The cosmic perspective / Jeffrey Bennett (University of Colorado at Boulder), Megan Donahue (Michigan State University), Nicholas Schneider (University of Colorado at Boulder), Mark Voit (Michigan State University).
Edition:
Eighth edition.
Publisher:
Pearson,
Copyright Date:
2017
Description:
1 volume (various pagings) : color illustrations, color maps ; 28 cm
D. The Periodic Table of the Elements 1. A Modern View Of The Universe -- 1.1. The Scale of the Universe -- 1.2. The History of the Universe -- 1.3. Spaceship Earth -- 1.4. The Human Adventure of Astronomy -- Exercises and Problems -- Common Misconceptions: The Meaning of a Light-Yea -- Mathematical Insight 1.1 How Far Is a Light-Year? An Introduction to Astronomical Problem Solving -- Special Topic: How Many Planets Are There in Our Solar System? -- Mathematical Insight 1.2 The Scale of Space and Time -- Common Misconceptions: Confusing Very Different Things -- Mathematical Insight 1.3 Order of Magnitude Estimation -- Cosmic Context Figure 1.10 Our Cosmic Origins -- Mathematical Insight 1.4 Speeds of Rotation and Orbit -- 2. Discovering The Universe For Yourself -- 2.1. Patterns in the Night Sky -- 2.2. The Reason for Seasons -- 2.3. The Moon, Our Constant Companion -- 2.4. The Ancient Mystery of the Planets -- Exercises and Problems -- Mathematical Insight 2.1 Angular Size, Physical Size, and Distance -- Common Misconceptions: The Moon Illusion -- Common Misconceptions: Stars in the Daytime -- Common Misconceptions: What Makes the North Star Special? -- Common Misconceptions: The Cause of Seasons -- Cosmic Context Figure 2.15 The Seasons -- Common Misconceptions: High Noon -- Common Misconceptions: Sun Signs -- Common Misconceptions: Shadows and the Moon -- Common Misconceptions: The "Dark Side" of the Moon -- Common Misconceptions: Moon in the Daytime and Stars on the Moon -- Special Topic: Does the Moon Influence Human Behavior? -- Special Topic: Who First Proposed a Sun-Centered Solar System? -- 3. The Science Of Astronomy -- 3.1. The Ancient Roots of Science -- 3.2. Ancient Greek Science -- 3.3. The Copernican Revolution -- 3.4. The Nature of Science -- 3.5. Astrology -- Exercises and Problems -- Special Topic: Aristotle -- Common Misconceptions: Columbus and a Flat Earth -- Special Topic: Eratosthenes Measures Earth -- Mathematical Insight 3.1 Eccentricity and Planetary Orbits -- Mathematical Insight 3.2 Kepler's Third Law -- Cosmic Context Figure 3.25 The Copernican Revolution -- Special Topic: And Yet It Moves -- Common Misconceptions: Eggs on the Equinox -- Special Topic: Logic and Science -- Extraordinary Claims: Earth Orbits the Sun -- S1. Celestial Timekeeping And Navigation -- S1.1. Astronomical Time Periods -- S1.2. Celestial Coordinates and Motion in the Sky -- S1.3. Principles of Celestial Navigation -- Exercises and Problems -- Mathematical Insight S1.1 The Copernican Layout of the Solar System -- Special Topic: Solar Days and the Analemma -- Mathematical Insight S1.2 Time by the Stars -- Common Misconceptions: Compass Directions -- Cosmic Context Part I: Our Expanding Perspective -- pt. II KEY CONCEPTS FOR ASTRONOMY -- 4. Making Sense Of The Universe: Understanding Motion, Energy, And Gravity -- 4.1. Describing Motion: Examples from Daily Life -- 4.2. Newton's Laws of Motion -- 4.3. Conservation Laws in Astronomy -- 4.4. The Universal Law of Gravitation -- 4.5. Orbits, Tides, and the Acceleration of Gravity -- Exercises and Problems -- Common Misconceptions: No Gravity in Space? -- Mathematical Insight 4.1 Units of Force, Mass, and