Customer Reviews

Introduction to Nuclear Science

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"Introduction to Nuclear Science" is a short textbook that touches on numerous topics in nuclear science, including radioactive decay, nuclear structure, energy in nuclear decays, interaction of ionizing radiation with matter (including shielding), nuclear reactions, reactors, and weaponry, and radiation in medicine and food technology. Each of these topics is treated in a relatively simple way. For example, the author doesn't get into detail about neutrinos in beta decay, just mentioning that they're there and that they preserve conservation laws. The book is written in a very accessible, conversational style. A physicist would be aghast at the shallow level of the book.
However, this is till a great book for what it is intended to be. What one must understand about this book is the target audience. This book is aimed at students who are not physics majors. The author's introduction implies that he intended the book as a simple introduction to nuclear science for undergraduate students headed for med school. There is not a single integral sign to be found in the book. I think that it would probably even be good in an advanced high school physics class. You can certainly find many textbooks that deal with each topic in this book in much more detail, but I haven't seen another introductory book to this occasionally difficult and often misunderstood topic that comes close in terms of clarity and accessibility.