Physics books Definition and 140 Threads

I haven't studied much physics or mathematics in a few years, and I was wondering if someone could recommend me a few good books to get started? I don't want to miss anything important. I've been taking some free courses online, but I would love some reading materials to supplement.

I am already familiar with High school math and physics. I have also studied Calculus(vector included), Differential Equations and basic electrodynamics in freshman year in college and I want to take it a step further. Which books should I study to strengthen my physics background if I want to...

Is there a widely used free drawing program that is used in conjunction with LaTeX for math books and physics text? Thanks, Chris

Thread was split of from this thread: https://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=761954 Oops, I think you meant to say "Only read them if you are disatisfied with how physicists elegantly reduce the mathematics to be as simple as it needs to be rather than the grotesque overcomplications...

Hello. I am an MD but Physics excites me. Interested in Physics, I want to self study the subject from the beginning so that I can come to grips with the subject. I have a sound mathematical background and I know I can study myself but help regarding books would be appreciated. So please anyone...

I am looking for recommendations of books that teach physics, with an emphasis on solving real-world problems with code. I find I can only really fully grasp a concept if I can actually program it and visualize it in MATLAB, change variables and see what effect that has on the results...

Sorry if this question has been asked a lot before, but... What books would be particularly useful to read before starting university? What books explain tricky undergraduate-level topics really well? My course will hopefully be Mathematical Physics, so any recommendations of maths...

What are some good books I could get that cover good physics. Quantum and the others, I have Quantum Evolution by Johnjoe McFadden, if that helps

Hi all. Can anyone please recommend me a good undergraduate level Condensed Matter Physics book that has a number of examples and concise explanations rather than walls of texts? It should cover typical topics such as scattering, magnetism etc. I apologize if this may strike a nerve with...

Hi, I am looking for a good book or any other online resource on semiconductor physics. What I need the book to cover is: The PN junction i.e. the diode BJT transistors MOSFETS In particullar I am interested in the derivation of the equations of the above components, the Shockley...

Hi, I'm a junior physics major intending on a PhD in physics. I was wondering what books physicists recommend? I would like to read A Breif History of Time but I think I know most of the things in the book and would like something more advanced with plenty of math. Occupation wise, I am stuck...

Anyone a fan of pop physics books? I've found that the analogies and random bits of history in such books help tremendously in addition to a textbook. Does anyone have a recommendation? How about recommendation for lesser known topics (that is, not relativity)? Specifically, a book that...

List all physics books you know with the level of difficult PROBLEMS AND also where it stands when it comes to THEORY AND CONCEPTS. LEVEL OF DIFFICULTY ! 1.too easy 2.easy 3.average 4.above average 4.hard 5.very difficult 6.extreme 7.insane! 8.are you nuts!

Hey guys, I'm looking for a few books (not textbooks) of or relating to space, architecture, electricity, and/or atomic level information. Would anyone happen to have some recommendations for some?

Hey Forum , Ive been wanting to learn Classical Physics(calculus based) and Astrophysics, but have not crossed paths with a book which seems to satisfy my hunger for thorough and complete explanation. What I ask of you folks is to Recommend a few books for Classical Physics , and...

I've ordered 3 so far, and was wondering if these are good books for someone who's just starting to learn about physics? These are the one's I ordered "Gravity From the Ground Up", "Introduction to Cosmology", and "The Road to Reality". I want something for right now, that's simple to understand.

I'm currently working on Mary L Boas "Mathematical methods for the physical sciences", which I've been told cover almost all of the mathematics needed to follow undergrad physics books. I'm about halfway done, and I'd like to start looking for physics books. The only reason why I started...

i am really interested in physics (Mostly particle physics, quantum mechanics and elementary particles) and i have finally decided that i want to get a physics book to read. Unfortunately i am a high school student and only have about a gr11 knowledge on math and physics (no calculus yet). Can...

Hello I am about to finished working though Spivak's Calculus. I am wondering if you guys could give me some recommendations on what to read after I'm done with the book. I am looking for something as rigorous as Spivak. Also a bit unrelated but I have also worked through an old edition of...

Hey guys, I am a maths student going onto second year. I wanted to take some physics modules but I'd need some 1st year physics pre-requisites. The topics I need to learn over the summer are: Astronomy Quantum Phenomena Particle Physics Waves Electricity and Magnetism Classical...

I have read a lot of popular science books which have given me good knowledge about physics but none seem to have the maths. I want to know if there's any you can recommend that have the physics and the maths behind the physics. I'd prefer them to not be to complex but if that's not possible i...

Hi, I just purchased a Book on physics from amazon. What do you think of it? My criteria was: Fundamentals High end theory's Mathematical/Theoretical explanation Mathematical overviews Do you think the book matches? https://www.amazon.com/dp/0321501217/?tag=pfamazon01-20 Do you think...

I'm sure many of us have books like these. Maybe they are textbooks, maybe pop-sci books, but often something in between. And whatever they are, they're so good that we don't just read them for reference. This evening I once again pulled Kip Thorne's "Black Holes and Time Warps" off the...

I've read Feynman lectures on physics. Can you recommend some physics books for me to carry on!

Hey guys, I'm an electrical engineering student with a strong interest in physics. I would like to work through classical mechanics, E&M, and thermodynamics books. I'm not sure if there's another subject that is usually covered in classical physics (perhaps waves/optics?) but if so, I'd like...

