Encyclopedia of Physics (Facts on File Science Library) - Hardcover

Rosen, Joe

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0816049742 ISBN 13: 9780816049745

Publisher: Facts on File, 2004

Synopsis

Features six hundred cross-referenced entries and eleven essays that explore such topics as the operation of physics, the relationship of physics and mathematics, and the nature of theories.

About this title

About the Author

Joe Rosen, Ph.D. received his Ph.D. in physics from the Hebrew University, Jerusalem, in 1967. A professor for many years, he retired in 2000 and has since been a visiting professor in the deptartment of physics at The Catholic Univ. of America, in Washington, DC.

From Booklist

The value of a concise encyclopedia of physics is clear. Although sets like the McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science and Technology (9th ed., 2002) are comprehensive and appropriate for many levels, they can be too large and expensive for smaller and less science-oriented collections. The present offering, written by the author of a variety of introductory and other texts about physics, looks to conciseness first and therefore sacrifices comprehensiveness.

The author is quite selective in terms of the topics covered. The more than 600 entries run from about 50 to 1,000 words and cover physical concepts, prominent physicists (modern and historical), and physics laboratories, societies, and organizations. The alphabetically arranged entries are supplemented with 11 topical essays that aim to shed some light on physics in a philosophical or practical way. These essays cover such topics as beauty, the nature of the relationship between physics and philosophy, and the desire among some physicists to find the unifying laws governing all physical concepts. The author has done a good job of presenting the material in language that will be accessible to the intended audience (high-school and college students as well as general readers). The text is supported by a good index, a decent bibliography, a chronological listing of all Nobel Laureates in physics through 2003, and a simplified periodic table of the elements. The entries are well written, accurate, and include equations where appropriate. Some 117 line diagrams illustrate concepts, and there are 71 black-and-white photos, most of them in the biographical entries.

Another one-volume resource, The Macmillan Encyclopedia of Physics (1996), has 1,000 entries, although it is not as current and lacks biographical material. The Facts On File volume would add little to collections that already have a selection of more comprehensive titles but is appropriate for high-school, public, and undergraduate libraries where budget only allows for a volume that costs less than $100. Jeff Kosokoff
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Edition details

• Publisher: Facts on File
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 0816049742
• ISBN 13: 9780816049745
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 386