Pop books on Optics, Condensed Matter, and all other non sexy areas of Physics

AI Thread Summary
The discussion highlights a noticeable gap in popular science literature, specifically the lack of accessible books on less mainstream areas of physics such as Condensed Matter, Materials Science, and practical applications of Quantum Mechanics. While there is an abundance of popular books focused on Quantum Mechanics' philosophical implications and topics like General Relativity, resources on subjects like lasers and techniques used in chemistry instruments, including spectroscopy and X-ray scattering, are scarce. A suggestion is made to explore the Scientific American Book Club for a more comprehensive list of current popular science books categorized by subject, which may include some of these overlooked areas.
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Pop books on Optics, Condensed Matter, and all other non "sexy" areas of Physics

There's so many pop books on Quantum Mechanics (Philosophical implications), General Relativity, and The Theory of Everything, but are there any pop books on subjects like Condensed Matter, Materials Science, Lasers, Techniques used in Chemistry instruments (Spectroscopy, X Ray Scattering, etc), or even a Quantum Mechanics book that relates QM to *application* instead of the Philosophy?

Thanks all.
 
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Not that I know of, no. You might try Scientific American Book Club though. They're at least a fairly comprehensive list of what the current popular science books are and classified roughly by subject as well.
 

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