and in some depth the golden years of particle physics as witnessed by one of the scientiest who made decisive contributions to the understanding of what is now known as the Standard Model of particle physics (...) Last but not least, this book is a must for all students and young researchers who have learned about the theoretical and experimental facts that make up the standard model through textbooks and would like to get a first hand account of the often multilayered and sinous development that finally led to the present architecture of this theory.

Reviews (1)

A nice and useful book
The book reviews the basic prerequisites for physicians interested in nuclear medicine. It is not complete and the image acquisition and processing part for SPECT imaging is sparse, but it's a very nice little book. I used it to prepare for the nuclear cardiology board certification exam and I found it very useful, although it is geared more towards general nuclear medicine. The book is clear and concise and the questions at the end of each chapter are extremly helpful. ... Read more

Book Description

This book treats the experimental techniques and instrumentation most often used in nuclear and particle physics experiments as well as in various other experiments. It provides useful results and formulae, technical know-how and informative details. This second edition has been revised; sections on Cherenkov radiation and radiation protection have been updated and extended. Thanks to the author's long teaching experience, the material is presented in a very practical, hands-on way making the book a useful text and laboratory companion for students and experienced scientists alike. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Concise overview for the nuclear experimentalist
Leo's book is a good, concise and concerning standard methods especially in nuclear spectroscopy up-to-date summary of the field. The basic physics ideas are introduced, although not too deeply discussed (but this is a book for the experimentalist, therefore no objections). It is a helpful companion in simple experimental considerations which come to an experimental nuclear spectroscopist every day: The color codes of resistors and the overview over the connectors in a CAMAC crate are examples for these features.

Elaborate references are given for each section that make it possible for the reader to find additional descriptions rather easily. Additional insight on dosimetry and radiation damage and some remarks on statistics make this book an interesting alternative to G.F. Knoll's "Radiation detection and measurement".

The emphasis of Leo's approach is surely (a) on a concise overview rather than an in-depth discussion and (b) on nuclear spectroscopy (gamma and particle detection at some MeV or so) rather than medium and large-scale high-energy physics experiments. Widely used components of high-energy physics equipment are, however, presented, but additional literature might be needed.

One final remark to my fellow reviewer Fabio: One example for a "statistical process" is e.g. the number of electron-hole pairs created in the detection of a charged particle or gamma ray. This process is truely statistical, i.e. it does not depend on things that the experimentator has at hand. The intrinsic resolution of a high-purity Germanium detector with respect to a, say, 3 MeV gamma ray cannot be changed (at least to a large extent). Have a look into Leo's book if you don't believe me!

Quite deep overview, but statistics...
It's a good book: very good English, it treats quite everything from the point of view of CAUSES! It's full of precise references (good for the thesis!).

Expecially good topics: ionization and scintillation detectors; photomultipliers. Lacks: calorimetres and Cerenkov counters! For these topics I suggest: 'Particle Detectors' (many auth.), Cambridge University Press.

Just one thing about statistics: you have always to substitute this sentence:

''... because of the statistical nature of the process...''

with

''...because of the uncertainties related to the process, we choose to treat it as statistical...'' OK, it's a bit longer; but are you sure that all advanced physicians know that Caos does not exist as a real entity? It's just a choice of the experimenter to supply lacks in understanding and measuring the process or to simplify it. If you don't believe so, I ask you: why do you make research? Let's talk about it. ... Read more

Book Description

A comprehensive, unified treatment of present-day nuclear physics-the fresh edition of a classic text/reference.

"A fine and thoroughly up-to-date textbook on nuclear physics . . . most welcome." -Physics Today (on the First Edition).

What sets Introductory Nuclear Physics apart from other books on the subject is its presentation of nuclear physics as an integral part of modern physics. Placing the discipline within a broad historical and scientific context, it makes important connections to other fields such as elementary particle physics and astrophysics.

Now fully revised and updated, this Second Edition explores the changing directions in nuclear physics, emphasizing new developments and current research-from superdeformation to quark-gluon plasma. Author Samuel S.M. Wong preserves those areas that established the First Edition as a standard text in university physics departments, focusing on what is exciting about the discipline and providing a concise, thorough, and accessible treatment of the fundamental aspects of nuclear properties.

