PREFACE

From the time of its organization in 1889, the chief object of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific has been to stimulate interest in astronomy among the people of the Pacific region by giving to discoveries and advances made in that science the widest publicity through the medium of its Publications and, more directly, by means of public lectures. In harmony with this policy, plans were made early in the autumn of 1916 for a course of lectures to be given in San Francisco by members of the staff of the Lick Observatory, in the season of 1916-1917.

This textbook designed for advanced undergraduate students covers the foundations and principles in the field, and gives the necessary background for advanced courses. Beginning with a survey of some of the fundamentals of statistical mechanics, Collins builds up the physics of stellar structure step by step, showing where complexities arise due to the failure of assumptions.