Physics & Astronomy

Uses accessible maths and physics to explain the theory, and points to numerous examples in philosophy and literature that illuminate the problems. The beauty of fractal patterns and their relation to chaos, as well as the history of chaos, and its uses in the real world and implications for the philosophy of science are all discussed.

Explains what cosmology is and what cosmologists do, looks at the history of the subject, the development of the Big Bang theory, and more speculative modern issues such as quantum cosmology, superstrings, and dark matter. The subject matter of cosmology is everything that exists.

Explores the building blocks of the Universe.

Traces the history of Western astronomy, from prehistoric times to the origins of astrophysics in the mid-nineteenth century and the technical developments since the Second World War.

Discusses early attempts to explain light; the opposing particulate and wave theories by scientists such as Isaac Newton and Christiaan Huygens; how light was recognized as an electromagnetic wave in the 19th century; and the 20th-century development of the quantum mechanics view of wave–particle duality.

Our understanding of electricity and magnetism, from the work of Galvani, Ampère, Faraday, and Tesla is explored, and how Maxwell and Faraday's work led to the unification of electricity and magnetism is explained.

Explores the science and history of the elusive Void: from Aristotle, who insisted that the vacuum was impossible, via the theories of Newton and Einstein, to the very latest discoveries and why they can tell us extraordinary things about the cosmos. This VSI tells the story of how scientists have explored the Void and the discoveries that they have made there

An account of how this area of physics has progressed since the discovery of the electron at the end of the 19th century, which implied that the atom was not fundamental and had a more complex structure. It includes the recognition of how heavy nuclei are built up in the cores of stars and in supernovae, the identification of quarks and gluons, and the development of quantum chromodynamics.

Provides fascinating insights into how discoveries in particle physics have actually been made, and discusses how our picture of the world has been radically revised in the light of these developments.

Provides an overview of our Solar System and its origins, nature, and evolution. Terrestrial planets, giant planets, dwarf planets and various other objects such as satellites (moons), asteroids, trans-Neptunian objects, and exoplanets are discussed.

A lucid, exciting, and accessible account of the surprising and counterintuitive ideas that shape our understanding of the sub-atomic world. It does not disguise the problems of interpretation that still remain unsettled 75 years after the initial discoveries. The main text makes no use of equations, but there is a Mathematical Appendix for those desiring stronger fare.

Explains radioactivity and discusses its fundamental role in nature.

Makes the theory of relativity understandable and accessible.

Looks at how stars live, producing all the chemical elements beyond helium, and how they die, leaving remnants such as black holes.

A brief account of the history, significance and theories of superconductivity.

Online only.

An encyclopedia of chemicals, drugs, and biologicals that contains more than 10,000 monographs. Each monograph in this authoritative reference source is a concise description of a single substance or a small group of closely related compounds.
Online. Older edition in print at Bata Reference.

In print, in Reference section.

General background reading for major areas of science including: biology, genetics, microbiology, astronomy, chemistry, physics, engineering, technology, geology, weather, archaeology, psychology, mathematics, and medicine, and provides readers with a wide range of up-to-date, relevant, and accurate information.

Online only

Online only.

Online (current) and in print in Bata Library (vols. 47, 53, 60-88)

Online only.

Online only.

Online only.

Online only.