In this new edition, Professor Wong:
* Includes a chapter on heavy-ion reactions-from high-spin states to quark-gluon plasma
* Adds a new chapter on nuclear astrophysics
* Relates observed nuclear properties to the underlying nuclear interaction and the symmetry principles governing subatomic particles
* Regroups material and appendices to make the text easier to use
* Lists Internet links to essential databases and research projects
* Features end-of-chapter exercises using real-world data.

Introductory Nuclear Physics, Second Edition is an ideal text for courses in nuclear physics at the senior undergraduate or first-year graduate level. It is also an important resource for scientists and engineers working with nuclei, for astrophysicists and particle physicists, and for anyone wishing to learn more about trends in the field. ... Read more

Book Description

The second edition of this well-received book is a clear and readable introduction to the ideas and concepts of particle physics.It bridges the gap between traditional textbooks on the subject and popular accounts that assume little or no background in the physical sciences on the part of the reader. This edition has been carefully revised throughout to provide a completely up-to-date and comprehensive overview of this fascinating subject. Historical aspects are discussed together with the most important recent experiments, and the theoretical development of the subject is traced from its foundations in relativity and quantum mechanics through to the very latest theories. There are also three completely new chapters covering quantum gravity, super-unification, and the relationship between particle physics and cosmology. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

The best particle physics book! ever
This is such an up to date and accurate book I have never read a book that explains particle physics in such detail yet keeps the information understandable. If your are just starting out in particle physics read this book. It's brilliant!

Clear, concise, explanations accessible to undergrad student
Excellent use of figures and pictures in place of equations. Useful for an undergrad survey course, or as a reference for grad courses. Fred Olness, SMU ... Read more

Book Description

One of the triumphs of modern particle physics has been the extent to whichQuantum Chromodynamics (QCD) has successfully accounted for the strong interaction processes observed at high-energy particle colliders, for example the production of heavy quarks and jets of particles, and the short-distance parton structure of the proton.This book gives a detailed overview of high-energy collider physics with special emphasis on the study of QCD. After a general description of the QCD Lagrangian, and the properties of asymptotic freedom and color confinement that derive from it, the most important applications at high-energy colliders are described in detail.These include the production of jets, heavy quarks, electroweak gauge bosons and Higgs bosons.The various methods of measuring the strong coupling constant are summarized.Many of the theoretical results are calculated from first principles. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

A practical introduction to collider physics
This book is for graduate students and researchers in elementary
particle physics. It covers how experimental results from
high energy particle colliders are related to the theory, with
an emphasis on the theory of quantum chromodynamics. The authors
are three of the leading experts in this area. In my opinion, the
book isn't perfect, but it's very good.

Please note the update page
Please note that the authors maintain an update and erratumpage at www.hep.phy.cam.ac.uk/theory/webber/QCDupdates.html END

Basic Tools
In this book you can find both a very brief and clear introduction to the theoretical picture of Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD) and lots of phenomenological applications. It contains descriptions and data of many particles processes as some important exact calculations. It should be of interest to graduate students who intend to work in QCD. It is suggested knowledge of elementary particles physics and field theory. I liked this book because it gave to me a comprehensive overview of the physics of high-energy colliders. ... Read more

Book Description

"The book's science is solid and McCarthy's fervor genuinely infectious. The future never felt so close." --Wired

Programmable matter is probably not the next technological revolution, nor even perhaps the one after that. But it's coming, and when it does, it will change our lives as much as any invention ever has. Imagine being able to program matter itself-to change it, with the click of a cursor, from hard to soft, from paper to stone, from fluorescent to super-reflective to invisible. Supported by organizations ranging from Levi Strauss and IBM to the Defense Department, solid-state physicists in renowned laboratories are working to make it a reality. In this dazzling investigation, Wil McCarthy visits the laboratories and talks with the researchers who are developing this extraordinary technology, describes how they are learning to control it, and tells us where all this will lead. The possibilities are truly astonishing. ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Star Trek Explained
I think the content of the book was so far out into the future that suddenly Star Trek movies make sence. The material is discussing theory so much with real practical applications many decades away, that one cannot help but think of Star Trek. It is with programmable matter that the future trekies can enable themselves to own cool toys like tricorders, replicators, cloaking devices, shape shifters etc. I think an alternative title of the book could have been, "Star Trek Explained" :-)