Hello, I've recently became extremely interested in physics. I was originally hoping to do maths at university but now I'm also considering physics. I'm looking for physics books that will help me broaden my knowledge and help me tackle difficult physics problems. I hope to apply to Oxford...

Hello, every one. I'm more of a lurker than a poster here on these forums, but I have my moments. Here's one. :3 Basically, all I search for is physics books not necessarily targeted at high school students, but shouldn't be overly complicated for one to understand: more specifically, for me...

HEllo Can I find a physics reference for these three topics ?? I have Serway but it just mentions elasticity in a short form which is not so good and has no thing about surfacetention - bubbles , what book could have theese topics in an extended form , Just as serway explains motion and...

I am currently a mathematics major in my third year of study, and I recently changed my minor from economics to physics, so I am taking physics courses at the second year level, including classical mechanics, e&m, etc, which are all going fine, and an introductory course in modern physics. This...

Hi everybody, I am a graduate student in mathematics, and have hardly any physics background. I was looking to broaden my knowledge in physics, and started by taking the Berkeley Physics Course, Vol. 2 ( Electricity and Magnetism). On the one hand I find the book too detailed and long, and...

Hi everybody, I am a graduate student in mathematics, and have hardly any physics background. I was looking to broaden my knowledge in physics, and started by taking the Berkeley Physics Course, Vol. 2 ( Electricity and Magnetism). On the one hand I find the book too detailed and long, and...

any suggestions for physics books ?? I am a high school student studying physics,I am very interested in physics. Since my teacher is teaching very very slowly, I have finished most of the books in the syllabus. I want to explore more on physics. Could you show me the way? Is there any...

Here's my first semester course description: I want to self study during summer and was wondering what book would be best to cover all these topics? In case it matters, I've taken Calculus I and am pretty comfortable with it..

Hi all; firstly, I thank all of you who respond to my question in advance. I'm a mathematics student with an advanced undergraduate background in most of what's associated with 'pure math', and my particular interest is in mathematical logic. I'd really like to teach myself physics - I have...

Greetings everyone, I'd like to continue my physics and mathematics education but I'll have to do that on my own since I'm heading into engineering. I'm looking for a book that would cover a lot of the mathematics that are needed at the undergrad physics level. I'll have Calc 1,2,3, Linear...

As the title suggests, does anyone know any good books for (introductory) Statistical Mechanics and/or Nuclear Physics? Any input is greatly appreciated :-p.

Hello, I'm new here, so i'll probably be asking a lot of questions regarding physics. Anyway, I was wondering if anyone could post an online physics book or something that explains how to do simple physics questions and progressively get harder, cause I'm really interested in physics and...

i am 10th grade student ( O Level ) I need a Book,which clear my concepts and about Physics. . I want to study Science subjects in future. . so i really want to have a good base in Physics. so please suggest some basic level books for me . . mentioning some of the topics: wave sound...

hello, I'm 13 years old but i skipped a few years so i am a bit ahead of the normal schedule however I'm not yet at calculus and that kind of stuff, however Christmas is approaching! this means of course good physics and mathematics books the only problem is finding the right ones. I'm currently...

I want to get some physics books, I was thinking physics of the impossible by Kaku or Elegant Universe by Brian Greene maybe even Hawking's new book the "The Grand Design" What do you guys suggest?

I'm an IT student. I hated physics in high school and always wanted to skip physics classes,but recently after reading Stephen Hawking's book "the grand design" i think I'm interested in physics. i found this interest shocking but i can't help it. i want to read more and more. when i start...

I'm currently reading A Brief History of Time, however, it is slightly outdated. Are there any recently released physics books that you would recommend? Perhaps a book that would discuss the LHC and topics such as that.

I just finished reading through this book http://e-ducation.net/scientists/30years.jpg and I really liked it. The author focused on the ideas that shaped quantum theory, and only talked about the people behind the theories when it was relevant...although the author does go into several...

Hello all! I'm new so if this in the wrong forum. I'm sorry. I am a recent college graduate with a degree in biology and certificate in teaching, but have a growing desire to explore the world of physics. I've had a year of algebra based physics in college, but I wish I would have...

After reading the introduction of Jackson's Classical Electrodynamics, I found out about Whittaker's history of physics book http://libsysdigi.library.uiuc.edu/ilharvest/BrittleBooks_Open/Books2009-06/whited0001histhe/whited0001histhe.pdf" covers modern theories from 1900 to 1950. Is this the...

Physics books that solve "real world" problems Ever since I dropped physics last semester, I've been slowly accumulating books to try and find ones that speak to me. I'm a huge skeptic, always have been, and so far, many of them don't make a convincing case. Only one seems to speak to me...

Everytime I pick up a general audience modern physics book, written by some phd professor, I keep bumping into the whole "electron orbiting around proton" bohr model, even though we know for nearly 100 years that bohr model is incorrect. But why do the authors (PROFESSORS) keep bringing this...

Hi all, I'm a new poster here, so sorry if this question has been asked before! I'm a student in the social sciences and humanities, who often wishes he were a physics major. Physics has always been a passion of mine, and a subject I hope to pursue more seriously someday, when I have the...

Hi everyone, In 90% of social forums there is a thread where people post their computer/home office set up..etc. Given the number of people asking for which books to self learn a particular branch of physics, which books to use for a specific course...etc How about we post pictures of our...

Best "Nontechnical" Physics Books Does anyone have any suggestions on some good nontechnical books on physics? I want to know more about the history of science, lives of the scientists, etc., but I'm not necessarily opposed to something with equations and discussion on theories either. What I...