Underscoring the multidisciplinary nature of polymer science, this third edition provides a broad-based and comprehensive text at an introductory, reader-friendly level. With nearly 50 percent new or updated material, this edition presents new polymerization methods, characterization techniques, and applications in electronic, biological, and medical settings. New topics include controlled radical polymerization, novel polymer architectures, chain dimension, morphology, determining molecular weights, metallocene catalysts, copolymers, and rheological behavior. The book features real world examples, new chapter problems, and a solutions manual.