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Title: The Quantum World: Quantum Physics for Everyone
ISBN: 067401832X
Author:
Kenneth W. Ford
Publicate Date: 2005-10-15
Publish: 2005-10-15
List Price: $19.00
Average Customer Rating: 4.5
Format: Paperback
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Amazon Lowest New Price: $10.50
Amazon Lowest Used Price: $9.94
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1: Helpful in understanding basics of Quantum Machines - Includes Scanning Tunneling Microscope Design
1. Mass is measurement of inertia
2. Mass represents a highly concentrated amount of light. A little mass yields a lot of energy.
3. Photons move at velocity c, the speed of light and have kinetic energy but no mass.
4. One Joule equals the energy necessary to move 2kg a distance of 1 meter per second.
5. One calorie is the energy to raise a graham of water one celius
6. Some cosmic rays bombard the earth with energy up to 10 pow 20 electron volts.
7. Positive charged protons repel each other but the gluon over comes the repelling force. For large nuclei the repelling force becomes to great for the gluons and the nucleus flies apart. As a result, no nuclei with protons and neutron counts greater than Uranium exist in nature.
8. One columb is the amount of charge that moves a 100 watt light bulb in a second.
9. The fundamental unit of quantum angular momentum is planks constant divided by pi divided by ??, called h-bar.
10. There are three levels of leptons: electron and neutrino, muon and neutrino, and tau and neutrino.
11. E=hf is the energy carried by photon and the frequency of the electron's electro-magnetic field and are proportional to planks constant. If a photon has twice the energy it has twice the frequency. If gamma radiation has a thousand times the energy as a photon, it has a thousand times the vibration.
12. Small creation world occur through creation and annihilation of particles.
13. A Muon is a charged particle 100 times larger than an electron with mass. Leptons spin ??, Baryons have spin ?? and compose proton, neutron, and many heavy particles. Quarks are strongly interactive particles. A quark and antiquary form a meson. Three quarks form a baryon with charge of one. Force carrier are particles whose creation, annihilation exchange gives rise to force.
14. Fermi theory of a radioactive nucleus, at the moment of decay creates an electron and neutrino (anti-neutrino), both expelled from the nucleus.
15. Fermion have half odd-integer spin.
16. Bosons have integer spin.
17. Muon lives for two millioneth of a second
18. Superposition implies a particle or system of particles can exist in two or more states of motion at a time. Protons have a mass of 938 MeV or 1.67 X 10 pow -27 kg. The mass of a typical star is 10 pow 52 kg, each kg of matter contains 10 pow 27 protons, therefore, the Universe contains 10 pow 79 protons.
19. Angular momentum is a combination of mass, size, and speed of the rotating systems.
20. C is the fundamental constant of relativity.
21. Neutrino take away mc pow 2 energy from the nucleus. A neutrino has 1/100,000 the mass of an electron. Neutrino's have a mass. If neutrinos have observable oscillation, it means they have mass. Different neutrinos have different mass. Evidence of neutrinos was first discovered from experiences by the Super Kamiokanda and the Sudberry Neutrino Observatory. The sun neutrinos change to muon or tau neutrino enroute to earth.
22. Faith in simplicity suggests that nature operates by rules and we can find these rules. At a certain level of approximation, nature reveals to us laws of striking simplicity.
23. Gamma decay is the emission of high frequency electromagnetic ration. Atoms emit light when they jump.
24. Quarks has spin ??, they link in twosomes or threesomes to form a particle. Three quarks form a proton. Every observable particle carries an electric charge 1 or -1, 2 or -2. Quark charges are 1/3 or -1/3, 2/3 or -2/3.
25. A isolated neutron lives 15 minutes and decomposes into three particles.
26. Protons and neutrons are baryons.
27. A heavier baryon can decade into a lighter one.
28. Neutron is stable within an atomic nuclei. Neutrons within a stable nucleus is sufficiently reduced in mass that it cannot decay.
29. Mesons can deteriorate into leptons
30. The earth is positively and negatively in equilbrium. Without the earth's charge equilbrium, we would be crushed to death or expelled into outer space. What is left is the weak force called gravity acting upon us.
