Physics of History

With recent developments in technology, scientists can now use physics to explore intimate details about history, from the rise and fall of preliterate societies to the origins of the solar system. The Physics of History, taught by award-winning Professor David J. Helfand of Columbia University, gives you the background you need to understand how scientists know what they do about the past. These 24 richly illustrated lectures cover an astonishing range of cases in which physics has helped redefine history—in astronomy, archaeology, geology, climatology, and other fields.