Introduction to Statistical Mechanics and Thermodynamics

Rating:
Summary: A MUCH better book than Reif
Review: Classically (no pun intended), Reif's "FSTP" has been the textbook of choice for its lengthy yet clear explanations. However, Reif tends to get bogged down into throwing mathematical formulas at the reader left and right, so much so that he uses mathematics to illustrate many examples which are trivial and do not contribute to understanding the material.

Stowe's book is similar to Reif in that the explanations are clear, but is better in that he does not get bogged down in the mathematics, and always illustrates how the concepts are connected and related. The chapter summaries are helpful, too.

Rating:
Summary: Comfortable, cut-down "Reif" for beginners.
Review: I used this book a few times in teaching a college course on thermal physics. I was looking for an intro similar to the one in the renowned book of Reif, but more concise and less ambitious. This came close to filling the bill--just like Reif, Stowe uses statistical mechanics to introduce and motivate thermal physics. To my taste, this is an approach much more intuitive than the torturous heat engines and thermodynamic potentials of classical thermo. (I know what purists will say, but as a teacher I strongly feel we: a) should not force 6-year olds to read Shakespeare, and b) should not kill all love of science by a premature emphasis on a dry, abstract, rigorous approach.)

Stowe's book has an attractive layout (large print, with many helpful figures and photographs) and is easy to read (many short chapters) and work your way through. Author often does a nice job of relating the equations to physical applications. This could be a pleasant book for a first time intro to thermal physics, but due to its weaknesses (below), you won't want to make it your last!

There are some serious problems. The exercises are mostly plug-ins and do not provide any challenge for capable students. Also, Stowe's innovative efforts to "explain" certain thermo concepts "at the sophomore level" (my words) sometimes fail badly. A case in point is his (daring) attempt to give a newtonian explanation for the chemical potential. (-- but a disaster for ideal quantum gases.) Another case in point is his "derivation" of the distribution functions for classical and quantum gases w/o Lagrange multipliers relies on some very obscure hand-waving and mysterious verbiage about "classical" versus '"quantum" statistics. (well, I am not expert in QM, but I think I am good enough that the obscurity is not entirely my fault.)

Rating:
Summary: Stowe
Review: I've checked out over a dozen books in the subject, and it simply seems impossible to find one that's reall decent - one that provides accuracy, rigour, incite, clear explanations, and a tasteful selection of information. Stowe is definitely one of the best I've found. Stowe explains a subtle subject very skillfully, including much incite (that is missing in many other competitors), and retaining just the right balance of math to make solid - but not to hinder - the introduction. His approach - a perfect admixture of classical thermo with modern statistical - is natural and coherent. Most importantly, this book has a real human element; it is very warm and personable.
That said, this book is far from perfect. Some important points he seems to have forgotten to flesh out, such as quasistatic processes. In an effort to make an introductory text, he has *completely* omitted some essential points, such as the fact that classical statistics (phase space) are just an approximation to quantum statistics. (This had me terminally confused for ages!) I wouldn't expect him to go into detail, but he must at least state the approximations he's making, rather than assuming the reader will be too young and ignorant to even care. Some other topics are tackled with good effort but come through very poorly - his explanation of the chemical potential being the best example. It took me two other books and a whole night to figure out what he was trying to say in two pages.
In my opinion, though, these problems are far outweighed by the strengths of this book. And seeing as this is the first edition, all of these issues could be excused if they were addressed in a 2nd. Should that happen, this book could be brilliant.
Overall, a valuable tool that I would never sell.