Book Recommendation: Math textbooks for physics that tie things back to reality

[Carpe Physicum]

Sorry if this is the wrong thread but subject wise it seemed the most appropriate. Are there any books available that take a deep dive into the heady mathematics you guys use here BUT that take the time to tie things back to reality? And I'm talking about something for interested laymen like myself. I've found books in the past that start out great but then quickly devolve into..."it turns out that...". In programming we call that "miracle occurs here". I understand there's a high level of background math you need for anything, but I think such a book, done right, and focused on a single subject, say how physicists investigate particles, could be popular with interested laymen. Thoughts?

 

[fresh_42]

Sorry if this is the wrong thread but subject wise it seemed the most appropriate. Are there any books available that take a deep dive into the heady mathematics you guys use here BUT that take the time to tie things back to reality? And I'm talking about something for interested laymen like myself. I've found books in the past that start out great but then quickly devolve into..."it turns out that...". In programming we call that "miracle occurs here". I understand there's a high level of background math you need for anything, but I think such a book, done right, and focused on a single subject, say how physicists investigate particles, could be popular with interested laymen. Thoughts?

This is a difficult and not quite fortunately formulated question, because it leaves open: from WHERE to WHERE to do WHAT? Mathematics for physicists is basically a language, sometimes even not understood by mathematicians themselves, as if Americans try to understand English. So to understand physics, one has to understand the language first. If any of them is written for laymen, then it will be full of simplifications, generalizations and in parts even wrong, only for the matter of non-available language and the restriction to explain complex circumstances by common language. There are a couple of books at this level, but one cannot consider them a scientific work, they are just an entertainment which sell the illusion of comprehension. And the way to particle physics is especially long and winded.

 

[pinball1970]

say how physicists investigate particles, could be popular with interested laymen. Thoughts?

As a layman? Pop science? You cant, I tried.

If you want to go down the rabbit hole though the journey starts here if you really are interested.

For a layman looking at physics? Algebra trigonometry geometry and functions. Then Calculus and linear algebra. See where you are, in the UK A level maths is a good starter. When you read something about the history of physics bit and pieces will ring a bell.

The story/history in itself is interesting and within your grasp. Its the history of modern technology as well as science.

I took little bits of the history of physics and looked at the mathematical developments. I came to a stop many times because my mathematics was not there. Very frustrating. One step forward two steps back.

Maths itself is a different kettle of fish as fresh_42 has said, its fundamental beautiful and does not relate to reality necessarily. Maths is based on other things that I will let the other guys describe.

 

[Carpe Physicum]

I took all the basics of math way back in college, through Differential Equations, Linear Algebra, etc. So I like to think that explained properly I might be able to get a whiff of what's going on, just a sense really. I understand that physicists use their own language so to speak. I'm a programmer by trade, which of course is quite a bit more simple. But it is possible to explain computing concepts to non-programmers. I was hoping there was something available that goes beyond just pop science, which seems to get belittled on this forum btw. (It may be pop science that you guys chuckle at, but it means readers are interested in learning more about science. That's nothing to belittle.) So then we have folks like me and pinball970 who want to learn a few things at a deeper level. I'm not looking to learn all of particle physics, just enough to get a glimpse into how physicists think about it, how that advanced math actually works its way to reality.

I'm afraid though that there's just nothing available.

 

[fresh_42]

I agree with you. There is a notorious gap between "<insert topic of your choice> for dummies" and "Theory of <insert topic of your choice>". I'm missing this, too. Something which doesn't explain for the 1,000th time what an electron is, and a 500 pages textbook for physicists. Apparently there is no market for it or it is simply too difficult to draw a line between an average reader of news magazines and physicists. The best I have found so far are our Insight articles (see INSIGHTS BLOG in the menu here). Meanwhile we have around 400 of them. Some are easy to read and others are rather sophisticated. This reflects this difficulty to address the audience correctly. Nevertheless there are many good contributions which allow you insights apart from popular science articles and below the standard of textbooks. With the search function there, you can certainly find what you're most interested in. At the very least it provides you a good starting point for further researches in case you want to.

 

[Carpe Physicum]

Oh heck. Your Dummies comment prompted me to use...wait for it...google search. There's actually a String Theory for Dummies book! I should have looked before I posted. Haven't read it of course but hey it's worth a try.

 

[fresh_42]

I only wanted to point out that theoretical physics contains more than what fits into two handbooks, undergraduate or not. So your question was far too unspecific to give a qualified answer. Personally, I wouldn't consult a book with "dummies" in its title and rather take the time to read a real standard textbook instead. Not sure about string theory, but in general you will find a lot of good recommendations by a forums search. String theory is a bit problematic: which one? I think the basic ideas are quickly explained, and the actual applications are at least as complicated as the ordinary quantum field theory is.

 

[Daverz]

Isn't this the aim of the "Theoretical Minimum" series, to give more than an impressionistic picture of the physics?

http://theoreticalminimum.com/

Many undergraduate texts should be accessible with your background.

Several other books come to mind:

Structure and Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics
Differential Forms and the Geometry of General Relativity
Quantum Field Theory for the Gifted Amateur

 

[Chris Riccard]

where does
the road to reality by penrose? pemrose?
fit in?