Weight -- Common Misconceptions: What Makes a Rocket Launch? -- Mathematical Insight 4.2 Mass-Energy -- Mathematical Insight 4.3 Newton's Version of Kepler's Third Law -- Mathematical Insight 4.4 Escape Velocity -- Common Misconceptions: The Origin of Tides -- Mathematical Insight 4.5 The Acceleration of Gravity -- 5. Light And Matter: Reading Messages From The Cosmos -- 5.1. Light in Everyday Life -- 5.2. Properties of Light -- 5.3. Properties of Matter -- 5.4. Learning from Light -- Exercises and Problems -- Common Misconceptions: Is Radiation Dangerous? -- Common Misconceptions: Can You Hear Radio Waves or See an X Ray? -- Mathematical Insight 5.1 Wavelength, Frequency, and Energy -- Special Topic: What Do Polarized Sunglasses Have to Do with Astronomy? -- Common Misconceptions: The Illusion of Solidity -- Common Misconceptions: One Phase at a Time? -- Extraordinary Claims: We Can Never Learn the Composition of Stars -- Mathematical Insight 5.2 Laws of Thermal Radiation -- Cosmic Context Figure 5.25 Interpreting a Spectrum -- Mathematical Insight 5.3 The Doppler Shift -- 6. Telescopes: Portals Of Discovery -- 6.1. Eyes and Cameras: Everyday Light Sensors -- 6.2. Telescopes: Giant Eyes -- 6.3. Telescopes and the Atmosphere -- 6.4. Telescopes Across the Spectrum -- Exercises and Problems -- Common Misconceptions: Magnification and Telescopes -- Mathematical Insight 6.1 Angular Resolution -- Mathematical Insight 6.2 The Diffraction Limit -- Common Misconceptions: Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star -- Common Misconceptions: Closer to the Stars? -- Special Topic: Would You Like Your Own Telescope? -- Cosmic Context Part II: The Universality of Physics -- pt. III LEARNING FROM OTHER WORLDS -- 7. Our Planetary System -- 7.1. Studying the Solar System -- 7.2. Patterns in the Solar System -- 7.3. Spacecraft Exploration of the Solar System -- Exercises and Problems -- Cosmic Context Figure 7.1 The Solar System -- Special Topic: How Did We Learn the Scale of the Solar System? -- 8. Formation Of The Solar System -- 8.1. The Search for Origins -- 8.2. Explaining the Major Features of the Solar System -- 8.3. The Age of the Solar System -- Exercises and Problems -- Common Misconceptions: Solar Gravity and the Density of Planets -- Extraordinary Claims: A Giant Impact Made Our Moon -- Mathematical Insight 8.1 Radiometric Dating -- Special Topic: What Started the Collapse of the Solar Nebula? -- 9. Planetary Geology: Earth And The Other Terrestrial Worlds -- 9.1. Connecting Planetary Interiors and Surfaces -- 9.2. Shaping Planetary Surfaces -- 9.3. Geology of the Moon and Mercury -- 9.4. Geology of Mars -- 9.5. Geology of Venus -- 9.6. The Unique Geology of Earth -- Exercises and Problems -- Common Misconceptions: Earth Is Not Full of Molten Lava -- Special Topic: How Do We Know What's Inside Earth? -- Common Misconceptions: Pressure and Temperature -- Mathematical Insight 9.1 The Surface Area-to-Volume Ratio -- Extraordinary Claims: Martians! -- 10. Planetary Atmospheres: Earth And The Other Terrestrial Worlds -- 10.1. Atmospheric Basics -- 10.2. Weather and Climate -- 10.3. Atmospheres of the Moon and Mercury -- 10.4. The Atmospheric History of Mars -- 10.5. The Atmospheric History of Venus -- 10.6. Earth's Unique Atmosphere -- Exercises and Problems -- Mathematical Insight 10.1 "No Greenhouse" Temperatures -- Common Misconceptions: Temperatures at High Altitude -- Common Misconceptions: Why Is the Sky Blue? -- Common Misconceptions: Toilets in the Southern Hemisphere -- Special Topic: Weather