
Antimatter
Frank Close(Author)
Oxford University Press
Published on 22. January 2009
Book
Hardback
176 pages
978-0-19-955016-6 (ISBN)
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Description
Antimatter explores a strange mirror world, where particles have identical yet opposite properties to those that make up the familiar matter we encounter everyday; where left becomes right, positive becomes negative; and where, should matter and antimatter meet, the two annihilate in a blinding flash of energy that makes even thermonuclear explosions look feeble by comparison. It is an idea long beloved of science-fiction stories - but here, renowned science writer Frank Close shows that the reality of antimatter is even more fascinating than the fiction itself. We know that once, antimatter and matter existed in perfect counterbalance, and that antimatter then perpetrated a vanishing act on a cosmic scale that remains one of the greatest mysteries of the universe. Today, antimatter does not exist normally, at least on Earth, but we know that it is real for scientists are now able to make small pieces of it in particle accelerators, such as that at CERN in Geneva.Looking at the remarkable prediction of antimatter and how it grew from the meeting point of relativity and quantum theory in the early 20th century, at the discovery of the first antiparticles, at cosmic rays, annihilation, antimatter bombs, and antiworlds, Close separates the facts from the fiction about antimatter, and explains how its existence can give us profound clues about the origins and structure of the universe.
Reviews / Votes
This compact book is a wonderful source of information on antimatter and offers us a meticulously researched account of the nature, properties and applications of the often overlooked entities in the fantastic antiworld around us. Chemistry World A meticulously researched account of the nature, properties and application of the ...antiworld around us. Dennis Rouvray, Chemistry World ...worth reading for its beautifully concise history of one vital aspect of twentieth-century particle physics Mark Ronan, Times Literary Supplement His prose is clear, the concepts always understandable, his analysis always insightful. Mark Greener, Fortean Times Beautifully written..This book will inspire a sense of awe in even the most seasoned of physics readers. Amanda Gefter, New Scientist This is a must read for fans of science and science fiction alike. Dr John Gribbin, www.bbcfocusmagazine.comMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
Oxford
United Kingdom
Illustrations
15 b&w halftones
Dimensions
Height: 196 mm
Width: 129 mm
Weight
284 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-19-955016-6 (9780199550166)
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Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
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Frank Close
Antimatter
Book
10/2018
2nd Edition
Oxford University Press
€14.00
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Additional editions

Frank Close
Antimatter
Book
01/2010
Oxford University Press
€11.15
Article exhausted; check for reprint
Content
Foreword: 'Genesis'; 1. Antimatter: fact or fiction?; 2. The material world; 3. Tablets of stone; 4. A cosmic discovery; 5. Annihilation; 6. Storing antimatter; 7. Why is there anything at all?; 8. Through the looking glass; 9. Antiworlds; 10. Revelations; Appendix: 'The Dirac Code'