Here is a lively history of modern physics as seen through the lives of thirty men & women from the pantheon of physics. William H. Cropper vividly portrays the life & accomplishments of such giants as Galileo & Isaac Newton Marie Curie & Ernest Rutherford & Albert Einstein right up to contemporary figures such as Richard Feynman Murray Gell-Mann & Stephen Hawking. We meet scientists all geniuses who could be gregarious aloof unpretentious friendly dogged imperious generous to colleagues or contentious rivals. Cropper also offers vivid portraits of their great moments of discovery their bitter feuds their relations with family & friends their religious beliefs & education. In addition since scientists in a particular field often inspire those who follow Cropper has grouped these biographies by discipline mechanics thermodynamics particle physics & so on each section beginning with a historical overview. Our understanding of the physical world has increased dramatically in the last four centuries starting with Galileo & his telescope & stretching to Stephen Hawking's work on black holes & cosmology. With Great Physicists" readers can retrace the footsteps of the men & women who led the way."