Physics : The First Science

Today's physics textbooks have become encyclopedic, offering students dry discussions, rote formulas, and exercises with little relation to the real world. Physics: The First Science takes a different approach by offering uniquely accessible, student-friendly explanations, historical and philosophical perspectives and mathematics in easy-to-comprehend dialogue. It emphasizes the unity of physics and its place as the basis for all science. Examples and worked solutions are scattered throughout the narrative to help increase understanding. Students are tested and challenged at the end of each chapter with questions ranging from a guided-review designed to mirror the examples, to problems, reasoning skill building exercises that encourage students to analyze unfamiliar situations, and interactive simulations developed at the University of Colorado. With their experience instructing both students and teachers of physics for decades, Peter Lindenfeld and Suzanne White Brahmia have developed an algebra-based physics book with features to help readers see the physics in their lives. Students will welcome the engaging style, condensed format, and economical price. Contents......Page 6 Preface......Page 10 Additional Notes, Primarilyfor the Instructor......Page 12 Acknowledgments......Page 16 CHAPTER 1 - Atoms to Stars: Scales of Size, Energy, and Force......Page 18 CHAPTER 2 - Some Tools of the Trade: Numbers, Quantities, and Units......Page 33 CHAPTER 3 - There Is No Rest: Describing Motion......Page 50 CHAPTER 4 - Forces and Motion: Newton’s Framework......Page 74 CHAPTER 5 - Laws and Their Limits: The Organization of Scientific Knowledge......Page 107 CHAPTER 6 - Energy and Its Conservation......Page 120 CHAPTER 7 - Materials and Models......Page 152 CHAPTER 8 - Electricity: It Is Everywhere......Page 175 CHAPTER 9 - More on Electricity: From Force to Energy, from Field to Potential......Page 193 CHAPTER 10 - Magnetism: Electricity’s Traveling Companion......Page 215 CHAPTER 11 - Waves: Mechanical and Electromagnetic......Page 240 CHAPTER 12 - Quantum Physics......Page 277 CHAPTER 13 - The Nucleus: Heart of the Atom......Page 310 CHAPTER 14 - Energy in Civilization......Page 339 CHAPTER 15 - Atomic Physics Pays Off: Solar Cells, Transistors, and the Silicon Age......Page 356 CHAPTER 16 - There Is No End......Page 366 Bibliography......Page 368 Some Constants, Astronomical Quantities, and Masses......Page 370 Index......Page 372 About the Author......Page 384 "Explores the survival strategies of poor, HIV-positive Puerto Rican women by asking four key questions: Given their limited resources, how did they manage an illness as serious as HIV/ AIDS? Did they look for alternatives to conventional medical treatment? Did the challenges they faced deprive them of self-determination, or could they help themselves and each other? What can we learn from these resourceful women? Based on her work with minority women living, in Newark, New Jersey, Sabrina Marie Chase illuminates the hidden traps and land mines burdening our current health care system as a whole. For the women she studied, alliances with doctors, nurses, and social workers could literally mean the difference between life and death. By applying the theories of sociologist Pierre Bourdieu to the day-today experiences of HIV-positive Latinas, Chase explains why some struggled and even died while others flourished and thrived under difficult conditions. These gripping, true-life stories advocate for those living with chronic illness who depend on the health care 'safety net.' Through her exploration of life and death among Newark's resourceful women, Chase provides the groundwork for inciting positive change in the U.S. health care system"--Jacket Today's physics textbooks have become encyclopedic, offering students dry discussions, rote formulas, and exercises with little relation to the real world. Physics: The First Science offers uniquely accessible, student-friendly explanations, historical and philosophical perspectives and mathematics in easy-to-comprehend dialogue. It emphasizes the unity of physics and its place as the basis for all science. With their experience instructing both students and teachers of physics for decades, Peter Lindenfeld and Suzanne White Brahmia have developed an algebra-based physics book with fea This is a new algebra-based introductory text. It presents physics as accessible and down-to-earth and is written in a readable conversational style. This is not a rote retelling of the standard sequence. A reexamination of each topic has led to a book that is shorter even as it includes material not usually found at this level. Torn between structure and agency -- Resourceful women -- Unpacking Newark's epidemic -- Understanding HIV -- Managing social services -- Working the clinics -- Taking care of yourself -- Learning from resourceful women -- -- Epilogue : Sorrows and joys.