Being a science fiction fan, I enjoyed it thoroughly, except for the technical details of wellstone which was a drag in the end...

brilliant -
One can poke several holes into a lot of the stuff that is discussed in the book - especially that this technology (using quantum dots to create artificial matter that emulates real matter) is so far away as to be in the realm of sci-fi. However -inspite of all those caveats - the author does a great job of explaining the potential of this technology. His enthusiasm is contagious - and one really wishes that this technology advances at a faster pace.
I enjoyed it thoroughly - and compliment the author on his well-researched and well presented ideas.

A focused yet wandering introduction to quantum materials
I purchased this book for the title alone, while shelf-browsing at ETcon 2003; to see a non-fiction book discussing programmable matter on the cover was enough to catch my attention.

I found it a casual, yet enjoyable read; it threads gently through the prerequisite background, glossing over the specific details to keep the primary focus of the book intact; as it turned out, this didn't affect my enjoyment at all, while providing lots of jumping-off points for the interested observer to research further.

Managing to not get distracted by the fact that such things as "electron shells" and "thermochromatics", it introduces the reader (educated as they may or may not be) to the concept of a kind of material whose properties can be changed at will, by humans (not just nature). The core concept at hand is "quantum dots", and the text returns over and over again to this, diverging occasionally to provide anecdotes, or ways these semi-magical materials have already been (or soon, could be) used.

Overall, I felt the book a good read; if you're looking for an introduction into the world of quantum dots, dynamically modifiable materials, and science the likes of which one would formerly have expected from science fiction. It's not a book in which can be found explicit technical details, though there's more than a hundred references in the end-of-book bibliography; for that alone, it would be a perfect entry point for research.

Highly recommended.

Mostly Fiction, Not much Fact
While the book presents some interesting and perhaps even thought-provoking ideas, I don't think the author has a clear understanding of the physics behind "programmable atoms," or quantum dots. To be perfectly honest, I don't think he understands basic physical or chemical properties either.

Had I not donated the book to the local library (I have no use for it anymore) I would pull some exact quotes, but McCarthy states some real zingers, like how an atom's properties are completely and singularly dependent upon it's outermost electrons. Elsewhere in the book he states that protons and neutrons are always paired together. So the addition of another electron means you've made a new atom, one step up in the periodic table? What are ions, then? Perhaps I am being too harsh; his statements may hold true when provided in context. The problem is, he never explains any context. These statements are made as absolute truth. Oh yeah, and with an obvious bias towards physicists he states that engineers are lazy, wanting equations handed to them from a textbook without understanding the science behind the equation. I won't even dignify that comment with a response.

It's a shame that some deeper understanding of the subject matter did not rub off on McCarthy while he was busy interviewing the half-dozen-or-so physicists upon whose research the book is loosely based. Granted, the book is not intended to be a graduate-level text on quantum mechanics, but I presume it's target audience consists of readers with some scientific-background who will immediately spot flaws in the author's logic.

Basically, the approx. 200 page book is about 150 pages of filler (mostly bad science and character descriptions of the professors and their respective university campuses). The other 50 pages include the appendix, bibliography, and index. If you want to learn about the theory and applications of quantum dots and wells, just search google and save yourself a buck.

Fascinating overview of research and possible applications
"Hacking Matter" deserves 4-5 stars for addressing a very interesting topic - artificial atoms - and 3-4 stars for its presentation. The book can be divided into two parts. The first section, about 110 of the book's 200 pages, gives us a tour of actual research in solid-state physics and its implications for material science. The second launches us from real developments to speculative devices and applications. McCarthy tries to focus the book on programmable matter and only touches on other aspects of nanotechnology. I think that's a great idea, but it should have afforded him the opportunity for deeper explanations of research and ideas that were only briefly described.

