Ph105-14
Welcome to Phys 105, 2014!
- Welcome back! And, welcome to the most fundamental course in physics!
- This course will not have any required textbook, and my lecture notes will not follow any one book. However, the following are recommended to aid your learning (the first two had been ordered at Baytree).
Classical Mechanics, by R. Douglas Gregory (Cambridge)—the first recommended book, if you like to read a book to go along with my lectures.
Classical Dynamics of Particles and Systems, by Stephen T. Thornton and Jerry B. Marion (5th ed; Cengage)—this is a nice time-tested textbook, which has unfortunately become too expensive.
Mechanics, by L D Landau and E.M. Lifshitz (Jan 15, 1976)—highly recommended if you like to be challenged by one of the most succinct and beautiful discussion of the subject.
The Feynman Lectures on Physics, vol. 1, Richard P. Feynman, Robert B. Leighton and Matthew Sands.—Any time you pick up this book, you may be in for a treat. Now freely available on line!
What is this course about?
Classical mechanics is a beautifully ripe subject, albeit with hidden surprises. In this course, we will get a complete overview of classical mechanics. We will learn Newtonian and Lagrangian views of classical mechanics. We will cover some basic topics such as linear systems and the central force problem, and also not so basic topics such as non-linear dynamics (chaos), and many particle systems (field theory). If time allows (very unlikely), we may cover the special theory of relativity as well.
Checking out a previous year’s course web site for 105 might be useful. Last but not the least, remember that You are the one!