The Physical Basis of Chemistry

If the text you're using for general chemistry seems to lack sufficient mathematics and physics in its presentation of classical mechanics, molecular structure, and statistics, this complementary science series title may be just what you're looking for. Written for the advanced lower-division undergraduate chemistry course, The Physical Basis of Chemistry, Second Edition, offers students an opportunity to understand and enrich the understanding of physical chemistry with some quantum mechanics, the Boltzmann distribution, and spectroscopy. Posed and answered are questions concerning everyday phenomena. Unlike other texts on this subject, however, Dr. Warren deals directly with the substance of the questions, avoiding the use of predigested material more appropriate for memorization exercises than for actual concrete learning. The only prerequisite is first-semester calculus or familiarity with one-variable derivatives. In this new edition, the entire text has been rewritten and keyed with an accompanying website, which contains instructive QuickTime movies on topics presented in the text to enhance student learning and participation.

Lord Ernest Rutherford, 1908 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry, put it bluntly:
Science is divided into two categories: physics and stamp collecting.
But he would have been astonished to see the transformation of biology from "stamp collecting" into molecular biology, genomics, biochemistry, and biophysics in this century. This transformation occurred only because, time and time again, fundamental advances in theoretical physics drove the development of useful new tools for chemistry. Chemists in turn learned how to synthesize and characterize ever more complex molecules, and eventually created a quantitative framework for understanding biology and medicine.
This book presents the physical, mathematical, and statistical concepts necessary for understanding the structure and function of molecules. The emphasis is placed on understanding the critical core material in quantum mechanics, thermodynamics, and spectroscopy that should be understood by any scientist or student of science. It is designed to enhance any general chemistry text by reintroducing concepts that require a little mathematical sophistication. It is also useful as a stand-alone background text for introductions to materials science, biophysics, and clinical imaging.

Praise for the First Edition:
"Both [Warren's] choice of material and his style and flair of presentation are exceptionally good."
--Dudley Herschbach, Harvard University

"Professor Warren writes clearly and forcefully. His expression is at a high level but it is presented in an inviting manner for students-not condescending and not too cute."
--Richard N. Zare, Stanford University

"This is a great book to supplement either an advanced general chemistry course or a junior-level physical chemistry course. It would serve opposite functions in those two settings, but would work well in either. As a supplement to an introductory chemistry textbook, it would provide mathematically advanced students with additional challenge and rigor. As a supplement to a physical chemistry textbook, it would provide a bridge between the standard introductory material and the mathematically more sophisticated physical chemistry texts."
--Deborah Huntley, Saginaw State University

Warren S. Warren, Professor of Chemistry at Princeton University, received his Ph.D. in Chemistry from U.C. Berkley in 1980. His publications range from Physical Review Letters and invited papers in Science on his research in nuclear magnetic resonance and ultrafast laser spectroscopy to the Journal of Chemical Education. He received the 1982 Nobel Laureate Signature Award of the American Chemical Society and has held numerous fellowships.|Lord Ernest Rutherford, 1908 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry, put it bluntly:
Science is divided into two categories: physics and stamp collecting.
But he would have been astonished to see the transformation of biology from "stamp collecting" into molecular biology, genomics, biochemistry, and biophysics in this century. This transformation occurred only because, time and time again, fundamental advances in theoretical physics drove the development of useful new tools for chemistry. Chemists in turn learned how to synthesize and characterize ever more complex molecules, and eventually created a quantitative framework for understanding biology and medicine.
This book presents the physical, mathematical, and statistical concepts necessary for understanding the structure and function of molecules. The emphasis is placed on understanding the critical core material in quantum mechanics, thermodynamics, and spectroscopy that should be understood by any scientist or student of science. It is designed to enhance any general chemistry text by reintroducing concepts that require a little mathematical sophistication. It is also useful as a stand-alone background text for introductions to materials science, biophysics, and clinical imaging.

Praise for the First Edition:
"Both [Warren's] choice of material and his style and flair of presentation are exceptionally good."
--Dudley Herschbach, Harvard University

"Professor Warren writes clearly and forcefully. His expression is at a high level but it is presented in an inviting manner for students-not condescending and not too cute."
--Richard N. Zare, Stanford University

"This is a great book to supplement either an advanced general chemistry course or a junior-level physical chemistry course. It would serve opposite functions in those two settings, but would work well in either. As a supplement to an introductory chemistry textbook, it would provide mathematically advanced students with additional challenge and rigor. As a supplement to a physical chemistry textbook, it would provide a bridge between the standard introductory material and the mathematically more sophisticated physical chemistry texts."
--Deborah Huntley, Saginaw State University

Warren S. Warren, Professor of Chemistry at Princeton University, received his Ph.D. in Chemistry from U.C. Berkley in 1980. His publications range fromPhysical Review Letters and invited papers in Science on his research in nuclear magnetic resonance and ultrafast laser spectroscopy to theJournal of Chemical Education. He received the 1982 Nobel Laureate Signature Award of the American Chemical Society and has held numerous fellowships.