A01=Roger G. Newton
Ad hoc hypothesis
Author_Roger G. Newton
Bell's theorem
Beta decay
Category=PH
Chaos theory
Classical mechanics
Classical physics
Conservation law
Continuous spectrum
Cosmological constant
Creation and annihilation operators
Effective field theory
Eightfold Way (physics)
Elementary particle
Energy level
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Equations of motion
Explanation
Fermi-Dirac statistics
Gauge theory
H-theorem
Harmonic oscillator
Heisenberg picture
Ideal gas
Interpretations of quantum mechanics
Intrinsic parity
Ising model
Julian Schwinger
Lorentz covariance
Lorentz transformation
Many-worlds interpretation
Mathematician
Mathematics
Microstate (statistical mechanics)
Minkowski space
Modern physics
Molecule
Newton's law of universal gravitation
Nonlinear system
Nucleon
Perturbation theory (quantum mechanics)
Phase space
Photon
Physicist
Physics beyond the Standard Model
Prediction
Probability
Pseudoscalar
Quantum electrodynamics
Quantum entanglement
Quantum field theory
Quantum mechanics
Quantum Zeno effect
Renormalization
Richard Feynman
Scattering
Schrodinger equation
Solitary wave
Soliton
Special relativity
Statistical mechanics
Strangeness
Tachyon
Theoretical physics
Theory
Theory of relativity
Thomas Kuhn
Ultimate fate of the universe
Variable (mathematics)
Virtual particle
Wave function collapse
Weak interaction
Product details
- ISBN 9780691095530
- Weight: 28g
- Dimensions: 152 x 235mm
- Publication Date: 24 Mar 2002
- Publisher: Princeton University Press
- Publication City/Country: US
- Product Form: Paperback
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Physical scientists are problem solvers. They are comfortable "doing" science: they find problems, solve them, and explain their solutions. Roger Newton believes that his fellow physicists might be too comfortable with their roles as solvers of problems. He argues that physicists should spend more time thinking about physics. If they did, he believes, they would become even more skilled at solving problems and "doing" science. As Newton points out in this thought-provoking book, problem solving is always influenced by the theoretical assumptions of the problem solver. Too often, though, he believes, physicists haven't subjected their assumptions to thorough scrutiny. Newton's goal is to provide a framework within which the fundamental theories of modern physics can be explored, interpreted, and understood. "Surely physics is more than a collection of experimental results, assembled to satisfy the curiosity of appreciative experts," Newton writes. Physics, according to Newton, has moved beyond the describing and naming of curious phenomena, which is the goal of some other branches of science.
Physicists have spent a great part of the twentieth century searching for explanations of experimental findings. Newton agrees that experimental facts are vital to the study of physics, but only because they lead to the development of a theory that can explain them. Facts, he argues, should undergird theory. Newton's explanatory sweep is both broad and deep. He covers such topics as quantum mechanics, classical mechanics, field theory, thermodynamics, the role of mathematics in physics, and the concepts of probability and causality. For Newton the fundamental entity in quantum theory is the field, from which physicists can explain the particle-like and wave-like properties that are observed in experiments. He grounds his explanations in the quantum field. Although this is not designed as a stand-alone textbook, it is essential reading for advanced undergraduate students, graduate students, professors, and researchers. This is a clear, concise, up-to-date book about the concepts and theories that underlie the study of contemporary physics. Readers will find that they will become better-informed physicists and, therefore, better thinkers and problem solvers too.
Roger G. Newton is Distinguished Professor Emeritus at Indiana University. He is editor of the Journal of Mathematical Physics and author of several books, including Scattering Theory of Waves and Particles, The Truth of Science, and What Makes Nature Tick?
