Insights Blog
-- Browse All Articles --
Physics Articles
Physics Tutorials
Physics Guides
Physics FAQ
Math Articles
Math Tutorials
Math Guides
Math FAQ
Education Articles
Education Guides
Bio/Chem Articles
Technology Guides
Computer Science Tutorials
Forums
Science and Math Textbooks
STEM Educators and Teaching
STEM Academic Advising
STEM Career Guidance
Trending
Featured Threads
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Science and Math Textbooks
STEM Educators and Teaching
STEM Academic Advising
STEM Career Guidance
Menu
Log in
Register
Navigation
More options
Contact us
Close Menu
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Forums
Science Education and Careers
STEM Educators and Teaching
Are textbook derivations in physics too formulaic?
Reply to thread
Message
[QUOTE="brainpushups, post: 6040108, member: 212884"] . What gives you such a strong conviction? Take the Pythagorean Theorem. There are many ways to prove the result. Have you seen [URL='https://mathcs.clarku.edu/~djoyce/elements/bookI/propI47.html']Euclid's proof[/URL] (proposition 1.47 of the [I]Elements[/I])? Why do you think he chose to prove it that way? Hint: read 'alternate methods of proof' in the comments below the proof on the linked page. Have you read Newton's [I]Principia[/I]? What do you think of his proof of the [URL='https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_Mathematical_Principles_of_Natural_Philosophy_(1846)/BookI-XII']shell theorem[/URL] (propositions 30 and 31 in the link). Do you think that Newton had already had an inkling of how gravity behaved in (and near) spherical bodies before he worked this out? Newton still worked in the spirit of axiomatic geometry. Have a look at Lagrange's [I]Analytic Mechanics[/I] and you'll find classic results (once stated geometrically) re-stated (and derived) with the new tool of analysis. I'm not sure I understand the issue. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Post reply
Forums
Science Education and Careers
STEM Educators and Teaching
Are textbook derivations in physics too formulaic?
Back
Top