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Energy is typically regarded as understandable, despite its multiple forms of storage and transfer. Entropy, however, is an enigma, in part because of the common view that it represents disorder. That view is flawed and hides entropy’s connection with energy. In fact, macroscopic matter stores internal energy, and that matter’s entropy is determined by how the energy is stored. Energy and entropy are intimately linked. Energy and Entropy: A Dynamic Duo illuminates connections between energy and entropy for students, teachers, and researchers. Conceptual understanding is emphasised where possible through examples, analogies, figures, and key points. Features: Qualitative demonstration tha...
About 120 years ago, James Clerk Maxwell introduced his now legendary hypothetical "demon" as a challenge to the integrity of the second law of thermodynamics. Fascination with the demon persisted throughout the development of statistical and quantum physics, information theory, and computer science--and linkages have been established between Maxwell's demon and each of these disciplines. The demon's seductive quality makes it appealing to physical scientists, engineers, computer scientists, biologists, psychologists, and historians and philosophers of science. Until now its important source material has been scattered throughout diverse journals. This book brings under one cover twenty-five...
This book explains the laws of thermodynamics for science buffs and neophytes alike. The authors present the historical development of thermodynamics and show how its laws follow from the atomic theory of matter, then give examples of the laws' applicability to such phenomena as the formation of diamonds from graphite and how blood carries oxygen.
Over 130 years ago, James Clerk Maxwell introduced his hypothetical "demon" as a challenge to the scope of the second law of thermodynamics. Fascination with the demon persisted throughout the development of statistical and quantum physics, information theory, and computer science, and links have been established between Maxwell's demon and each of
The laws of thermodynamics drive everything that happens in the universe. From the sudden expansion of a cloud of gas to the cooling of hot metal, and from the unfurling of a leaf to the course of life itself - everything is directed and constrained by four simple laws. They establish fundamental concepts such as temperature and heat, and reveal the arrow of time and even the nature of energy itself. Peter Atkins' powerful and compelling introduction explains what the laws are and how they work, using accessible language and virtually no mathematics. Guiding the reader from the Zeroth Law to the Third Law, he introduces the fascinating concept of entropy, and how it not only explains why your desk tends to get messier, but also how its unstoppable rise constitutes the engine of the universe.
Guesstimation is a book that unlocks the power of approximation--it's popular mathematics rounded to the nearest power of ten! The ability to estimate is an important skill in daily life. More and more leading businesses today use estimation questions in interviews to test applicants' abilities to think on their feet. Guesstimation enables anyone with basic math and science skills to estimate virtually anything--quickly--using plausible assumptions and elementary arithmetic. Lawrence Weinstein and John Adam present an eclectic array of estimation problems that range from devilishly simple to quite sophisticated and from serious real-world concerns to downright silly ones. How long would it t...
The interpretation of quantum mechanics has been controversial since the introduction of quantum theory in the 1920s. Although the Copenhagen interpretation is commonly accepted, its usual formulation suffers from some serious drawbacks. Based mainly on Bohr's concepts, the formulation assumes an independent and essential validity of classical concepts running in parallel with quantum ones, and leaves open the possibility of their ultimate conflict. In this book, Roland Omnès examines a number of recent advances, which, combined, lead to a consistent revision of the Copenhagen interpretation. His aim is to show how this interpretation can fit all present experiments, to weed out unnecessary...
A completely revised edition that combines a comprehensive coverage of statistical and thermal physics with enhanced computational tools, accessibility, and active learning activities to meet the needs of today's students and educators This revised and expanded edition of Statistical and Thermal Physics introduces students to the essential ideas and techniques used in many areas of contemporary physics. Ready-to-run programs help make the many abstract concepts concrete. The text requires only a background in introductory mechanics and some basic ideas of quantum theory, discussing material typically found in undergraduate texts as well as topics such as fluids, critical phenomena, and compu...
The authors present a rigorous treatment of the first principles of the algebraic and analytic core of quantum field theory. Their aim is to correlate modern mathematical theory with the explanation of the observed process of particle production and of particle-wave duality that heuristic quantum field theory provides. Many topics are treated here in book form for the first time, from the origins of complex structures to the quantization of tachyons and domains of dependence for quantized wave equations. This work begins with a comprehensive analysis, in a universal format, of the structure and characterization of free fields, which is illustrated by applications to specific fields. Nonlinea...