McCarthy is facile with language, as might be expected from a writer of fiction. But while the reading flows easily, the first section suffers from an uneven handling of the material. For example, McCarthy delays the discussion of atomic orbitals until the middle of the book, and even then it's a watered-down introduction with the reader directed to a freshman chemistry textbook for more information. Given the complexity of the topic, I felt he should have assumed a certain level of reader compentency, start with a more detailed review of the atom with better diagrams of orbitals and material characteristics, then build from there and drop the "monkey on limbs" analogy. In contrast to some areas of hand-holding explanation, some quotes from physicists, given without further explanation, assume a certain level of sophistication from readers:

"In general, high temperatures tend to equal more interactions, because there are a lot more blackbody photons emitted from hot surfaces, which can then be absorbed and destroy atomic superpositions. But photon-photon interactions have such a low cross section you don't have to worry about it for optical quantum states. A photon that's in a quantum superposition is therefore going to be a lot more stable at room temperature." (p. 71)

Perhaps it's praise to McCarthy that I wanted more of the first 100 pages -- like a thorough introduction to atoms and how material properties arise, side-by-side diagrams of natural and artificial atoms in terms of scale, electron density plots, more details on the research, etc. It's fascinating stuff and there are references at the end of the book.

The speculative portion of the book, although it occasionally veers from the focus on programmable matter, is well-written and thought-provoking. McCarthy notes that the interviewed researchers are reluctant to speculate, and he steps into that void and presents some possibilities. One chapter describes a hypothetical construct for handling an array of quantum of dots: a "Wellstone Fiber" invented and submitted for a patent by McCarthy and his partner.

Back in the late 80s, K. Eric Drexler, referenced at least twice in "Hacking Matter," used his book "Engines of Creation" to speculate on possible directions for nanotechnology, well ahead of actual technical developments. While some of Drexler's ideas may not be realistic, he did galvanize interest in the subject. I can't help but think McCarthy is trying to play that role for artificial atoms and the funding of condensed matter physics research. For those of us who don't think that much about material science, this book provides a good wake-up call in the form of an entertaining read. ... Read more

Book Description

Unraveling the role of fusion in the universe has taken almost a century since Einstein's proof of the equivalence of energy and matter in 1905. The discovery that fusion reactions are responsible for the building of the light elements in the "Big Bang" and the subsequent development of the heavier elements in the stars and in exploding supernovae is one of the field's most exciting successes.
In this engaging book, McCracken and Stott reexamine these discoveries in astrophysics and discuss the possibility that fusion reactions are not only our sun's source of power, but may also be induced for our use on earth.

* Details the initial discovery of nuclear fusion, all related research, and today's concern over future energy supply
* Examines current attempts to create nuclear fusion here on earth
* Enhanced with color illustrations and examples
* Provides a non-technical treatment of fusion using straightforward language
* Includes technical notes for aspiring physicists ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Would have been great if only...
This is a very good treatment of particle physics. Unfortunately, its one of those textbooks where exercises are dispersed throughout the text and which form an integral part of the pedagogy. In other words, the reader must work through the problems as they appear in the book as subsequent material is based upon it; not to do the exercies will result in an incomplete and fragmented exposure to the material. Some might like that approach but I personally find it irritating and slows down the reading. As I mentioned its a very well written expose of particle physics but it could have been great if its format had been more traditional.

Best book for preparing for a test in particle physics
I love this book, mostly because this book told me very well about how to do every kind of particle physics problems.
Before you read it, you needn't have much background in Quantum Field Theory (while it should be quite good to read this book before studying QFT), and you can get almost all ideas of High Energy Physics in an aspect of phenomenology.
If you wanna prepare for a professional particle physics test (such as a PhD Qualification test), for sure this book is the best one to read --- you can pass any kind of these tests if you concentrate more than 2 days on this book.
And even you are not worrying about any test, this book is very good for a beginner to know particle physics quantitatively.

