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James Trefil has authored or coauthored numerous books on science for the general audience. His interest in scientific literacy began with a contributed essay to E. D. Hirsch’s Cultural Literacy and continued with his work on the Content Review Board for the National Science Education Standards. He serves as a regular contributor and science consultant for Smithsonian magazine and as a science commentator on National Public Radio. He received undergraduate degrees from the University of Illinois and Oxford University. After receiving a doctorate in theoretical physics from Stanford University, he held post-doctorate and faculty appointments in Europe and the United States. James Trefil is the Clarence Robinson Professor of Physics at George Mason University. He has made contributions to research in elementary particle physics, fluid mechanics, medical physics (including cancer research), and the earth sciences. Trefil was recently awarded the prestigious Gemant Prize of the American Institute of Physics for his efforts to present science to the public.

Robert M. Hazen is the Clarence Robinson Professor of Earth Science at George Mason University and Staff Scientist at the Carnegie Institution of Washington’s Geophysical Laboratory. Hazen developed a fascination for rocks and minerals as a child growing up in mineral-rich Northern New Jersey, and he pursued that interest as an undergraduate at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. After receiving a doctorate in earth sciences from Harvard University, he spent a year at Cambridge University as a NATO Postdoctoral Fellow. In addition to teaching courses on scientific literacy, scientific ethics, symmetry in art and sciences, and visual thinking, he performs research on materials at high pressure. His current studies on the origin of life explore the hypothesis that life arose in a deep, high –pressure environment. Hazen is active in presenting science to the public. He developed a 60-lecture video version of this textbook, Great principles of Science, which is available nationally through The Teaching Company. He has appeared on numerous radio and television shows, including NOVA and Today. His most recent popular book is The Diamond Makers, which recounts the discovery of a method to make synthetic diamonds. Robert Hazen is also a part-time professional trumpeter.

1. Science: A Way of Knowing: How do you know what you know?

2. The Ordered Universe: Why do planets appear to wander slowly across the sky?

3. Energy: Why must animals eat to stay alive?

4. Heat and the Second Law of Thermodynamics: How do humans control their body temperature?

5. Electricity and Magnetism: What is lightning?

6. Waves and Electromagnetic Radiation: Why do we see in color?

7. Albert Einstein and the Theory of Relativity: Can a human ever travel faster than the speed of light, at "Warp Speed"?

8. The Atom: Why?

9. Quantum Mechanics: How can the electron behave like both a particle and a wave?

10. Atoms in Combination: The Chemical Bond: How does blood clot?

11. Properties of Materials: How have computers gotten so much faster?

12. The Nucleus of the Atom: How do scientists determine the age of the oldest human fossils?

13. The Ultimate Structure of Matter: How can antimatter be used to probe the human brain?

14. The Stars: How much longer can the Sun sustain life on Earth?

15. Cosmology: Will the universe ever end?

16. The Earth and Other Planets: Is Earth the only planet with life?

17. Plate Tectonics: Can we perdict destructive earthquakes?

18. Cycles of the Earth: Will we ever run out of fresh water?

19. Ecology, Ecosystems and the Environment: Are human activities affecting the global environment?

20. Strategies of Life: What is Life: What is life?

21. Molecules of Life: What constitutes a healthy diet?

22. The Living Cell: What is the smallest living thing?

23. Classical and Modern Genetics: Why do offspring resemble their parents?

24. The New Science of Life: Can we cure cancer?

25. Evolution: How did life arise?

Appendix A: Human Anatomy.

Appendix B: Units and Numbers.

Appendix C: The Geological Time Scale.

Appendix D: Selected Physical Constants and Astronomical Data.

Appendix E: Properties of the Planets.

Appendix F: The Chemical Elements.

Glossary.

Credits.

Index.