Time and beauty are two of our most visceral perceptions. Yet, their nature is seldom questioned. In this ground-breaking new work, Adrian Bejan — a true 'original' among physicists — explains, in a scholarly yet colorful style, the scientific basis for the perception of time and beauty.Organized into three main ideas, the book begins first with the perception of time. The author expounds on why we feel that time flies faster as we get older. Perceived time, also called 'mind time,' is dif...

The renowned scientist examines the mysteries of life and evolution through the lens of physics in this "riveting and poetic" book ( Kirkus Reviews, starred review)In The Physics of Life, Adrien Bejan presents persuasive answers to such profound questions as "What is life, as physics?" and "Why do life, death, and evolution happen?" He argues that the phenomenon of evolution is much broader and older than the evolutionary designs that constitute th...

This book questions the physics of diversity—why diversity happens by itself, why it is a phenomenon that has a mind of its own, and why it opposes any effort of being shoehorned into a few distinct (antagonistic) classes. Physics is not opinion; physical facts can be put to the test. The book begins with fundamentals of design evolution in nature—movement, time direction, freedom to change, size, shape, structure. It continues with pictorial examples of distinct evolutionary doma...

The book begins with familiar designs found all around and inside us (such as the ‘trees’ of river basins, human lungs, blood and city traffic). It then shows how all flow systemsare driven by power from natural engines everywhere, and how they are endlessly shaped because of freedom. Finally, Professor Bejan explains how people, like everything else that moves on earth, are driven by power derived from our “engines” that consume fuel and food, and that our movement dissipates the power co...

This book presents the diverse and rapidly expanding field of Entropy Generation Minimization (EGM), the method of thermodynamic optimization of real devices. The underlying principles of the EGM method - also referred to as "thermodynamic optimization," "thermodynamic design," and "finite time thermodynamics" - are thoroughly discussed, and the me

This updated edition of a widely admired text provides a user-friendly introduction to the field that requires only routine mathematics. The book starts with the elements of fluid mechanics and heat transfer, and covers a wide range of applications from fibrous insulation and catalytic reactors to geological strata, nuclear waste disposal, geothermal reservoirs, and the storage of heat-generating materials. As the standard reference in the field, this book will be essential to researchers ...

Convection in Porous Media, 4th Edition, provides a user-friendly introduction to the subject, covering a wide range of topics, such as fibrous insulation, geological strata, and catalytic reactors. The presentation is self-contained, requiring only routine mathematics and the basic elements of fluid mechanics and heat transfer. The book will be of use not only to researchers and practicing engineers as a review and reference, but also to graduate students and others entering the field. Th...

Design happens everywhere, whether in animate objects (e.g., dendritic lung structures, bacterial colonies, and corals), inanimate patterns (river basins, beach slope, and dendritic crystals), social dynamics (pedestrian traffic flows), or engineered systems (heat dissipation in electronic circuitry). This “design in nature” often takes on remarkably similar patterns, which can be explained under one unifying Constructal Law. This book explores the unifying power of the Constructal Law and...

In this groundbreaking book, Adrian Bejan takes the recurring patterns in nature—trees, tributaries, air passages, neural networks, and lightning bolts—and reveals how a single principle of physics, the Constructal Law, accounts for the evolution of these and all other designs in our world.Everything—from biological life to inanimate systems—generates shape and structure and evolves in a sequence of ever-improving designs in order to facilitate flow. River...

This classic map and compass navigation guide—newly revised for the age of GPS—offers a clear and concise master class on the art of orienteering.GPS devices are great, but they can break, get lost, or easily be hampered by weather conditions, making basic map and compass skills essential for anyone who spends time outdoors. This popular, easy-to-use orienteering handbook has been helping people find their way for more than fifty years.Now updated to include...

"America is in a self-reinforcing spiral of decreasing trust, confidence, and capability. [Howard] shows us how to break out of it . . . short, clear, passionate." —Jonathan Haidt, New York Times-bestselling author of The Righteous MindSomething basic is missing in our culture. Americans know it. Nothing much works as it should. Simple daily choices seem impossible, or fraught with peril. In the workplace, we walk on eggshells. Big projects—say, mo...

An essential guide to everything you can learn by taking a degree in Economics, this full-colour book leads the reader through the crucial aspects of economic theory and the involvement of economics in our day-to-day lives.Packed with flow diagrams, infographics, pull-out features and profiles of prominent economists (past and present), the book reveals how economic policies are constructed on both a national and international level and the factors that impact them...