Category Name:
Applied Physics/Condensed Matter/Materials Science
Category Description:
Applied Physics/Condensed Matter/Materials Science encompasses the resources of three related disciplines: Applied Physics, Condensed Matter Physics, and Materials Science.

The applied physics resources are concerned with the applications of topics in condensed matter as well as optics, vacuum science, lasers, electronics, cryogenics, magnets and magnetism, acoustical physics and mechanics.

The condensed matter physics resources are concerned with the study of the structure and the thermal, mechanical, electrical, magnetic and optical properties of condensed matter. They include superconductivity, surfaces, interfaces, thin films, dielectrics, ferroelectrics and semiconductors.

The materials science resources are concerned with the physics and chemistry of materials and include ceramics, composites, alloys, metals and metallurgy, nanotechnology, nuclear materials, adhesion and adhesives. Resources dealing with polymeric materials are listed in the Organic Chemistry/Polymer Science category.

Category Name:
Chemistry
Category Description:
The Chemistry category includes resources that are general in nature and cover a broad spectrum of topics in the chemical sciences. Resources specifically covering analytical chemistry, inorganic and nuclear chemistry, organic chemistry, physical chemistry, and polymer science will be placed in those particular categories. Miscellaneous and applied chemistry resources may be placed in this category when not appropriate for specific subfields in chemistry.

Category Name:
Earth Sciences
Category Description:
The Earth Sciences category includes resources that deal with all aspects of geosciences, including geology, geochemistry, geophysics, mineralogy, meteorology and atmospheric sciences, hydrology, oceanography, petroleum geology, volcanology, seismology, climatology, paleontology, geography, remote sensing, and geodesy.

Category Name:
Inorganic & Nuclear Chemistry
Category Description:
The Inorganic & Nuclear Chemistry category includes resources concerned with elements other than carbon and with the preparation, properties, and reactions of their compounds. Certain simple carbon compounds are treated in inorganic chemistry, including the oxides, carbon disulfide, the halides, hydrogen cyanide, and salts, such as the cyanides, cyanates, carbonates and hydrogencarbonates. Resources dealing with coordination chemistry and organo-metallic compounds (those containing a carbon-metal bond) are also included in this field.

Resources dealing with nuclear chemistry, including fission and fusion reactions and their products are placed here. Radiochemistry is also covered in this category and includes such topics as the preparation of radioactive compounds, the separation of isotopes by chemical reactions, the use of radioactive labels in studies of mechanisms, and experiments on the chemical reactions and compounds of transuranic elements.

Category Name:
Mathematics
Category Description:
The Mathematics category includes resources dealing with mathematics, applied mathematics, statistics and probability.

Category Name:
Multidisciplinary
Category Description:
The Multidisciplinary category includes resources of a very broad or general character in the sciences. It covers the spectrum of major scientific disciplines such as physics, chemistry, math, biology, etc. Nature and Science are the preeminent resources in this category and serve as typical examples. The Web site of the National Science Foundation is a good example of a Web resource included in this category. Some specialized resources that have a wide range of applications in the sciences also may fall under this category. The journal Fractals-Complex Geometry Patterns and Scaling in Nature and Society would be an example of such a resource.

Category Name:
Organic Chemistry/Polymer Science
Category Description:
The Organic Chemistry/Polymer Science category includes resources concerned with the related fields of organic chemistry and polymer science.

The organic chemistry resources deal with compounds of carbon with the exception of certain simple ones, such as the carbon oxides, carbonates, cyanides and cyanates (see Inorganic & Nuclear Chemistry). This category includes research on synthetic and natural organic compounds that may include other elements, such as hydrogen and oxygen, but also nitrogen, halogens, sulphur and phosphorous. Resources concerned with hydrocarbons, organic compounds containing only the elements carbon and hydrogen, are also included in this category. Examples are the alkanes, alkenes, alkynes and aromatics, such as benzene and naphthalene.

Polymer science includes all resources dealing with the study, production and technology of polymers, which are compounds composed of very large molecules made up of repeating molecular units (monomers). Polymers may be natural substances, such as polysaccharides or proteins, or synthetic materials, such as nylon or polyethylene.

Category Name:
Physical Chemistry/Chemical Physics
Category Description:
The Physical Chemistry/Chemical Physics category includes resources on photochemistry, solid state chemistry, kinetics, catalysis, quantum chemistry, surface chemistry, electro-chemistry, chemical thermodynamics, thermo-physics, colloids, fullerenes and zeolites. Resources dealing with (liquid) crystals and crystallography are also included in this category.

This category also includes resources on atomic, molecular and chemical physics, which concerns the structure of atoms and molecules, atomic and molecular interactions with radiation, magnetic resonance and relaxation, Mossbauer effect, and atomic and molecular collision processes and interactions.

Category Name:
Physics
Category Description:
The Physics category includes resources of a broad, general nature that contain materials from all areas of physics, The category also includes resources specifically concerned with the following physics sub-fields: mathematical physics, particle and nuclear physics, physics of fluids and plasmas, quantum physics, and theoretical physics.

Category Name:
Space Science
Category Description:
The Space Science category includes resources dealing with all areas of astronomy and astrophysics, which are concerned with celestial bodies and the observation and interpretation of radiation received in the vicinity of the Earth from the component parts of the universe. These resources deal with the physical properties of celestial bodies, such as luminosity, size, mass, density, temperature, chemical composition and their origin and evolution. Planetary science may also be included in this CC category.

Category Name:
Spectroscopy/Instrumentation/Analytical Sciences
Category Description:
Spectroscopy/Instrumentation/Analytical Sciences includes all resources concerned with spectroscopy, instrumentation and analytical sciences.

The spectroscopy resources covered here are concerned with a technique involving the production, measurement and interpretation of electromagnetic spectra arising from either emission or absorption of radiant energy by various sources.

The instrumentation resources deal with the application of instruments for observation, measurement or control of physical and/or chemical systems.

The analytical chemistry resources deal with techniques that yield any type of information about chemical systems and include chromatography, chemometrics, thermal analysis, electroanalysis, pyrolysis, and separation science.