Understanding Physics
Volume one traces the theoretical exploration of these concepts from an essentially Newtonian viewpoint. Newton's great achievement was in synthesizing the laws of motion and energy and in developing a unifying theory of universal gravitation. Concepts now considered common knowledge were at the time seen as so far fetched that even Newton himself felt that, although they must obey the natural laws he discovered, "angels" were required to move everything. The second volume views the development of these concepts from the viewpoint of the 19th century, when much of the theoretical work of physics was being transformed into the practical technology of the Industrial Revolution. Physics was the intellectual fuel of industrialization. The author also shows how the development of 19th century physics led to the Second Scientific Revolution of Einstein's Relativity and Plank's Quantum Theory. In the final volume, he deals with a central concern of 20th century physics -- the description of the infinitesimally small particles and waves that constitute the very fabric of the universe. The quest takes us to the frontiers of physics today where physicists speculate about the birth and boundaries of the universe, instantaneous particle communication and even other dimensions which may describe parallel realities.