Introduction to Superstrings and M-Theory


Michio Kaku - 1989
    Called by some, "the theory of everything," superstrings may solve a problem that has eluded physicists for the past 50 years, the final unification of the two great theories of the twentieth century, general relativity and quantum field theory. Now, here is a thoroughly revised, second edition of a course-tested comprehensive introductory graduate text on superstrings which stresses the most current areas of interest, not covered in other presentations, including: - Four-dimensional superstrings - Kac-Moody algebras - Teichm�ller spaces and Calabi-Yau manifolds - M-theory Membranes and D-branes - Duality and BPS relations - Matrix models The book begins with a simple discussion of point particle theory, and uses Feynman path integrals to unify the presentation of superstrings. It has been updated throughout, and three new chapters on M-theory have been added. Prerequisites are an acquaintance with quantum mechanics and relativity.

It's a Numberful World: How Math Is Hiding Everywhere


Eddie Woo - 2019
    . . like a pendulum? These may not look like math questions, but they are-because they all have to do with patterns. And mathematics, at heart, is the study of patterns. That realization changed Eddie Woo's life-by turning the "dry" subject he dreaded in high school into a boundless quest for discovery. Now an award-winning math teacher, Woo sees patterns everywhere: in the "branches" of blood vessels and lightning, in the growth of a savings account and a sunflower, even in his morning cup of tea! Here are twenty-six bite-size chapters on the hidden mathematical marvels that encrypt our email, enchant our senses, and even keep us alive-from the sine waves we hear as "music" to the mysterious golden ratio. This book will change your mind about what math can be. We are all born mathematicians-and It's a Numberful World.

Multiple View Geometry in Computer Vision


Richard Hartley - 2000
    This book covers relevant geometric principles and how to represent objects algebraically so they can be computed and applied. Recent major developments in the theory and practice of scene reconstruction are described in detail in a unified framework. Richard Hartley and Andrew Zisserman provide comprehensive background material and explain how to apply the methods and implement the algorithms. First Edition HB (2000): 0-521-62304-9

Thermodynamics


Enrico Fermi - 1956
    Based on a course of lectures delivered by the author at Columbia University, the text is elementary in treatment and remarkable for its clarity and organization. Although it is assumed that the reader is familiar with the fundamental facts of thermometry and calorimetry, no advanced mathematics beyond calculus is assumed.Partial contents: thermodynamic systems, the first law of thermodynamics (application, adiabatic transformations), the second law of thermodynamics (Carnot cycle, absolute thermodynamic temperature, thermal engines), the entropy (properties of cycles, entropy of a system whose states can be represented on a (V, p) diagram, Clapeyron and Van der Waals equations), thermodynamic potentials (free energy, thermodynamic potential at constant pressure, the phase rule, thermodynamics of the reversible electric cell), gaseous reactions (chemical equilibria in gases, Van't Hoff reaction box, another proof of the equation of gaseous equilibria, principle of Le Chatelier), the thermodynamics of dilute solutions (osmotic pressure, chemical equilibria in solutions, the distribution of a solute between 2 phases vapor pressure, boiling and freezing points), the entropy constant (Nernst's theorem, thermal ionization of a gas, thermionic effect, etc.).