and Chaos -- Mathematical Insight 10.2 Thermal Escape from an Atmosphere -- Common Misconceptions: Ozone -- Good or Bad? -- Common Misconceptions: The Greenhouse Effect -- Cosmic Context Figure 10.42 Global Warming -- Extraordinary Claims: Human Activity Can Change the Climate -- 11. Jovian Planet Systems -- 11.1. A Different Kind of Planet -- 11.2. A Wealth of Worlds: Satellites of Ice and Rock -- 11.3. Jovian Planet Rings -- Exercises and Problems -- Special Topic: How Were Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto Discovered? -- 12. Asteroids, Comets, And Dwarf Planets: Their Nature, Orbits, And Impacts -- 12.1. Classifying Small Bodies -- 12.2. Asteroids -- 12.3. Comets -- 12.4. Pluto and the Kuiper Belt -- 12.5. Cosmic Collisions: Small Bodies versus the Planets -- Exercises and Problems -- Common Misconceptions: Dodge Those Asteroids! -- Extraordinary Claims: The Death of the Dinosaurs Was Catastrophic, Not Gradual -- 13. Other Planetary Systems: The New Science Of Distant Worlds -- 13.1. Detecting Planets Around Other Stars -- 13.2. The Nature of Planets Around Other Stars -- 13.3. The Formation of Other Solar Systems -- 13.4. The Future of Extrasolar Planetary Science -- Exercises and Problems -- Special Topic: How Did We Learn That Other Stars Are Suns? -- Special Topic: The Names of Extrasolar Planets -- Cosmic Context Figure 13.6 Detecting Extrasolar Planets -- Mathematical Insight 13.1 Finding Orbital Distances for Extrasolar Planets -- Mathematical Insight 13.2 Finding Masses of Extrasolar Planets -- Mathematical Insight 13.3 Finding Sizes of Extrasolar Planets -- Cosmic Context Part III: Learning from Other Worlds -- pt. V STARS -- 14. Our Star -- 14.1. A Closer Look at the Sun -- 14.2. Nuclear Fusion in the Sun -- 14.3. The Sun-Earth Connection -- Exercises and Problems -- Common Misconceptions: The Sun Is Not on Fire -- Mathematical Insight 14.1 Mass-Energy Conversion In Hydrogen Fusion -- Mathematical Insight 14.2 Pressure in the Sun: The Ideal Gas Law -- pt. VII LIFE ON EARTH AND BEYOND -- 24. Life In The Universe -- 24.1. Life on Earth -- 24.2. Life in the Solar System -- 24.3. Life Around Other Stars -- 24.4. The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence -- 24.5. Interstellar Travel and Its Implications for Civilization -- Exercises and Problems -- Special Topic: Evolution and the Schools -- Special Topic: What Is Life? -- Extraordinary Claims: Aliens Are Visiting Earth in UFOs -- Cosmic Context Part VII: A Universe of Life? -- CREDITS -- APPENDIXES -- A. Useful Numbers -- B. Useful Formulas -- C. A Few Mathematical Skills -- D. The Periodic Table of the Elements J. Key to Icons on Figures. F. Stellar Data -- G. Galaxy Data -- H. The 88 Constellations -- I. Star Charts -- J. Key to Icons on Figures.
Summary:
"Building on a long tradition of effective pedagogy and comprehensive coverage, The Cosmic Perspective, Eighth Edition provides a thoroughly engaging and up-to-date introduction to astronomy for non-science majors. This text offers a wealth of features that enhance student understanding of the process of science and actively engage students in the learning process for key concepts. The fully updated Eighth Edition includes the latest scientific discoveries, revises several subjects based on our most current understanding of the cosmos, and now emphasizes deeper understanding of the twists and turns of the process of science and the relevance of concepts to student's lives."--Publisher's description.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.