Introduction toMolecular Thermodynamics
Introduction to"Throughout, Introduction
to Molecular Thermodynamics is a friendly and appealing book. There are not
many textbooks that are a pleasure to read, and this is one of them. I would
encourage its consideration for course adoption, even if you have to make up a
new course."
-J. Chem. Ed., October 10, 2008
“I am
excited to see this material introduced in a first-year course. Statistics, as
the driving force behind chemical equilibria and thermodynamics, is a profound
concept that most students only get a taste of in physical chemistry. This book
provides an excellent way to introduce these ideas at an early stage.”
-J. Matthew Hutchison, Swarthmore
College
"Hanson and
Green offer a very valuable work on molecular thermodynamics. Highly
recommended."
-Choice
“I
wish I had learned thermodynamics this way!” That’s what the authors
hear all the time from instructors using Introduction to Molecular
Thermodynamics. Starting with just a few basic principles of probability
and the distribution of energy, the book takes students (and faculty!) on an
adventure into the inner workings of the molecular world like no other. Made to
fit into a standard second-semester of a traditional first-year chemistry
course, or as a supplement for more advanced learners, the book takes the reader
from probability to Gibbs energy and beyond, following a logical step-by-step
progression of ideas, each just a slight expansion of the previous. Filled
with examples ranging from casinos to lasers, from the “high energy bonds”
of ATP to endangered coral reefs, Introduction to Molecular Thermodynamics
hits the mark for students and faculty alike who have an interest in
understanding the world around them in molecular terms.
Key Features
Develops students' intuition and quantitative confidence.
Designed to fit within the second semester of a traditional first-year chemistry course.
Includes chapter-ending summaries, problems and brain teasers.
Answers to selected problems appear at the back of the book.
Provides an assortment of helpful appendices, including Mathematical Tricks.
Features a robust author website that includes a PowerPoint Introduction, an online Interactive Guide to the Book, and much more.
Abo
Robert
Hanson is a Professor of Chemistry at St. Olaf College, in
Northfield, Minnesota,
where he has been teaching since 1986. Trained as an organic chemist with
Gilbert Stork at Columbia University, he shares a patent with 2001 Nobel Prize
winner K.Barry Sharpless for the asymmetric epoxidation of allylic alcohols. His
interest in thermodynamics goes back to early training at the California
Institute of Technology, from which he got a B.S. degree in 1979.
He spends his occasional moments of free time playing the violin in a
community orchestra, piloting gliders, and designing new Sudoku strategies.
Susan
Green has had the privilege of being both a student and a professor at
St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota where she was first introduced to
the idea of teaching thermodynamics to first-year students. She trained as
a physical chemist at the University of Minnesota studying the vibrational
and electronic structure of small metal oxides as well as trying her hand at
analytical chemistry. When she in not chasing after her two children with
the help of her husband Hans, she can be found with a book.
