Giant Molecules: Here, There, and Everywhere - Tapa dura

"I would recommend this book to anyone with an interest in polymer science, whether established experts or complete newcomers - it really is an excellent starting point for the subject.--Simon Briggs, The University of Newcastle, MOLECULES 1998 "The authors take us through the fundamentals of macromolecules in an intuitive and entertaining way."--Edwin L. Thomas in NATURE"Giant molecules is one of the hottest topics in science today. This book, written by twobrilliant physicists, will guide readers through this new frontier of polymer science while they master the modern concepts behind it. Giant molecules play an increasingly important role in medicine, chemistry, agriculture, and in the pharmaceutical andelectronic industries, and the authors make the topic equally accessible to any curious reader. The authors are skilled story-tellers, which makes this scientifically relevant book entertaining as well as informative. Giant Molecules will be of useto all levels of science enthusiasts who are curious about the newest developments in polymer science. This book is not to be missed!"--TOYOICHI TANAKA, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge"B>Giant Molecules is a beautiful...book on polymer science which is written by two of the leaders in the field who are also tremendously skilled at putting the science in both historical and scientific contexts. The book is actually a marvelous introduction to polymer physics (for people who have had some training in physical science) which is scientifically accurate but can also be read as a wonderfully articulate and amusing history of polymer science. This book must be on the shelf of all polymer scientists and willgo a long way in explaining this sub-discipline to the broad public."--P. PINCUS, University of California, Santa Barbara "The two Russian authors have a talent for writing...in a simple style--avoiding most of the heavy formalism that is beloved in countries of strong mathematical bias such as Russia or France. The final product is accessible for university students andto research engineers. I am convinced that it will play a very useful role in this context."--P.G. de GennesAlexander Yu. Grosberg and Alexei R. Khokhlov, who have made significant contributions to polymer physics, have now added to this distinguished literature in the semipopular book, Giant Molecules: Here, There, and Everywhere...The overall level is suitable for an advanced undergraduate in physics, chemistry or chemical engineering...this book will subvert the view of statistical mechanics as a dry, overly mathematical subject, a view of reinforced by standard textbooks...Practitioners will also find the book stimulating...the book capably fills a void between technical works and the few popularized materials science books. Many future polymer scientists will meet the intellectual love of their lives in its pages.--Thomas Halsey, Exxon Research and Engineering, PHYSICS TODAYIt is nicely written in a lively style, and can easily be read by the scientifically interested senior high-school or undergraduate student. Indeed, everybody who is interested in polymers-of of the most improtant and fast expanding fields in the natural sciences-will find it worthwhile having this book on their shelves...the authors have succeeded in writing an accurate and precise book...This makes it a valuable book forboth the scientifically interested layreader and non-expert student, as awell as, for the experienced scientist, who is so often caught up in the complicated and specialized realm of his or her own research...a must for the shelf of every researcher in the field. They will find it invaluable in helping them to explain complicated situations in simple terms-something that is increasingly important in scientific life.--Kurt Kremer, director of Max-Planck-Institutfur Polymerforschung, PHYSICS WORLDThis is a very "pretty" book, attractively laid out with wide margins and lots of white space..."science for the layman..".--R. Darby, Texas A&M University, CHOICE...a book for the non-expert...nicely written in a lively style, and can easily be read by the scientifically interested senior high-school or undergraduate student...Indeed everyone who is intereseted in polymers...will find it worthwile having this book and CD on their shelves.--Kurt Kremer, PHYSICSWEB

This volume provides a look at the world of polymers, describing the roles they play in our everyday lives and the physics behind them. The book is accompanied by a CD-ROM that provides a graphic simulation of the patterns and behaviour of polymers. The text addresses the nature and role of giant molecules, which are the source for polymer chains. Grosberg explains what giant molecules are, how they are formed, where they are applied, and why they are important in everyday life and in science. A CD-ROM enclosed with the book provides simulation of typical behaviour of polymers and also allows the user to create a broad variety of movies simulating an almost arbitrary polymer system.