Part Ten X › Division III III › Section 10/32 10/32

The Physical Sciences

Subject Outline

AHistory of the physical sciences: the evolution of astronomy, physics, and chemistry
- 1History of astronomy
  - aAncient astronomy
    - iTime reckoning and astronomical prediction: development of lunar and solar calendars, prediction of eclipses and of first appearances of the New Moon
    - iiEarly cosmologies
    - iiiAncient astronomical records, treatises, and star catalogs
  - bMedieval astronomy: European and Islamic contributions
  - cAstronomy in the 16th and 17th centuries
    - iThe geocentric and heliocentric world systems
    - iiThe discovery of the laws of planetary motion
    - iiiThe invention and use of the telescope
    - ivThe theory of universal gravitation [see 2.c., below]
  - dAstronomy in the 18th century
    - iDevelopment of celestial mechanics: the calculation of orbits, the three-body problem, the dynamical stability of gravitational systems
    - iiImprovements in telescope design and increased accuracy of measurements: the discovery of the aberration of light
    - iiiSpeculations concerning the origin of the solar system, the nature of nebulae, and the structure of the universe
  - eAstronomy in the 19th century
    - iThe discovery of Neptune and the asteroids, the search for a planet within the orbit of Mercury
    - iiImproved determinations of stellar positions and magnitudes; the first measurements of stellar parallax; the compilation of catalogs of nebulae, stars, and star clusters
    - iiiDevelopment of astronomical spectroscopy and the use of photography in observational work
  - fAstronomy in the 20th century
    - iStatistical studies of stars, nebulae, and galaxies
    - iiTheories of stellar structure and of stellar formation and evolution
    - iiiAstronomical tests of general relativity: the gravitational red shift, the deflection of fight, the precession of the perihelion of Mercury, the cosmological red shift
    - ivRelativistic cosmologies: the big bang model; open and closed models of the universe
    - vMajor advances in solar-system astronomy: manned lunar missions; exploration of the planets and their satellites with unmanned space probes; analysis of micrometeoroids and meteorites
    - viDevelopment of radio, X-ray, infrared, ultraviolet, and gamma-ray astronomy
    - viiIdentification of pulsars, quasars, cosmic background radiation, and possible black holes
    - viiiAdvances in instrumentation and methodology: e.g., use of Earth-orbiting observatories; development of electronic radiation detectors; refinement of very long baseline interferometry
- 2History of physics
  - aGreek physics: speculations concerning the nature of space, matter, and motion
  - bMedieval physics: the influence of Aristotle
  - cPhysics in the 16th and 17th centuries: discoveries and theories in mechanics and optics
  - dPhysics in the 18th and 19th centuries
    - iDevelopment of theories of light: the wave theory versus the corpuscular theory, the search for the ether
    - iiDevelopment of the theories of electricity, magnetism, and electromagnetic waves
    - iiiDevelopments in thermodynamics: theories of heat, the laws of thermodynamics, the impossibility of perpetual motion, the kinetic theory of gases
    - ivDevelopment of the atomic theory of matter: the discovery of the electron, the discovery of radioactivity and X-rays, the discovery of spectral regularities
  - ePhysics in the 20th century
    - iDevelopment of the theory of relativity
    - iiDevelopment of the quantum theory, wave mechanics, statistical mechanics, and related theories
    - iiiDevelopment of theories and laws concerning atomic structure, nuclear interactions, and elementary particles, including efforts to produce a unified field theory
    - ivDevelopment of condensed-matter physics and its contributions to electronics
    - vModern developments in physics: atomic beams, nuclear magnetic resonance, and electron spin resonance methods; development of nonlinear optics; the development of masers and lasers
- 3History of chemistry
  - aChemistry before 1700
    - iThe rise of alchemy: the goal of the alchemists -- to prolong life and to transmute base metals to gold
    - iiThe influence of the new mechanical philosophy on chemistry: the work of Boyle
  - bChemistry in the 18th century
    - iStudies of combustion and respiration: the phlogiston theory, the work of Lavoisier and Cavendish
    - iiLaboratory discoveries: isolation and identification of gases; discoveries of new elements, compounds, and chemical reactions
  - cChemistry in the 19th century
    - iDevelopment of the periodic table of the elements: the work of Mendeleyev and Meyer
    - iiDiscoveries of new elements, isotopes, and radioactive elements
    - iiiDevelopment of more accurate methods of analysis
    - ivDevelopment of theories of molecular structure and chemical reaction
    - vDevelopment of organic chemistry: introduction of the concept of valence, the study of aromatic compounds, development of the structural theory
    - viDevelopment of electrochemistry: the theory of chemical affinity in electrical terms
    - viiDevelopment of industrial chemistry: the application of chemical principles and reactions to industrial processes
  - dChemistry in the 20th century
    - iDevelopment of instrumental methods of chemical analysis
    - iiExplanation of chemical phenomena by principles of atomic and molecular structures
    - iiiApplication of quantum mechanics to chemical bonding
BThe nature and scope of astronomy and astrophysics: the major subject matters and principal problems [see also Part One, Division III]
- 1The nature of astronomy and methods of study
- 2Component disciplines of astronomy and their relationship to other sciences: planetary and lunar sciences; meteoritics; the study of comets, minor planets, and the origin of the solar system
- 3Investigaton of the scale of the universe and of the distribution of objects within it: the determination of positions, the measurement of distances
- 4Orbit theory: its role in astronomy
- 5Astrophysics: the study of stars, galaxies, and the universe; cosmology and cosmogony
CThe nature and scope of physics: its major subject matters, methods, and problems [see also Part One, Divisions I and II]
- 1The nature of physics: its concern with matter and energy and their interactions
- 2Component disciplines of physics: mechanics, thermodynamics, heat, electricity, magnetism, sound, optics, quantum mechanics, states of matter, nuclear and atomic physics
- 3The experimental and theoretical methods of physics
- 4The relationship of physics to other disciplines
- 5Interdisciplinary fields of physics: astrophysics, biophysics, geophysics
- 6Philosophical problems in physics: at the formal level, quantum level, macrophysical level, and cosmological level
DThe nature and scope of chemistry: its major subject matters and problems [see also 121, 122, and 123]
- 1The nature of chemistry: its concern with the composition, properties, and changes of matter
- 2The subdivisions of chemistry: analytical, inorganic, organic, physical, polymer, and industrial chemistry and biochemistry
- 3The methods of chemistry
- 4The study of chemical transformations