Need a book to prepare for my Special Relativity class

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers around recommendations for books and resources to prepare for a Special Relativity class, specifically focusing on quantitative approaches rather than conceptual overviews. Participants seek materials that include practice problems and are not overly technical.

Discussion Character

  • Homework-related
  • Technical explanation

Main Points Raised

  • One participant recommends Taylor & Wheeler's "Spacetime Physics" as a suitable resource.
  • Another suggests Rindler's "Relativity" as a good option.
  • A different participant mentions Moore's "A Traveller's Guide to Spacetime" as an excellent choice.
  • One contributor notes the popularity of Taylor and Wheeler's book and advises looking for lecture notes from various professors to gauge the material before purchasing books.
  • Another suggestion is to work through the problems in the red paperback edition of "Spacetime Physics."

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally agree on the recommendations for specific books, but there is no consensus on a single best resource, as multiple options are presented.

Contextual Notes

No specific limitations or unresolved issues are noted in the discussion.

Who May Find This Useful

Students preparing for a Special Relativity course, particularly those seeking quantitative resources and practice problems.

evacek3
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Hello,
Next semester I will be taking a class in Special Relativity through UIUC. Its only a 200 level course titled Relativity and math applications but I would really like to go in with a base. If anyone could give me some book suggestions which would contain practice problems and the like but not be too techinical (like a "...for dummies" book) that would be great. Or a website along the lines of Paul's Online Notes but for relativity would be great too.

NOTE: I am not looking for a book which covers Special Relativity on a conceptual level. I need one that is quantitative.

Thanks!
 
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I would recommend Taylor & Wheeler's Spacetime Physics.
 
Check Rindler's Relativity. It's pretty good.
 
Moore's A Traveller's Guide to Spacetime is excellent.
 
Taylor and Wheeler is popular. I like to look for lecture notes to get a feel for something new before I start buying books. There are thousands of professors who post their notes, some are good, some are awful. Google "SR lecture notes" or something similar and you will find a lot of notes at a variety of levels.
 

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