Atom - Journey across the Subatomic Cosmos
By Isaac Asimov
Truman Talley | 1991 | ISBN 0-525-24990-7 | PDF/DJVU | 336 pages | 8.5/12 mb
http://www.amazon.com/Atom-Journey-Across-Subatomic-Cosmos/dp/0452268346
The legendary Isaac Asimov starts what is perhaps the finest of all his books with a simple query: How finely can a piece of matter be divided? But like many simple questions, this one leads readers on a far-flung quest for a final answer, a search that encompasses such fascinating phenomena as light and electricity and their components--strange but real bits of matter that challenge our assumptions about the very nature of time and space. 40 illustrations.
It takes our best science writers, plus readers current with the whimsical new language of particle physics, to keep up with the leapfrog pace of theory and observation today. Fortunately, Asimov does his part in this report on recent theoretical physics developments that includes just enough history to add human dimension to the latest discussions of the nature of matter. Missing here are the characteristic Asimov metaphors and asides, suggesting that, while juggling so many pure concepts at once, he chooses not to distract his readers. No matter, they will welcome this straightforward guide to the Alice-like world of down-quarks, muons, leptons and other subatomic particles--most of which are believed to exist but have not yet been seen. When information does start coming in from the supercollider, this will be a worthy book to have at hand.
This book was with me originally in DJVU format. I have converted it to PDF with OCR & bookmarks. Both versions are included in the torrent.
CONTENTS
CHAPTER ONE - MATTER
Dividing Matter • 1
Elements • 6
Atomism Triumphant • 8
The Reality of Atoms • 13
The Differences Among Atoms • 18
CHAPTER TWO - LIGHT
Particles and Waves 26
The Four Phenomena 35
Contents
Combining the Phenomena • 42
Extending the Spectrum • 47
Dividing Energy • 52
CHAPTER THREE - ELECTRONS
Dividing Electricity • 58
Cathode-Ray Particles • 66
X Rays • 69
Electrons and Atoms • 72
Electrons and Quanta • 79
Waves and Particles • 82
CHAPTER FOUR - NUCLEI
Probing the Atom • 89
Positively Charged Particles • 96
Atomic Numbers • 100
Spectral Lines • 109
CHAPTER FIVE - ISOTOPES
Nuclear Energy • 122
Nuclear Varieties • 125
Half-Lives • 131
Contents
Stable Nuclear Varieties • 136
CHAPTER SIX - NEUTRONS
Protons and Electrons • 146
Protons and Neutrons • 151
Nuclear Reactions • 158
Artificial Isotopes • 164
CHAPTER SEVEN - BREAKDOWNS
Mass Defect • 174
Nuclear Fission • 180
Nuclear Fusion • 187
Breakdown Particles • 194
CHAPTER EIGHT - ANTIMATTER
Antiparticles • 202
Cosmic Rays • 206
Particle Accelerators • 215
Baryons • 219
CHAPTER NINE - NEUTRINOS
Contents
Saving the Laws of Conservation • 225
Detecting the Antineutrino • 232
Detecting the Neutrino • 235
Other Leptons • 239
Unstable Particles • 244
Neutrino Varieties • 247
CHAPTER TEN - INTERACTIONS
The Strong Interaction • 253
The Weak Interaction • 261
The Electroweak Interaction • 266
CHAPTER ELEVEN - QUARKS
The Hadron Zoo • 271
Inside Hadrons • 278
Quantum Chromodynamics • 284
CHAPTER TWELVE - THE UNIVERSE
The Mystery of the Missing Mass • 291
The End of the Universe • 298
The Beginning of the Universe • 304
INDEX • 311
