(Co-authored with O. Feuchtwanger, et al. A newly revised ...)
Co-authored with O. Feuchtwanger, et al. A newly revised and expanded edition of this work which outlines the laws of tithing one's earnings for charity.
Critical Point: A Historical Introduction To The Modern Theory Of Critical Phenomena
(First published in 1996. Provides an historical account o...)
First published in 1996. Provides an historical account of the theoretical explanations of critical phenomena which ultimately led to one of the major triumphs of statistical mechanics in the 20th Century and led to the winning of the Nobel Prize for Physics.
Statistical Mechanics of Driven Diffusive Systems: Volume 17
(Far-from-equilibrium phenomena, while abundant in nature,...)
Far-from-equilibrium phenomena, while abundant in nature, are not nearly as well understood as their equilibrium counterparts. On the theoretical side, progress is slowed by the lack of a simple framework, such as the Boltzmann-Gbbs paradigm in the case of equilibrium thermodynamics. On the experimental side, the enormous structural complexity of real systems poses serious obstacles to comprehension. Similar difficulties have been overcome in equilibrium statistical mechanics by focusing on model systems. Even if they seem too simplistic for known physical systems, models give us considerable insight, provided they capture the essential physics. They serve as important theoretical testing grounds where the relationship between the generic physical behavior and the key ingredients of a successful theory can be identified and understood in detail. Within the vast realm of non-equilibrium physics, driven diffusive systems form a subset with particularly interesting properties. As a prototype model for these systems, the driven lattice gas was introduced roughly a decade ago. Since then, a number of surprising phenomena have been discovered including singular correlations at generic temperatures, as well as novel phase transitions, universality classes, and interfacial instabilities. This book summarizes current knowledge on driven systems, from apedagogical discussion of the original driven lattice gas to a brief survey of related models. Given that the topic is far from closed, much emphasis is placed on detailing open questions and unsolved problems as an incentive for the reader to pursue thesubject further.
Cyril Domb was a British-Israeli theoretical physicist, best known for his lecturing and writing on the theory of phase transitions and critical phenomena of fluids. He was also known in the Orthodox Jewish world for his writings on science and Judaism.
Background
Domb was born on 9 December 1920, the fourth day of Hanukkah, in North London to a Hasidic Jewish family. His father, Yoel, who had shortened his name from Dombrowski to Domb, was a native of Warsaw, while his mother, Sarah, was from Oświęcim, Poland. He was given the Hebrew name of Yechiel. His father and grandfather paid for tutors to educate him in classical Jewish studies, and he also attended shiurim (Torah classes) given by Rabbi Eliyahu Eliezer Dessler to young men in a nearby synagogue.
Education
Cyril studied ar Hackney Downs School, London. Domb possessed both an excellent memory and skill in mathematics. At the age of 17 he won a scholarship to Pembroke College, Cambridge. He graduated with a degree in mathematics in 1941. He then joined the Admiralty Signal Establishment in Portsmouth as one of several young scientists working on developing radar systems during World War II. Until that point, radar operators were only able to determine the distance of an approaching object; Domb's group worked out a method for determining the height of an object as well. After the war, Domb attended Cambridge University. He earned his PhD in 1949 with a doctoral thesis on "Order-Disorder Statistics". His doctoral advisor was Fred Hoyle.
Domb was a university lecturer in mathematics at Cambridge University between 1952 and 1954 and professor of theoretical physics at King's College London between 1954 and 1981. In the latter position, he became the youngest professor in London at that time.
In 1972 Domb began co-editing what would become a 20-volume series, Phase Transitions and Critical Phenomena, considered a classic in the field.
In the late 1950s, Domb helped found the British Association of Orthodox Jewish Scientists, based on the American model, and served as its president.
Domb began writing his views reconciling the apparent contradictions between science and Judaism in 1961, when The Jewish Chronicle of London asked him for a 1000-word article on how Jewish teachings accord with the Big Bang and Steady State cosmological theories. This article gained the attention of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, who began a correspondence with Domb and encouraged him to continue his efforts to show religious sceptics that there is no contradiction between science and such Torah concepts as the Genesis creation narrative and the Existence of God. Unlike the Rebbe, Domb gave credence to the theory of evolution, but held that this and other scientific theories were "only tentative summaries of our situation, whereas religion deals with what is right and what is wrong, and with many of the major driving forces in one's life". Domb went on to publish a collection of articles on science and religion in Challenge: Torah views on science and its problems (1976), which he co-edited with Rabbi Aryeh Carmell.
In 1981, at the age of 60, Domb took early retirement from Kings College and made aliyah to Israel, settling in the Bayit Vegan neighbourhood of Jerusalem. Between 1981 and 1989 he was professor of physics at Bar-Ilan University, boosting the prestige of the department and attracting leading physicists and students to it. In keeping with his interests in Torah study, he opened each staff meeting with a Dvar Torah (Torah thought), started a Daf Yomi shiur after afternoon prayers, and founded an academic journal, Journal of Torah and Scholarship. He was also a visiting professor at the University of Maryland, Yeshiva University, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and Weizmann Institute of Science, and academic president of Machon Lev, the Jerusalem College of Technology.
Domb began writing his views reconciling the apparent contradictions between science and Judaism in 1961, when The Jewish Chronicle of London asked him for a 1000-word article on how Jewish teachings accord with the Big Bang and Steady State cosmological theories. This article gained the attention of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, who began a correspondence with Domb and encouraged him to continue his efforts to show religious sceptics that there is no contradiction between science and such Torah concepts as the Genesis creation narrative and the Existence of God. Unlike the Rebbe, Domb gave credence to the theory of evolution, but held that this and other scientific theories were "only tentative summaries of our situation, whereas religion deals with what is right and what is wrong, and with many of the major driving forces in one's life". Domb went on to publish a collection of articles on science and religion in Challenge: Torah views on science and its problems (1976), which he co-edited with Rabbi Aryeh Carmell.
Interests
Walking, swimming.
Connections
Domb married Shirley Galinsky in 1957; they had six children.
After the war, Domb attended Cambridge University. He earned his PhD in 1949 with a doctoral thesis on "Order-Disorder Statistics". His doctoral advisor was Fred Hoyle.
Cyril was awarded the Max Born Prize, which is given by the Optical Society for "outstanding contributions to physical optics", and is named after Max Born, a German physicist and mathematician who was instrumental in the development of quantum mechanics.
Cyril was awarded the Max Born Prize, which is given by the Optical Society for "outstanding contributions to physical optics", and is named after Max Born, a German physicist and mathematician who was instrumental in the development of quantum mechanics.
Rayleigh-Knight Award
Cyril was awarded the Rayleigh-Knight Prize in mathematics and theoretical physics in 1947.
Cyril was awarded the Rayleigh-Knight Prize in mathematics and theoretical physics in 1947.
Cyril was awarded for contributions to the improvement of natural knowledge in 1977. Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the judges of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural knowledge, including mathematics, engineering science, and medical science".
Cyril was awarded for contributions to the improvement of natural knowledge in 1977. Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the judges of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural knowledge, including mathematics, engineering science, and medical science".
