"The last thirty years have seen the beginning and development of a new period in physics and chemistry, namely the atomic period. In contrast to the period preceding it where nature's processes were described in terms of continua, recent developments have emphasized the discrete structure of the submicroscopic universe. Thus, today one hears of the atoms of matter, the atoms of electricity, and even the atoms of energy, the quanta. ...[T]he atomic theory of matter is the oldest and perhaps the most complete. ...[B]ecause of its relative simplicity the problem of the atomic theory of gases, in the form of the kinetic theory of gases, has attained the highest degree of perfection in this field. Its admirable methods of analysis are therefore indispensable... This book... endeavors to develop the various concepts... independently...Besides a simple introduction of each concept it gives derivations... elementary ones, using little or no calculus; more advanced classical derivations; and in some cases the most recent developments available. It also contains the comparison of the theoretical deductions with modern experiment and a critique of the theories."