How Everything Works Making Physics Out of the Ordinary

by Bloomfield, Louis A.

• ISBN13: 9780471748175
• ISBN10: 047174817X
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2006-04-21
• Publisher: WILEY

Summary

You don't need a science or engineering background to understand How Everything Works, all you need is an active curiosity about the extraordinary world all around you.

Author Biography

Louis A. Bloomfield is Professor of Physics at the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceType w:st="on">University</st1:PlaceType> of <st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Virginia</st1:PlaceName></st1:place>. He also works extensively with professional societies and the media to explain physics to the general public. He maintains a website where he answers a wide range of questions on physics. <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Bloomfield</st1:place></st1:City> received his Ph.D. from Stanford and was a postdoctoral fellow at AT&amp;T Bell Laboratories. <st1:City w:st="on">Bloomfield</st1:City> has been widely recognized for his teaching of physics and science to thousands of non-science students at the <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">University</st1:PlaceType> of <st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Virginia</st1:PlaceName> and is the recipient of a 1998 State of <st1:State w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Virginia Outstanding Faculty Award</st1:place></st1:State> and the 2001 Pegram Medal of the Southeastern Section of the American Physical Society. He is the author of almost 100 publications in the fields of atomic clusters, autoionizing states, high-resolution laser spectroscopy, nonlinear optics, computer science, and general science literacy, and of the successful introductory textbook <i>How Things Work: The Physics of Everyday Life, 3rd Edition</i> (Wiley 2006).

Table of Contents

Things That Move	1	(28)
Skating	2	(8)
Falling Balls	10	(7)
Ramps	17	(12)
More Things That Move	29	(30)
Seesaws	30	(11)
Wheels	41	(8)
Bumper Cars	49	(10)
Mechanical Things	59	(28)
Spring Scales	60	(9)
Bouncing Balls	69	(10)
Carousels and Roller Coasters	79	(8)
More Mechanical Things	87	(38)
Bicycles	88	(8)
Rockets and Space Travel	96	(13)
The Earth, Moon, and Sun	109	(8)
Elevators	117	(8)
Things Involving Fluids	125	(22)
Balloons	126	(11)
Water Distribution	137	(10)
Things That Move With Fluids	147	(50)
Garden Watering	148	(12)
Balls and Air	160	(8)
Airplanes	168	(22)
Vacuum Cleaners	190	(7)
Thermal Things	197	(52)
Woodstoves	198	(14)
Water, Steam, and Ice	212	(7)
Incandescent Lightbulbs	219	(9)
Clothing and Insulation	228	(10)
Thermometers and Thermostats	238	(11)
Things That Work With Heat	249	(44)
Air Conditioners	250	(8)
Automobiles	258	(17)
The Atmosphere	275	(9)
Water Purification	284	(9)
Things With Resonances and Mechanical Waves	293	(30)
Clocks	294	(9)
Musical Instruments	303	(12)
The Sea	315	(8)
Electric Things	323	(28)
Static Electricity	324	(8)
Xerographic Copiers	332	(11)
Flashlights	343	(8)
Magnetic and Electromagnetic Things	351	(48)
Household Magnets	352	(10)
Electric Power Distribution	362	(12)
Electric Generators and Motors	374	(11)
Magnetically Levitated Trains	385	(7)
Magnetic Recording	392	(7)
Electronic Things	399	(28)
Power Adapters	400	(14)
Audio Players	414	(13)
Things That Use Electromagnetic Waves	427	(26)
Radio	428	(8)
Microwave Ovens	436	(6)
Television	442	(11)
Things That Involve Light	453	(36)
Sunlight	454	(7)
Discharge Lamps	461	(9)
Lasers and LEDs	470	(6)
Paint and Makeup	476	(13)
Optical Things	489	(38)
Cameras and Vision	490	(16)
Optical Recording and Communication	506	(11)
Telescopes and Microscopes	517	(10)
Things That Use Recent Physics	527	(36)
Nuclear Weapons	528	(15)
Nuclear Reactors	543	(9)
Medical Imaging and Radiation	552	(11)
Things That Involve Materials	563	(36)
Knives and Steel	564	(10)
Windows and Glass	574	(13)
Plastics	587	(12)
Things That Involve Chemical Physics	599	(54)
Oil Refineries	600	(17)
Laundry	617	(15)
Batteries	632	(15)
APPENDICES
Relevant Mathematics	647	(2)
Units, Conversion of Units	649	(4)
Glossary	653	(40)
Photo Credits	693	(2)
Index	695