Hazen, Robert. Great Courses Audio.

Great courses

Lecturer: Robert Hazen

Science is humanity's greatest achievement. It ranges from the study of the universe itself to the smallest particles of matter contained within it - and everything in between. It explores everything from the big bang to theories about the end of the universe. If you want to better understand our physical world, as most of us do, gaining a basic understanding of science itself is profoundly important - yet many are intimidated by the breathtaking scope of such an endeavor. Now an award-winning science teacher has taken out the intimidation, harnessing that breathtaking scope into a series of 60 exciting, comprehensive, and accessible lectures that let you explore and understand the wealth of ideas, discoveries, and principles in all of the physical and biological sciences. You learn that understanding science comes from understanding not only its component disciplines - each of which has its own theories, pioneers, problems, and fundamental questions - but of knowing how these disciplines work with one another to create an entire mosaic of human knowledge. The lectures have been crafted to make those relationships crystal-clear, with an integrated approach that takes you through all of the major disciplines that fall under the umbrella of "science," including physics, chemistry, Earth science, geophysics, and biology. Each lecture covers one of the 60 fundamental principles of the scientific world - offering you new knowledge and insight into topics such as the scientific method, gravitation, atoms, the big bang, plate tectonics, volcanoes, proteins, ecosystems, and electricity. All Lectures: 1. The Nature of Science 2. The Scientific Method 3. The Ordered Universe 4. Celestial and Terrestrial Mechanics 5. Newton's Laws of Motion 6. Universal Gravitation 7. The Nature of Energy 8. The First Law of Thermodynamics 9. The Second Law of Thermodynamics 10. Entropy 11. Magnetism and Static Electricity 12. Electricity 13. Electromagnetism 14. The Electromagnetic Spectrum, Part I 15. The Electromagnetic Spectrum, Part II 16. Relativity 17. Atoms 18. The Bohr Atom 19. The Quantum World 20. The Periodic Table of the Elements 21. Introduction to Chemistry 22. The Chemistry of Carbon 23. States of Matter and Changes of State 24. Phase Transformations and Chemical Reactions 25. Properties of Materials 26. Semiconductors and Modern Microelectronics 27. Isotopes and Radioactivity 28. Nuclear Fission and Fusion Reactions 29. Astronomy 30. The Life Cycle of Stars 31. Edwin Hubble and the Discovery of Galaxies 32. The Big Bang 33. The Ultimate Structure of Matter 34. The Nebular Hypothesis 35. The Solar System 36. The Earth as a Planet 37. The Dynamic Earth 38. The Plate Tectonics Revolution 39. Earthquakes, Volcanoes, and Plate Motions Today 40. Earth Cycles - Water 41. The Atmospheric Cycle 42. The Rock Cycle 43. What Is Life? 44. Strategies of Life 45. Life's Molecular Building Blocks 46. Proteins 47. Cells - The Chemical Factories of Life 48. Gregor Mendel, Founder of Genetics 49. The Discovery of DNA 50. The Genetic Code 51. Reading the Genetic Code 52. Genetic Engineering 53. Cancer and Other Genetic Diseases 54. The Chemical Evolution of Life 55. Biological Evolution - A Unifying Theme of Biology 56. The Fact of Evolution - The Fossil Record 57. Charles Darwin and the Theory of Natural Selection 58. Ecosystems and the Law of Unintended Consequences 59. The Ozone Hole, Acid Rain, and the Greenhouse Effect 60. Science, the Endless Frontier

Mode of access: World Wide Web