Centennial News: Physics in the 20th Century

A coffee table book for physicist's families.

By Curt Suplee; Edited by Judy R. Franz and John S. Rigden

Time-exposure photograph of a nuclear fusion experiment. (Photo courtesy of Sandia National Laboratory)

The discoveries and inventions of physicists in this century have revolutionized modern life. One hundred years ago, scientists questioned the very existence of atoms and knew almost nothing about the cosmos. Today, physicists can arrange individual atoms on a surface and make an image of the result, and have begun to unravel the history of time and the universe.

In this book, Curt Suplee, science writer and editor at The Washington Post, documents one of the most remarkable flowerings of knowledge in human history. The extraordinary illustrations focus mainly on the remarkable images-from the atomic to the cosmic scale made possible by the instruments of advanced physics. Also included are photographs of experimental equipment-massive particle colliders are beautiful in their own right-and pioneering inventions.

This stunning volume is sponsored by the APS and the AIP on the occasion of the centennial of the American Physical Society.

You will want a copy on your own coffee table and another for your parents and children who have always wondered why you find physics so fascinating. Now they will know!