The discussion revolves around recommendations for mathematics books specifically tailored for physicists. Participants share their preferences, experiences, and opinions on various texts, including their suitability for different levels of study and their pedagogical value.
Participants do not reach a consensus on which book is the best choice, as multiple competing views and preferences are expressed throughout the discussion.
Some participants note that the effectiveness of certain texts may depend on individual learning styles and the specific mathematical needs of physicists at different educational levels.
This discussion may be useful for students and professionals in physics seeking recommendations for mathematics books that are particularly relevant to their field, as well as those interested in the pedagogical merits of various texts.
Well, it's just about undergraduate/advanced undergraduate/beginning graduate level mathematical methods courses.micromass said:Since you haven't really given any details about what you like and what you're looking for, I'm going to assume this is about what *I* would buy. In that case, my answer would be: none of them.
I would like to check out Morse and Feshbach's book, but I would like to ask you the reasons of why do you prefer it?Dr Transport said:Hard to read, but I do like Morse and Feshbach, followed by Courant and Hilbert...
Is it pedagogical? Does it have figures where it should have?Dr Transport said:It is a classic and I always figured if you could do problems out of that book, you'd make a decent theoretical physicist
I just checked it out and it seems pretty good. But, due to its age, isn't it a bit dated?Dr Transport said:If memory serves me correctly, it only has figures showing you the different coordinate systems.
as for pedagogical, you an learn from it but it takes effort, it isn't an easy set of books.
Adam Landos said:Hello, i want to get a mathematics book for physicists, and i have stumbled across some good books, but as i have not read them yet, i can't really decide which one to buy. So, which one do you prefer and why? Also, do you have any other book to recommend?
Thanks!
I am at a very young age, but I can agree with you on this. I use a mix of new and old books and I agree with you about Schiff's book. It's simply amazing as it offers amazing insights. If you have any other book in the style of Morse's and Feshbach's book, please recommend it!Dr Transport said:Math is math, sure it isn't a text on group theory, it is a book written during the 40's and 50's for the math needed to train a physicist, much of which you still need today.
I don't like a lot of the "new" texts in physics, too flashy, not enough substance. I'll go back to my well worn copy of Schiff well before I pick up Griffiths for QM as an example. My math references are the same, I use the ones I learned from and that have been on my shelf for 30 years, just because it is new, doesn't mean it is better. Multiple of my applied math courses professors had it on their shelf, if they didn't like it, it would not be there.