Conceptual Physical Science: Explorations

Conceptual Physical Science: Explorations presents a clear and engaging introduction to physics, chemistry, astonomy, and earth sciences. The authors use analogies and everyday examples to clarify key concepts and help readers better understand the world around them. The book's consistent, high-quality coverage combines active learning with critical thinking exercises, hands-on experiments, review questions, and quantitative problems. Hands-On Explorations, found throughout the book, promote active learning by allowing readers to apply concepts they have learned. These easy-to-perform experiments, which use common household products, can be conducted at home.

Table of Contents:
 1. About Science. MECHANICS.  2. Newton's First Law of Motion - The Law of Inertia.  3. Newton's Second Law of Motion - Force and Acceleration.  4. Newton's Third Law of Motion - Action and Reaction.  5. Momentum.  6. Work and Energy.  7. Gravity.  8. Projectile and Satellite Motion. HEAT.  9. Thermal Energy. 10. Heat Transfer and Change of Phase. ELECTRICITY AND MAGNETISM. 11. Electricity. 12. Magnetism. WAVES-SOUND AND LIGHT. 13. Waves and Sound. 14. Light and Color. 15. Reflection and Refraction. 16. Properties of Light. THE ATOM. 17. Atoms and the Periodic Table. 18. Atomic Models. 19. Radioactivity. 20. Nuclear Fission and Fusion. CHEMISTRY. 21. Elements of Chemistry. 22. Mixtures. 23. Chemical Bonding. 24. Molecular Mixing. 25. Acids and Bases. 26. Oxidation and Reduction. 27. Organic Compounds. 28. The Chemistry of Drugs. 29. Plastics. EARTH SCIENCE. 30. Minerals and Their Formation. 31. Rocks. 32. The Architecture of the Earth. 33. Our Restless Planet. 34. Water on Our World. 35. Our Natural Landscape. 36. A Brief History of the Earth. 37. The Atmosphere, the Oceans, and Their Interactions. 38. Weather. ASTRONOMY. 39. The Solar System. 40. The Stars. Appendix A. Systems of Measurement. Appendix B. Linear Motion. Appendix C. Vectors. Appendix D. Physics of Fluids. Appendix E. Exponential Growth and Doubling Time. Appendix F. Safety.

About the Author :
Paul Hewitt was a Silver Medalist Flyweight Boxing Champion for New England States at the age of 17. He was then a cartoonist, sign painter, and uranium prospector before beginning his physics studies. Conceptual Physics was first published in 1971 while Hewitt was teaching at City College of San Francisco. He has also served as a guest lecturer at the University of California at Berkeley, the University of California at Santa Cruz, the University of Hawaii at Manoa, and most recently at the Universlty of Hawaii at Hilo. Currently, Hewitt enjoys teaching at the City College of San Francisco and at San Francisco's science museum, The Exploratorium. John Suchocki received his Ph.D. in organic chemistry in 1987 from Virginia Commonwealth University, where his research focused on the isolation and characterization of natural products. After a two year post-doc in medicinal chemistry/pharmacology at the Medical College of Virginia, John became a visiting assistant professor of chemistry at the University of Hawaii at Manoa where he began working with his uncle, Paul Hewitt, on the liberal arts college textbook, Conceptual Physical Science, now in its Second Edition. After a couple of years at the Manoa campus, John transferred to and eventually received tenure from Leeward Community College, one of the University of Hawaii's community colleges. There his research efforts turned to chemical education, with particular emphasis on liberal arts chemistry courses and distance learning technology. Concurrent to his writing and teaching careers, John is also a producer of multimedia content, much of which is now available on his Conceptual Chemistry Alive! CD-ROM series. John currently lives on Oahu with his wife Tracy and three children, Ian, Reece, and Maitreya.