Science and Society

by Eric S. Swanson (Author)
Text is structured as a narrative with rich historical context and little mathematics
The central ideas of modern physics are introduced in a non-mathematical, accessible, and historically motivated manner
Covers many issues of current global interest, including climate change, pollution, population growth, nuclear power, renewable energy and the dangers of electromagnetic and nuclear radiation
Students are challenged to question their own beliefs and to develop realistic fact-based worldviews
Explains the differences between science and pseudoscience

From the Back Cover
This undergraduate textbook educates non-science majors―our future policy makers―on how science works, the rules that underpin our existence, our impact on nature, and nature's impact on us. The book provides a concise, historically based, non-mathematical treatment of modern physics relevant to societal issues. It challenges readers to examine the problems we face (and their own beliefs) in light of the scientific method.

With a narrative structure, Science and Society explains the scientific process and the power it brings to dealing with the natural world. The reader will gain a deeper understanding of scientific results reported by the media, and thus the tools to develop a rational, fact-based assessment of energy and resource policy.

Praise for Science and Society:

"Anyone who thinks society can be managed without science should think again, or better: read this book. Eric Swanson explains how science permeates society, and with simple examples of the scientific process he shows its special power in dealing with the natural world. This is a must read for the world's seven billion scientists."
F.E. Close, OBE, Oxford University, author of, among others, "Half-Life: The Divided Life of Bruno Pontecorvo, Physicist or Spy", "The Infinity Puzzle", and "Neutrino"

About the Author
Eric Swanson is a professor at the University of Pittsburgh. He has published more than 100 papers on theoretical hadronic physics, condensed matter physics, and biophysics. Swanson is a Fellow of the American Physical Society and is a founder of the APS Topical Group on Hadronic Physics. He has been a visiting scientist at Oxford University, TRIUMF in British Columbia, Jefferson Lab in Virginia, and Los Alamos National Laboratory.

Number of Illustrations and Tables
54 illus., 39 in colour
Topics
Methodology of the Social Sciences
Societal Aspects of Physics
Game Theory / Mathematical Methods
Energy (general)
History of Science

More info and Hardcover at Springer

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