Product Description

In its fourth edition, this dictionary contains 9000 entries on all aspects of science. Suitable for both students and non-scientists, it provides coverage of biology (including human biology), chemistry, physics, the earth sciences, and astronomy; short biographies of leading scientists; full-page illustration features on such subjects as El Nino, the Solar System, and Genetically Modified Organisms; and chronologies of specific scientific subjects, including plastics, electronics, and cell biology.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2131776 in Books
• Published on: 1999-11
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 864 pages

Review
"Handy and readable...for scientists aged nine to ninety."--Nature
Praise for previous editions:
"The book will appeal not just to scientists and science students but also to the interested lay person. And it passes the most difficult test of any dictionary--it is well worth browsing through."--New Scientist

Customer Reviews

The best choice for those who read a lot of popular science
This is a relatively inexpensive, concise, and handy dictionary of science. It is an updated version of the Concise Science Dictionary originally published by the Oxford University Press in 1984. This, the latest edition, is from 1999. It is aimed at professionals and an educated public who want a quick reference to terms in fields other than their own. Unlike science dictionaries found on the reference shelves of libraries, this book is small enough to fit into a knapsack.

As with all specialized dictionaries the task for editors is to decide what to leave in and what to leave out, and how technical to get. The people at Oxford University Press, one of the preeminent publishers of reference books in the world, have tried to eschew "unnecessary scientific jargon" while "always bearing in mind the needs of the readers" (from the Preface). Nonetheless, many of the entries are highly technical, having been written by experts. Clearly the editors have decided to err on the side of technical precision rather than anything resembling a dumbing down. The entry on "optical activity" for example is a mini essay of about 400 words adorned with a drawing of the D-, L-, and meso-forms of the isomers of tartaric acid along with several cross references to related terms in the dictionary. A two-page boxed entry on "El Nino" however is written in language easily accessible to the average high school graduate, as are many other entries including over 160 mini biographies of important scientists.

I also use The American Heritage Dictionary of Science, another handy (as opposed to comprehensive) reference and would like to make a quick comparison. The Heritage dictionary is a hardcover and contains noticeably more entries (16,000+ to perhaps 10,000 to 12,000 for the Oxford). However the Heritage hasn't been updated since the edition of 1988. Of course a lot has happened in science since then, which is why I purchased the Oxford paperback. The Heritage also uses the entries words or phrases in sentences, usually quoting some scientist whereas the Oxford does not bother. The Heritage also gives the pronunciation of most of the entries (e.g., it's "pree'-on," not "pri'-on" for the mad cow infectious agent) whereas the Oxford does not. The Oxford is more technical overall--it is especially strong in physics--and of course more up to date. The entries also tend to be more thorough. For example, the Oxford has a schematic drawing of a mammalian kidney system whereas the Heritage has only text.

There are seven appendices on SI units, fundamental constants, the solar system, the geographical time scale, plant and animal kingdom classifications, and the periodic table. Curiously, nowhere in the Oxford is the abbreviation SI defined or even noted! The Heritage gives it as the French Systeme International d'Unites (or International System of Units). This is actually an indication of how the Oxford assumes a greater scientific sophistication on the part of its readers than does the Heritage.

Bottom line here is that this book is practically a must for those who read a lot of science in fields other than their own. It is better overall than the Heritage because it is eleven years more up to date; and it is a better choice for most people than the more comprehensive hardcover volumes which are significantly more expensive, heavier and take up more space.

awesome
I am currently doing my a-levels, and this book has helped me a lot so far. Any word from bio, phy, chem i don't understand, i just have to open this book , and there it is. But its just not a dictionary, it also explains many topics and gives proper definitions. A must have for all science students.

Good reference work
Although I use the Internet for looking up basic facts, I am not one for reading huge documents in front of the computer.

Although I work as an accountant, I enjoy doing a little bit of writing as a hobby although I confine myself to writing small articles and essays on blog sites. We live in a town house in London and we therefore have limited space for books. My study already contains many shelves and cabinets full of books, CDs and DVDs and periodically I go through things and get rid of some of the excess - either by selling it or giving it away to charities.

We used to own the Encyclopaedia Britannica but it would take up too much space now. Although I studied quite a lot of mathematics and science as a young man, I tend to be more intersted in the humanities now and I have found that this book is adequate for when I want to look up anything relating to science.

It is 888 pages long a few of which are devoted to appendixes. These include diagrams such as the geological time scale, a simplified classification of the plant kingdom, a simplified classification of the animal kingdom and the periodic table. There are no photographs or colour drawings throughout the book but good line drawings are used where relevant.

Here are a some entries taken (more or less) at random:

1 Appeasement

Behaviour that inhibits aggression from another animal of the same species, frequently taking the form of a special posture or display emphasizing the weakness of the performer. Threatening structures (e.g. antlers) and markings are covered or turned away, and vulnerable parts of the body may be exposed. Appeasement is seen in courtship in greeting ceremonies, and often (from the loser) after a fight.

2 Crystal

A solid with a regular polyhedral shape. All crystals of the same substance grow so that they have the same angles between the faces. However, they may not have the same external appearance because different faces can grow at different rates, depending on the conditions. The external form of the crystal is referred to as the crystal habit. The atoms, ions, or molecules forming the crystal have a regular structure and this is the crystal structure.

3 Integrated Circuit

A miniature electronic circuit produced within a single crystal of a semiconductor, such as silicon. They range from simple logic circuits, little more than 1 mm square, to large-scale circuits measuring up to 8 mm square and containing a million or so transistors (active components) and resistors or capacitors (passive components). They are widely used in memory circuits, microcomputers, pocket calculators, and electronic watches on account of their low cost and bulk, reliability, and high speed. They are made by introducing impurities into specific regions of the semiconductor crystal by a variety of techniques.

Note these samples weren't quite random as I avoided long entries, those accompanied with diagrams and those with chemical or mathematical symbols.