31. W - Z particles were discovered in 1983.
32. Three quarks and a gluon make either a proton or neutron. The gluon pulls the three quarks back within force boundaries. The pull of the gluon increases with distance. If for an instance, you succeed in freeing a quark with a great burst of energy, some of the energy will transform itself into other quarks and ant quarks. One of the new quarks will embrace the quark and form a pion.
33. Energy change determines photon frequency
34. E=hf where hf is the change of the material system, f is the frequency of the emitted radiation.
35. If a particular orbital angular momentum is 1, it can point up or down or halfway between
36. A neutron has a mass less than the sum of the 3 quarks. Binding energy is a negative contributor to mass.
37. Bohr reasoned that the electron must make a quantum jump between energy levels until it reached ground zero where it could not radiate anymore.
38. How does an electron in an excited state know which lower energy state it should jump?
39. The fundamental laws of the subatomic world are laws of probability.
40. Tunneling is governed by the law of probability
41. Alpha particle can suddenly appear outside the nucleus force and fly away.
42. A Scanning tunneling microscope has a tip that is brought 10 pow -9 meter from surface. Electrons tunnel from the surface to the tip. The tip measure the weak electric current. The surface has lumpy atoms, the distance from the surface to the tip will vary. As distance increases the tunneling of electrons decreases. A feedback circuit moves the tip near and far from the surface keeping constant tunneling current. The up/down motion of the tip can be translated into a map of hills and valleys.
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2: One of the best
This book is obviously targeted at the layman -- it's not a textbook. It makes very few assumptions about the reader's background -- but from a practical perspective, a reader with some appreciation for basic physics will get more from the book. What amazes me is just how much territory the author covers, using a very informal and approachable style. It's thoughtful exposition, not just a perfunctory review of the facts. In my opinion this is one of the best "introductory" books on quantum physics.
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3: Deeper within the Onion
Of all of the basic introductory, non-textbook physics books that I have been using lately, this is one of the better ones. I rated it a 4 but it is just short of being a five.
Dr Ford writes for a brighter group of readers, who are willing to understand and tackle deeper concepts in physics. It is interesting to note that a class of high school physics physics students are thanked for their feedback on reviewing the book. I could easily see this book being used as a supplemental book for a high school class.
I like the way he introduces and uses possible decay equations for particles. This and his discussion of some concepts move the reader into a deeper understanding of the physics concepts. One example is the detailed introduction to fermions and bosons. It is like peeling away some of the skin of the onion and moving deeper within the onion that is physics and science in general.
I also like the information on some of the scientists that show examples of some of the brightest people and their work over the last 100 plus years. One example, Wolfgang Pauli, of exclusion principle fame, graduating with PhD at age 21 and and earning his fame by age 26.
Some of his phrasing is intended to be fun and interesting, especially for younger readers. One example is the fact that he cites of Olivia Newton-John being the grand-daughter of Max Born. Although I am not sure how many youngsters will remember her or her years of fame as a singer back in the 1970s and 80s.
I recommend this book as a good read.
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4: No, not everyone
I wanted a book that would give me an overview of quantum physics and since this was a fairly recent book, I thought it would do the trick.
Unfortunately, I found it pretty dull. It was alright at first, but every time it got bogged down into the historical notes, I found my brain wandering off and it became increasingly difficult to return and finish the book. With the extensive and detailed digressions into who wrote what when, I approached the more interesting parts with growing disinterest.
I do NOT mind historical notes and have often read history of ___ books, but the amount of detail was completely unnecessary in telling the story.
I agree with what another reader said, 'all over the place.' Perhaps he was trying to appease every audience he could think of rather than producing a book with universal appeal/approachability.
In short, if I wanted a history of physics book, I would have bought one. I didn't intend to buy half a pop-sci physics book and half a history of physics book and lose track every time it switched from one to the other. It was ok. It was just not what I thought I purchased.
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5: A good introduction
It is a very good introduction to this
exciting field for high school or college
students.
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