Discover the Truth About Giancoli Physics: Is It Really Worth Buying?"

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the value and effectiveness of the textbook "Giancoli Physics: Principles and Applications" for learning physics, particularly in the context of algebra-based courses. Participants express their experiences and opinions regarding the book's quality, its reviews, and potential alternatives.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Exploratory

Main Points Raised

  • One participant mentions the positive reviews of Giancoli on Amazon and its recommendation by Collegeboard for AP Physics, expressing a desire to buy it but feeling hesitant due to negative feedback from other forum members.
  • Another participant recalls using Giancoli in the past but does not remember specific details about it, questioning whether the criticisms of the book were explained.
  • A participant suggests that many introductory physics textbooks, including Giancoli, are of similar quality and that none are clearly superior, recommending that the user follow the textbook used by their teacher.
  • One contributor reflects on their experience with Giancoli, stating it is decent for an introduction but not the deepest resource, suggesting that other books may provide better insights into concepts like Newton's laws.
  • A comment highlights skepticism about the authenticity of top Amazon reviews, suggesting they may be paid endorsements.
  • Another participant argues that calculus can enhance understanding of physics concepts, implying that algebra-based methods may be limiting and that preferences for different approaches exist among forum members.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing opinions on the quality and usefulness of Giancoli, with some defending it as adequate for beginners while others criticize it. There is no consensus on whether it is the best choice for learning physics, and multiple competing views remain regarding preferred textbooks and teaching methods.

Contextual Notes

Some participants note that the criticisms of Giancoli may stem from a preference for more detailed or rigorous texts, and there is an acknowledgment that the quality of introductory physics textbooks can vary based on individual needs and teaching contexts.

Entanglement
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Giancoli Physics : Principles and Applications has got really great reviews on Amazon, and it is recommended on the Collegeboard website for AP Physics. I was excitedly going to buy it.
Recently, some members here said that this book is worthless and crap. I definitely trust those memebers' opinions more than Amazon's reviews.That made me so hesitant and hopeless as I'm in a desperate need of finding a decent algebra based textbook, and I don't have time right now to study calculus.
Should I just buy it? Could you tell me what's your opinions in this book ?
Is there any alternative ?
I appreciate this wonderful community and thanks in advance.
 
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I vaguely remember learning from Giancoli…way back when. But I don't really remember anything about it.

Did the aforementioned members explain why they think the book is crap?
 
olivermsun said:
Did the aforementioned members explain why they think the book is crap?

No, it wasn't clear why.
 
I think the consensus of many people is that the standard, commercial introductory physics textbooks are around the same quality (Halliday Resnick & Walker, Giancoli, Serway, Young & Freedman, etc.). None are clearly superior to another. Since this is probably your first taste of physics, just use whatever your teacher uses, learn the basics from it and you will gradually learn more as you proceed through your education.

By the way, the quality is not that great of any of them from what I read on these forums. But you should realize the people saying that are seasoned in physics so they probably don't like it because usually they are unsatisfactory in their details of derivations.
 
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I used Giancoli in my first calculus-based physics. I think it's pretty decent. I don't know what the big problem with it is, although it's been a long time since I've studied from it. To be sure, it's not the deepest book, but I think it's sufficient for an introduction. There are books like Spivak's Physics for Mathematicians that might do better on stuff like the motivation for Newton's laws. I don't think that it's mandatory that you should delve into that at the beginning, though.
 
Oh, BTW, the top reviews on Amazon are paid by the publishers to the writers via Amazon. :)
 
Calculus makes some parts of physics make a lot more sense and makes some of it much easier than having to try to stick to Alegebra based methods. Even very basic calc that can be very quickly picked up can help.

As far as the book getting poor reviews, I think many here prefer a different approach than the general texts provide. Stuff like K&K for Mechanics and French for waves and Purcell for E&M and such
 

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