Do yourself a favour!
If you are a grad student in high energy/nuclear/heavy ion physics, experimental or theoretical, do yourself a favour and buy this book. It starts really from the begining (scalar fields, spinors, dirac equation, propagators) and slowly but steadily reaches the point of gauge field theory, QCD, partons, electroweak interactions , spontaneous symmetry breaking and the Weinberg-Salam model. Dont expect to find anything rigorous about renormalization. Chapter 7 has some calculations about running coupling constants etc. but most of it is intuitive (describing rather than proving) in order to give you a glimpse about these matters and serve as a tool for later chapters. Although I knew the basics of Quantum Field Theory before I read this book, it helped me understand topics like deep inelastic scattering, parton distribution functions, scaling, weak interactions,spontaneous symmetry breaking. Caution: It is not a Quantum Field Theory book, it is a particle physics book. If you are looking for gribov anomalies,ward-takahashi identities, and renormalization of the weinberg-salam model and stuff like that then this is not the place to find it. The book is about particles and their interactions. Its purpose is to prepare the serious student for more rigorous Quantum Field Theory books and give him/her the big picture of the standard model (the forest) rather than the little details of field theory (the tree). I strongly recommend it to any student in the field. The language is clear and the concepts are easy to follow. Its a down to earth approach trying to explain things in a clear cut manner rather than confusing the student with "big words" and terminology. A nice suplement to this book is the book by Chris Quigg (...huge number of references). In short, this book is worth its money ! Buy it !

excellent
Excellent introduction to Particle Physics. Q and L should be accessible to anyone with one semester of a standard quantum mechanics course.

As for graduate students, I'd offer that Q and L is as good a book to fall back on in a graduate particle physics course as is Griffith's book is in a Jackson Electrodynamics course. ... Read more

Book Description

This book is intended as an introduction to what soon may prove to be the most important theory of scienceÂ…ever.It is a theory that is still evolving, but it already shows great promise of explaining the most fundamental mysteries of nature.The theory is based on the simple concept of miniscule vibrating strings as the source of all matter and forces in our universe.

Our Superstring Universe begins with the big bang and traces the evolution of matter and force strings as they form and become the building blocks of our evolving universe.Then the focus shifts to the properties of strings and how they fit into the current knowledge of particle physics.The book concludes with discussions of the quest for experimental proof of strings and a look into the sometimes surprising, and always amazing, potential of superstring-M theory. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Not for the advanced physics reader
Probably a fair book for somebody's first book on String Theory, but definitely not for the advanced reader who is looking for new news. The author covers a lot of areas of quantum physics, but not in any real depth or background. In his first section on string theory he barley talks about strings. He introduces the concept well, and discusses the mathematical challenges of the string theory revolutions in more-or-less, introductory terms. Makes use of diagrams, but seemingly to take up space, rather than visual aids.

I read the entire book in about three hours.

Much better than expected.
This book is very well written and it gets right down to the point. It is, also, very clear in concept with only a few points here and there that might have needed a better explanation. This is only an introductory edition, and if more in-depth knowledge is needed I recommend: The Elegant Universe by Brian Greene. Overall: VERY GOOD.

String theory for the layperson
An excellent introduction to string theory and the ideas and the problems that led up to it. The book starts off with basic concepts of time, space, matter, and energy and then develops a timeline of the universe from the big bang onward to the present that incorporates these concepts and speculates on the ultimate fate of the universe using the ideas of dark matter and dark energy. In addition, Mr. Lewis goes into the fundamental incompatibility between quantum mechanics and general relativity at the atomic scale and how string theory might resolve this. He also puts forth a unique and (as far as I know) original idea on a possible afterlife and how string theory could be used to preserve essential information about a person's life (which the author calls humanessence) through the holographic principle. Mr. Lewis develops his ideas very logically and concisely and provides plenty of illustrations which clarify his explanations. As a bonus, he even provides a glossary at the end of the book for the beginner. I would strongly recommend this book to anybody who has an interest in science and ideas and who wants to be introduced to what may be the ultimate theory of our universe. ... Read more

