Physics Book Report: Physics  (H)(R)

Each physics student is required to read literature in the area of physics, either fiction or non-fiction. Students are to choose a book from the following list and read it. They are to follow the format listed below to prepare a report / presentation about the book. The presentations and reports will be due on Monday/Tuesday, December 6-7, 2004. This project will count as two tests for the 2nd quarter. The following format is required for the report and presentation:

The Report: 35%

• A concise, well worded description of the main premise of the book. The Report should be no more than 250 words and should include a brief overview of the plot, the main characters, and the main physics-related concepts used in the book.
• Use accepted MLA style writing with correct punctuation and spelling.

The Presentation: 65%

• The Presentation should go into more detail than the Report. This is what the majority of your grade will be based upon. You will be graded on the following characteristics of your Presentation:
• The Presentation will be done individually and will last no more than 5 minutes. You will have a lot of material to cover in 5 minutes so the presentation should be well rehearsed and prepared. Visual aids and creative presentation techniques are expected.  Power Point is recommended.
• The Presentation should include a brief description of the plot / time-line and main characters described in the book to orient the class for the more in-depth discussion of the physics concepts to follow.
• Fiction books only – describe the physics discussed in the book and compare it with the ‘real’ physics and indicate whether the science is really fiction or a futurist extension on current scientific theory of fact. (To do this you will have to read and cite other material)
• Non-fiction books only – describe the history of the topic discussed and the background physics that was used to develop the topic.
• Conclude by giving your feelings about the book from a student of physics point of view.

Physics Book List: Title – Author

· A Brief History of Time – Stephen Hawking

· The Universe in a Nutshell - Stephen Hawking

· On the Shoulders of Giants: The Great Works of Physics and Astronomy - Stephen Hawking

· The Theory of Everything: The Origin and Fate of the Universe - Stephen Hawking

· The Nature of Space and Time - Stephen Hawking

· Six Easy Pieces – Richard Feynman

·     The Pleasure of Finding Things Out - Richard Feynman

· The Meaning Of It All: Thoughts of a Citizen Scientist - Richard Feynman

· Six Not So Easy Pieces - Richard Feynman

· QED: The Strange Theory of Light and Matter - Richard Feynman

· What do you care what other people think? :Further Adventures of a Curious Character – Richard Feynman

· The Character of a Physical Law - Richard Feynman

·     Rocket Boys - Homer Hickam, Jr.

· War of the Worlds – H. G. Wells

· The Time Machine – H. G. Wells

· Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea – Jules Verne

· From the Earth to the Moon – Jules Verne

· The Chase of the Golden Meteor – Jules Verne

· 2001: A Space Odyssey – Arthur Clark

· 2010: Odyssey Two – Arthur Clark

· 2061: Odyssey Three - Arthur Clark

· 3001: The Final Odyssey - Arthur Clark

· The Hammer of God - Arthur Clark

· God and the New Physics – Paul Davies

· Mind of God: The Scientific Basis for a Rational World - Paul Davies

· Are We Alone? : Philosophical Implications of the Discover of Extraterrestrial Life – Paul Davies

· Thinking About Physics – Roger Newton

· Contact – Carl Sagan

·     Timeline - Michael Crichton

·     Black Holes & Time Warps - Kip Thorne

· E=mc2: A Biography of the World’s Most Famous Equation – David Bodanis

· The Birth of the New Physics – I. Bernard Cohen

· The Hunting of the Quark – Michael Riordan

· From Falling Bodies to Radio Waver – Emilio Segre

· From X-Rays to Quarks - Emilio Segre

· The First Three Minutes – Steven Weinberg

· The Evolution of Physics – Albert Einstein

· Out of My Later Years - Albert Einstein

· Relativity: The Special and the General Theory - Albert Einstein

· Galileo’s Daughter – Dava Sobel

· The Cartoon Guide to Physics – Larry Gonick

· The Holographic Universe – Michael Talbot

· Second Stage: Advanced Model Rocketry – Michael Banks

· Memoirs: A Twentieth-Century Journey in Science and Politics – Edward Teller

· The Five Ages of the Universe: Inside the Physics of Eternity – Fred Adams

· Probability 1: Why There Must Be Intelligent Life in the Universe – Amir Aczel

· Einstein’s Daughter: The Search for Lieserl – Michele Zackheim

· Newton’s Gift: How Sir Isaac Newton Unlocked the System of the World – David Berlinski

· Physics for Poets 5ed – Robert March

· The Tao of Physics: An Exploration of the Parallels Between Modern Physics and Eastern Mysticism – Fritjof Capra

· A Journey Into Gravity and Spacetime – John Wheeler

· Great Experiments in Physics: Firsthand Accounts from Galileo to Einstein – Morris Shamos

· Mr. Tompkins in Paperback – George Gamow

· Don’t Know Much about the Universe: Everything You Need to Know about the Cosmos But Never Learned – Kenneth Davis

· Hyperspace: Our Final Frontier – John Gribbin

· Physics in the Twentieth Century – Curt Suplee

· Lonely Hearts of the Cosmos: The Scientific Quest for the Secret of the Universe – Dennis Overbye

· Einstein: A Life – Denis Brian

· The Whole Shebang: A State-Of-The-Universe(s) Report – Timothy Ferris

· Starry Messenger: Galileo Galilei – Peter Sis

· The Complete Book of Holograms: How They Work and How to Make Them – Joseph Kasper

· Parallel Universes: The Search for Other Worlds – Fred Alan Wolf

· The Einstein File: J. Edgar Hoover’s Secret War Against the World’s Most Famous Scientist – Fred Jerome

· Heavenly Knowledge: An Astrophysicist Seeks Wisdom in the Stars – Florella Terenzi

· Introducing Stephen Hawking – J.P. Mcevoy