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    Physical Sciences: Sound smarter without trying harder
    Physical Sciences: Sound smarter without trying harder
    Physical Sciences: Sound smarter without trying harder
    Ebook60 pages52 minutes

    Physical Sciences: Sound smarter without trying harder

    By Adams Media

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    About this ebook

    Did you avoid all but the easiest science courses in school? Wish you knew what the theory of relativity refers to? Fear not! Covering everything from earth sciences to astrophysics, The Very Lazy Intellectual: Physical Sciences introduces you to the world's most important scientific theories. With information on the Big Bang to the Manhattan Project, you'll learn just enough to hold your own in conversation.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherSimon & Schuster
    Release dateOct 1, 2012
    ISBN9781440561634
    Physical Sciences: Sound smarter without trying harder
    Author

    Adams Media

    At Adams Media, we don’t just publish books—we craft experiences that matter to you. Whether you’re diving deep into spirituality, whipping up delights in the kitchen, or planning your personal finances, our diverse range of lifestyle books, decks, journals, and more is designed to feed your curiosity. The Adams team strives to publish content that celebrates readers where they are—and where they’re going.

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      Book preview

      Physical Sciences - Adams Media

      The Very Lazy Intellectual

      Physical Sciences

      Sound smarter without trying harder

      Adams Media, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, Inc.

      Avon, Massachusetts

      Contents

      Introduction

      Physics

      Classical Physics

      Modern Physics

      Early Physics

      The Scientific Revolution

      Mechanics Comes of Age

      Wave Theory

      Modern Physics

      Quantum Mechanics

      Relativity

      Chemistry

      Divisions of Chemistry

      Early Chemistry

      The Greeks

      Alchemy

      Modern Chemistry

      Nineteenth-Century Advances

      Chemistry in the United States

      Industrial Chemistry

      Astronomy

      A Multidisciplinary Science

      Ancient Astronomy

      The Greeks

      Renaissance Astronomy

      A New Tool

      Modern Astronomy

      Astronomical Terms

      Earth Sciences

      Geology

      History of Geology

      Modern Geology

      Oceanography

      Meteorology

      Cheat Sheet for Physical Sciences

      Also Available

      Copyright Page

      Introduction

      If we were to look up the term lazy in a dictionary, we might expect to find some unflattering connotations. Let’s skip over such definitions as adverse or resistant to work, slothful, and sluggish, and adopt a more positive, charitable perspective. If instead we consider lazy as economical or avoiding waste, we get a much better picture of the idea behind The Very Lazy Intellectual series.

      This series of books is a set of short, economical references full of the fundamental knowledge you need to know to sound as if you really know something about a particular academic subject. The Very Lazy Intellectual: Physical Sciences lays out the indispensable facts, crucial high points, and fascinating elements of the main tenets of physics, chemistry, astronomy, and the earth sciences to build your knowledge foundation.

      The physical sciences encompass the natural sciences of physics, chemistry, astronomy, and the earth sciences. Some of these overlap to form such disciplines as astrophysics, chemical physics, physical chemistry, and geophysics. There is also an overlap between the physical and biological sciences — biophysics, for example — but, strictly speaking, the physical sciences consider only nonliving or inorganic matter.

      Whether you want to refresh your memory of a long-since forgotten course, or merely wish to be able to say something intelligent about the latest scientific breakthrough in the news without having to put in a great deal of study, this book will help. Enjoy the low-effort scholarship of The Very Lazy Intellectual: Physical Sciences.

      If you’d like to learn more about physical sciences, check out The Lazy Intellectual, available in print (978-1-4405-0456-3) and eBook (978-1-4405-0888-2) formats.

      Physics

      Physics is the branch of science that studies matter and energy and the interactions between them. The term physics is derived from the Greek word meaning to grow and was known as natural philosophy until the late nineteenth

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