Book Description

So, you've always wanted to learn how to build an atomic bomb? You're in luck: Jim Ottaviani is not only a comics writer...he also has a master's degree in nuclear engineering! But even though it's not a complete do-it-yourself manual (assembly required, and plutonium is definitely NOT included), FALLOUT will bring you up to speed on the science and politics of the first nuclear gadgets. Like its companion volumes, the focus of FALLOUT is on the scientists themselves -- in particular J. Robert Oppenheimer and Leo Szilard, whose lives offer a cautionary tale about the uneasy alliance between the military, the government, and the beginnings of `big science`. FALLOUT features art by award winning artists such as Steve Lieber (Whiteout, Batman), Vince Locke (Deadworld,Sandman), Bernie Mireault (Mackenzie Queen, The Jam), Eddy Newell (Black Lightning, Batman), and Jeff Parker(Interman) and a painted cover by noted Studio artist Jeffrey Jones. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Fallout is great!
Although Fallout is in a comic book format it is serious history. The portraits are accurate. The events leading up to the bomb are covered in depth.

The account of the government's digraceful treatment of Oppenheimer is chilling, reminding us of how the people at the top here were much like the leaders in the USSR. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Not for the professional, and not for the lay either.
My background is electrical engineering, so I'm not a physicist or a lay person. I thought this book would be perfect, but it wasn't. It started out well enough, and I was following along, relying on my knowledge of electrophysics, and Maxwell's equations. But I was soon in trouble, as Kane began to rely on a mathematical operator, the Lagrangian, one which I hadn't any experience. Thinking I had forgotten something, I went looking for it, but it wasn't in any of my old math books. OK, I'll just follow along, I thought, not trying to verify the results in my own mind. But soon I was in trouble, as Mr. Kane began just listing equation after equation, with little or no explanatory text to tie it all together. After a time, my interest waned; this was very frustrating, since I was tired of reading "popular physics" books, with their unsatisfying explanations, but I knew I wasn't ready for graduate level quantum physics texts since my physics background is not that sophisiticated. This book began with promise, but ended without its fulfillment.

I don't know what the answer is, except to warn readers to be versed in the Lagrangian before they get started.

Great Intuition
Great ! Great ! Great ! This book is all about physics. The real physics... The physics is not lying in the trace theorems or in other technicalities of Quantum Field Theory but in simple, straightforward, physical arguments that arise from the basic principles of relativity and quantum mechanics. And Kane's book is all about that. As J.J Sakurai once said, a student may be a leading expert in calculating state of the art cross sections but if he/she cannot answer the simple questions, quickly and easily, then all is lost. Kane gives the reader the ability to quickly come up with answers for questions like "what do I expect the width for this particle to be", or "taking into acount this symmetry how do I expect this cross section to behave". As Fermi said, dont start the long calculation if you dont have a quick and dirty first result that will guide you along the more rigorous and exact calculation. So this book is all about that and physicists from all backgrounds will be able to follow it. I think that the book can serve excelently as an introductory graduate course before the hifh energy student moves to the more technical Field Theory books. In my opinion it is a disaster to jump into a rigorous Quantum Field Theory book before grasping the big picture and understanding why the heck all the pain is needed for the long theoretical calculations. And Kane's book serves this purpose. I am a graduate student at Stony Brook in experimental heavy ion physics and I spent some gratifying evenings going through the pages of the book. After the reading of this book interested readers in particle physics should also consider the books by Chris Quigg and also the classic Halzen - Martin book. The book touches upon all aspects of the standard model. I strongly suggest it !

Excellent, very readable intro to the Standard Model
Particularly good are the first 8 chapters introducing gauge theories and the Standard Model. This isn't a field theory text - Kane doesn't introduce spin sums or trace theorems so he never fully calculates a process; instead, he relies on dimensional analysis to provide approximate results. As a high energy theory student, I found this to be a drawback, but I guess that's what Peskin's book is for. Also, there are a fair number of minus signs and indices incorrect throughout the book (nothing serious, just a little annoying). ... Read more

Book Description

Highlighting main issues and controversies, this book brings together current philosophical discussions of symmetry in physics to provide an introduction to the subject for physicists and philosophers.The contributors cover all the fundamental symmetries of modern physics, such as CPT and permutation symmetry, as well as discussing symmetry-breaking and general interpretational issues. Classic texts are followed by new review articles and shorter commentaries for each topic. Suitable for courses on the foundations of physics, philosophy of physics and philosophy of science, the volume is a valuable reference for students and researchers. ... Read more