Greenwood guides to great ideas in science

Offers a comprehensive summary of the chemical elements, focusing on how scientific knowledge related to each element has changed throughout history and how researchers have learned about each element's functions and makeup.

Examines the history of physics, and discusses the advancement of ideas from antiquity through the twentieth century, and covers Medieval ideas of force, Isaac Newton, thermodynamics, relativity of motion, Quantum mechanics, and other related topics. Includes a time line.

Presents a brief history of quantum mechanics, discussing key figures such as Einstein, Bohr, and Planck in the early twentieth century, looking at modern theories of quantum computing and quantum gravity, and including a time line.

Chronicles the historical development of modern man's understanding of heat and fire from the end of the Middle Ages to the beginning of the twentieth century, discussing the rise and fall of the caloric theory, the origins of thermodynamics, the kinetic theory of gases, and other topics.

Traces the historical development of the theories related to electricity and magnetism, profiling the scientists who made the most significant contributions to the field and the most important developments and discoveries.