Softcover

ISBN 10: 0028623827 ISBN 13: 9780028623825

Publisher: Webster's New World, 1998

Webster's New World Dictionary of Science provides all the answers to the questions people most often ask about the world of science, in one A-Z volume. Over 7,000 entries are drawn from one of the most authoritative and up-to-the-minute encyclopedia databases in the world. These entries cover the range of physical and natural sciences from aeronautics to zoology. 500 illustrations, plus numerous diagrams, tables and chronologies help explain difficult scientific concepts and discoveries. Unlike most paperback science dictionaries, Webster's New World Dictionary of Science is completely American in content, with data and statistics that are pertinent to the Americas, as well as to the larger world. Extensive cross-referencing assists readers in conducting more comprehensive research. Concise biographical data of major scientists are also included. Affordably priced, the illustrated Webster's New World Dictionary of Science is perfect for students and science enthusiasts alike.

Review:

From A (a physics symbol for ampere) to Z (the physics symbol for impedance), the Dictionary of Science covers more than 7,000 terms for scientific disciplines that span acoustics, archeology, and cryogenics to gynecology, tectonics, and zoology. Flux is defined, both for smelting and soldering, as is the f-stop of cameras and telescopes, the flystrike caused in sheep by blowfly maggots, the fluvioglacial process associated with glacial meltwater, and the parasitic fluke that plagues the livers of sheep, cattle, horses, dogs, and humans. There are entries on the Mariana Trench and marijuana, positrons and post-coital contraception, strychnine, stupors, stutters, subatomic particles, and the subconscious.

The illustrations, more than 450 of them, are particularly helpful. A diagram of the knee joint identifies ligament and cartilage, patella and femur, not to mention the synovial membrane and gastrocnemius, while another illustration clarifies the Internet process, from user computer to modem to Internet Service Provider Hub to the Internet itself, and the diagram of the water cycle shows the whole water process, from groundwater flow, through evaporation and vapor transport, to precipitation and surface runoff. Useful for students, researchers, and science aficionados, the dictionary is up to date, and the language used in the definitions is clear, accurate, and accessible. --Stephanie Gold

From the Back Cover:

Webster's New World(TM) Dictionary of Science is the most comprehensive desktop reference to the vast world of science. Over 7,000 entries cover the spectrum of scientific disciplines-from acoustics to zoology. These entries are drawn from the most up-to-date database in the world, ensuring cutting edge information. More than 450 illustrations and diagrams make difficult concepts, processes, and structures crystal clear.
* Chronologies provide handy timelines of discovery and invention.
* Great Experiments and Discoveries essays deliver in-depth discussions.
* Focus Feature articles cover newsworthy topics by experts in their fields
* Select quotations from famous scientists impart their insights about science.
* Fact boxes reveal fascinating tidbits of little-known science.
acousticsergonomicsmineralogyanatomyethnologyoceanographyanthropologyethologyornithologyarcheologyeugenicsorthopedicsastronomyevolutionpaleontologybiologyforensic scienceparapsychologybotanyforestrypathologycalculusgeographyphysicschemistrygeologyphysiologyclimatologygeometrypsychologycryogenicsgeriatricsseismologycryptographygynecologyspeleologycyberneticshistologytectonicsdieteticshomeopathytopologyecologyhydrologytoxicologyelectronicskineticstrigonometryengineeringmathematicsultrasonicsentomologymetallurgyzoologymeteorology... and moreIdeal for students, researchers, and science enthusiasts.