Cosmology, Galaxies - Astronomical Studies & Observations, Astronomy - General & Miscellaneous, Stars - Astronomical Studies & Observations

Stars and Galaxies

Name: Stars and Galaxies
Author: Michael A. Seeds
ISBN: 9781111990664

by Michael A. Seeds

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Overview

With this newly revised Eighth Edition of STARS AND GALAXIES, the authors' goals are to help you use astronomy to understand science—and use science to understand what we are. Fascinating, engaging, and visually vibrant, this text will help you answer two fundamental questions: What are we? And how do we know?

About the Author, Michael A. Seeds

Michael A. Seeds has been Professor of Physics and Astronomy at Franklin and Marshall College in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, since 1970. In 1989, he received F&M College's Lindback Award for Distinguished Teaching. Seeds's love for the history of astronomy led him to create upper-level courses on Archaeoastronomy and Changing Concepts of the Universe. His research interests focus on variable stars and the automation of astronomical telescopes. Mike is coauthor with Dana Backman of HORIZONS: EXPLORING THE UNIVERSE, Twelfth Edition (2012); UNIVERSE: SOLAR SYSTEMS, STARS, AND GALAXIES, Seventh Edition (2012); and FOUNDATIONS OF ASTRONOMY (2013), all published by Cengage Learning.

Dana Backman works for the SETI Institute of Mountain View, California, as director of outreach for the SOFIA (Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy) mission at NASA's Ames Research Center. He also teaches introductory astronomy, astrobiology, and cosmology courses in Stanford University's Continuing Studies Program. From 1991 to 2003, he taught in the physics and astronomy department at Franklin and Marshall College in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, where he invented and taught a Life in the Universe course in the interdisciplinary Foundations program. Dr. Backman's research interests focus on infrared observations of planet formation, models of debris disks around nearby stars, and evolution of the solar system's Kuiper Belt. With Mike Seeds, he also coauthored HORIZONS: EXPLORING THE UNIVERSE, Twelfth Edition (2012); UNIVERSE: SOLAR SYSTEMS, STARS, AND GALAXIES, Seventh Edition (2012); and FOUNDATIONS OF ASTRONOMY (2013), all published by Cengage Learning. Dr. Backman earned his bachelor's degree from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and his Ph.D. from the University of Hawai'i.

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Booknews

This book looks very much like another recent astronomy textbook by Seeds (Joseph R. Grundy Observatory), , except that this one has some glorious images of galaxies and clusters and quite detailed explanations of binary and variable stars, star formation and classification, solar activity, the lives of galaxies, black holes, and cosmology. Some instructors will make chapter 20, "Life on other worlds," extracurricular reading. The Sky on CD-ROM (student edition) is a nice feature. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

For nonscience students taking just one semester of astronomy, this textbook is the ticket. Seeds (astronomy, Franklin and Marshall College) recycles the introductory chapters used in (covering planetary motion, the history of astronomy, light and telescopes, etc.), but adds chapters on stellar distances and evolution, the intersteller medium, variable stars (his speciality), galaxies with active nuclei, and cosmology. As in his other textbooks, there are many colorful diagrams, a student version of The Sky on CD-ROM, 2-page art spreads, and a concluding chapter titled "Life on Other Worlds." Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)