Nambu Y. Quarks: Frontiers in Elementary Particle Physics

World Scientific Publishing Co Pte Ltd. 1985, 227 p.
The purpose of elementary particle physics is to find the
fundamental structure of matter and the laws that govern these
objects. I have tried in this book to explain reasonably precisely,
and also fairly completely, how the subject developed over the
past SO years and what is known today.
Fortunately, Japan has been making first-class contributions
to particle physics. There probably is no one who does not know
the names of Hideki Yukawa and Sin-itiro Tomonaga, but there
have been many other scientists who have made important contributions
to the field, These contributions are not just brilliant
pieces of work but, as a whole, they have taught us the general
directions which elementary particle theory should take.
Since I am also one of those who grew up under such a tradition,
I have tried to present the process of thought by which
physicists reached the present state of knowledge rather than
presenting the newest knowledge as the orthodox view. Of course,
doing this is impossible without assuming some specialized
knowledge on the part of the reader, but I think it would be
enough if the reader could get some idea of the research process
from this book.
Elementary particle physics has made enormous progress in
the last SO years. Protons and mesons are no longer thought to be
elementary; the quark has taken their place. Furthermore, there is
a possibility of unifying the various forces previously thought to be
unrelated. More astonishingly, the history of the Universe itself,
the largest thing imaginable, has become completely intertwined
with the problems of the smallest scale imaginable.
Of course, theory and experiment move hand-in-hand.
Today's accelerators have energies over a million times that of old
cyclotrons, require several thousand people to run and need
huge government support. Still, researchers are dreaming about
the next step. If we are fortunate and world peace prevails, these
dreams will eventually become a reality. After contributing so
much to the theoretical side, it would be good to see Japan contribute
to the experimental side as well.
As I finished this book, Dr. Yukawa passed away. It is as
though an era has gone by with him. I would feel fortunate
if this book serves as an introduction for young readers who are
interested in following the developments in elementary particle
physics. I have made minor changes to the original text in order
to bring this English edition up to date.
Finally I would like to thank Prof. Riccardo Levi-Setti and
Dr. Taiji Yamanouchi for providing me with some material for
the illustrations in this book.