The Sciences

James S. Trefil (born September 10, 1938) is an American physicist (Ph.D. in Physics at Stanford University in 1966) and author of more than thirty books. Much of his published work focuses on science for the general audience. Dr. Trefil has previously served as Professor of Physics at the University of Virginia and he now teaches as Robinson Professor of Physics at George Mason University. Among Trefil's books is Are We Unique?, an argument for human uniqueness in which he questions the comparisons between human intelligence and artificial intelligence. Trefil also regularly gives presentations to judges and public officials about the intersections between science and the law.

1 Science: A Way of Knowing 1
How do you know what you know?

The Role of Science 2

The Scientific Method 4

Other Ways of Knowing 12

The Organization of Science 14

2 The Ordered Universe 25

Why do planets appear to wander slowly across the sky?

The Night Sky 26

The Birth of Mechanics 32

Isaac Newton and the Universal Laws of Motion 38

Momentum 42

The Universal Force of Gravity 44

3 Energy 51
Why must animals eat to stay alive?

The Great Chain of Energy 52

Forms of Energy 56

The Interchangeability of Energy 60

The First Law of Thermodynamics: Energy is Conserved 64

The United States and Its Energy Future 66

4 Heat and the Second Law of Thermodynamics 76
Why is it easier to make an omelet from an egg than to make an egg from an omelet?

Nature’s Direction 77

Coming to Terms with Heat 78

Heat Transfer 81

The Second Law of Thermodynamics 86

Consequences of the Second Law 92

5 Electricity and Magnetism 98
What is lightning?

Nature’s Other Forces 99

Static Electricity 100

Magnetism 103

Batteries and Electric Circuits 106

Connections Between Electricity and Magnetism 113

Electrical Effects from Magnetism 115

6 Waves and Electromagnetic Radiation 123
What is color?

The Nature of Waves 124

The Electromagnetic Wave 131

The Electromagnetic Spectrum 137

7 Albert Einstein and the Theory of Relativity 150
Can a human ever travel faster than the speed of light, at “warp speed”?

Frames of Reference 151

Special Relativity 154

General Relativity 161

8 The Atom 171
Why are there so many different materials in the world?

The Smallest Pieces 172

The Structure of the Atom 177

When Matter Meets Light 179

Spectroscopy 181

9 Quantum Mechanics 192
How can the electron behave like both a particle and a wave?

The World of the Very Small 193

Probabilities 197

Wave-Particle Duality 198

Wave-Particle Duality and the Bohr Atom 200

Quantum Entanglement 202

10 Atoms in Combination: The Chemical Bond 208
How does blood clot?

Our Material World 209

Electron Shells and Chemical Bonds 210

Types of Chemical Bonds 211

Chemical Reactions and the Formation of Chemical Bonds 223

Common Chemical Reactions 226

Building Molecules: The Hydrocarbons 232

11 Materials and Their Properties 240
How have computers gotten so much faster?

Materials and the Modern World 241

The Strengths of Materials 242

Magnetic Properties of Materials 248

Microchips and the Information Revolution 249

Information 255

12 The Nucleus of the Atom 263
How do scientists determine the age of the oldest human fossils?

Empty Space, Explosive Energy 264

The Organization of the Nucleus 266

Radioactivity 269

Energy from the Nucleus 278

13 The Ultimate Structure of Matter 287
How can antimatter be used to probe the human brain?

Of What is the Universe Made? 288

Discovering Elementary Particles 290

The Elementary Particle Zoo 294

The Four Fundamental Forces 297

Quantum Gravity, Strings, and Theories of Everything 301

14 The Stars 306
How much longer can the Sun sustain life on Earth?

The Nature of Stars 307

The Anatomy of Stars 311

The Variety of Stars 316

The Life Cycles of Stars 318

15 Cosmology 328
Will the universe end?

Edwin Hubble and the Discovery of Galaxies 329

The Redshift and Hubble’s Law 332

The Large-Scale Structure of the Universe 334

The Evolution of the Universe 339

Of What is the Universe Made? 342

16 Earth and Other Planets 350
Is Earth the only planet with life?

The Formation of the Solar System 351

The Nebular Hypothesis 354

Exploring the Solar System 361

Extrasolar Planets 369

17 Plate Tectonics 376
Can we predict destructive earthquakes?

Dynamic Earth 377

Plate Tectonics: A Unifying View of Earth 385

Another Look at Volcanoes and Earthquakes 392

18 Earth’s Many Cycles 400
Will we ever run out of fresh water?

Cycles Small and Large 401

The Hydrologic Cycle 403

The Atmospheric Cycle 410

The Rock Cycle 416

19 Ecology, Ecosystems, and the Environment 427
Are human activities affecting the global environment?

Ecology and Ecosystems 428

The Law of Unintended Consequences 432

Threats to the Global Ecosystem and Environment 434

Debates about Global Climate Change 442

20 Strategies of Life 449

The Organization of Living Things 450

What is Life? 452

Classifying Living Things 454

Survival: A New Look at the Life Around You 460

21 The Living Cell 474
What is the smallest living thing?

The Nature and Variety of Cells 475

The Cell Theory 476

How Does a Cell Work? 478

Metabolism: Energy and Life 484

Cell Division 488

22 Molecules of Life 494
What constitutes a healthy diet?

Organic Molecules 495

Proteins: The Workhorses of Life 498

Proteins as Enzymes 500

Carbohydrates 503

Lipids 505

Minerals and Vitamins 508

23 Classical and Modern Genetics 514
Why do offspring resemble their parents?

Classical Genetics 515

DNA and the Birth of Molecular Genetics 519

The Genetic Code 522

Viruses 527

The Human Genome 529

24 The New Science of Life 537
Can we cure cancer?

Genetic Engineering 538

DNA Fingerprinting 542

Stem Cells, Cloning, and Regenerative Medicine 543

Cancer—A Different Kind of Genetic Disease 546

Gene Therapy 548

DNA Repair in the Cell 549

Birth of Genomic Science 550

Unraveling the Past: Mitochondrial DNA 552

25 Evolution 559
How did life emerge on the ancient Earth?

The Fact of Evolution 560

Chemical Evolution 564

The Window of Opportunity 566

Natural Selection and the Development of Complex Life 569

The Story of Life 572

The Evolution of Human Beings 578

Glossary G-1

Index I-1

Additional appendices available online only

The New copy of this book will include any supplemental materials advertised. Please check the title of the book to determine if it should include any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.

The Used, Rental and eBook copies of this book are not guaranteed to include any supplemental materials. Typically, only the book itself is included. This is true even if the title states it includes any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.