Special Relativity by Prof. Shiva Prasad on NPTEL (a lecture course)

[SummeryWinter]

Hi everyone, I am a grade 12 high schooler(high school almost completed) who has gone through mechanics, some linear algebra, calculus and currently working through electrodynamics and EM, I would like to get an introductory view of Special Relativity, so I found this lecture course on NPTEL by Prof. Shiva Prasad, so my question is that, is this lecture course suited for a high schooler like me? Does it include a lot of proofs or is it computation-based?

P.S.- here's the link to the whole lecture course :-https://nptel.ac.in/courses/115101011

 

[berkeman]

It's probably hard for us to help you with just a JPG screenshot of the video lecture series. Is there an outline of the topics that he covers or something similar?

I would like to get an introductory view of Special Relativity

Have you read through the Wikipedia article yet?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_relativity

And look through the "See Also" links at the end of that article.

 

[SummeryWinter]

It's probably hard for us to help you with just a JPG screenshot of the video lecture series. Is there an outline of the topics that he covers or something similar?


Have you read through the Wikipedia article yet?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_relativity

And look through the "See Also" links at the end of that article.

I have read some parts of it but not in it's entirety...I should've attached a link to the lecture course to avoid any confusion or anything of that sort, so here's the link-https://nptel.ac.in/courses/115101011

 

[marcusl]

When I was in high school, I read Nobel laureate Max Born’s book about special relativity. As I recall, it included a review of mechanics and E&M before introducing relativity, all using algebra (no calculus). You might check it out.

 

[Baluncore]

Is there an outline of the topics that he covers or something similar?

Course Details. https://nptel.ac.in/courses/115101011
Special Theory of Relativity
L1-Problem with Classical Physics
L2-Michelson-Morley Experiment
L3-Postulates of Special Theory of Relativity and Galilean Transformation
L4-Look out for a New Transformation
L5-Lorentz Transformation
L6-Length Contraction and Time Dilation
L7-Examples of Length Contraction and Time Dilation
L8-Velocity Transformation and Examples
L9-A Three Event Problem
L10-A Problem involving Light and Concept of Causality
L11-Problems involving Causality and Need to Redefine Momentum
L12-Minikowski Space and Four Vectors
L13-Proper Time a Four Scalar
L14-Velocity Four Vector
L15-Momentum Energy Four Vector
L16-Relook at Collision Problems
L17-Zero Rest Mass Particle and Photon
L18-Doppler Effect in Light
L19-Example in C-Frame
L20-Force in Relativity
L21-Force Four-Vector
L22-Electric & Magnetic Field Transformation
L23-Example of EM Field Transformation
L24-Current Density Four Vector and Maxwell Equation

 

[pines-demon]

Hi everyone, I am a grade 12 high schooler(high school almost completed) who has gone through mechanics, some linear algebra, calculus and currently working through electrodynamics and EM, I would like to get an introductory view of Special Relativity, so I found this lecture course on NPTEL by Prof. Shiva Prasad, so my question is that, is this lecture course suited for a high schooler like me? Does it include a lot of proofs or is it computation-based?

P.S.- here's the link to the whole lecture course :-https://nptel.ac.in/courses/115101011

This seems like a bad start for a question, are you asking us to watch a whole series of videos in order to tell you if these videos are worthy? That's too much. I guess people can suggest series videos (or better, books) that they have already used themselves.

 

[SummeryWinter]

No, no, maybe this was a fault of mine, but I just thought if ANYONE has actually gone through some of the videos or even the course itself could provide me answers to my questions, that's all

This seems like a bad start for a question, are you asking us to watch a whole series of videos in order to tell you if these videos are worthy? That's too much. I guess people can suggest series videos (or better, books) that they have already used themselves.

 

[SummeryWinter]

When I was in high school, I read Nobel laureate Max Born’s book about special relativity. As I recall, it included a review of mechanics and E&M before introducing relativity, all using algebra (no calculus). You might check it out.

I will definitely check that out, thanks

 

[berkeman]

I am a grade 12 high schooler(high school almost completed) who has gone through mechanics, some linear algebra, calculus and currently working through electrodynamics and EM, I would like to get an introductory view of Special Relativity,

Do you know which university you will be attending? If so, you could look through their undergraduate Physics courses to see where they first introduce Special Relativity. For me, it was in the middle/end of my 2nd year at university. You see what textbook that class uses for that material, and ask your high school library to borrow it for you on inter-library loan so you can read through those sections.

 

[Baluncore]

When I was in high school, I read Nobel laureate Max Born’s book about special relativity.

Would that be: "Einstein's Theory of Relativity" By Max Born ?

 

[marcusl]

Yes, that’s the one.

 

[SummeryWinter]

Do you know which university you will be attending? If so, you could look through their undergraduate Physics courses to see where they first introduce Special Relativity. For me, it was in the middle/end of my 2nd year at university. You see what textbook that class uses for that material, and ask your high school library to borrow it for you on inter-library loan so you can read through those sections.

I don't really know which uni I will be joining yet since I haven't yet given the entrance exam yet but if I get into the uni I want to then it'll probably be introduced in the freshman year itself and about the textbook, I didn't find the book or the other introductory physics books used at the uni at my high school library. So I guess I'll just be getting a PDF version of the book from libgen.


P.S.- although I am yet to work through the Special Relativity section from Kleppnar and Kolenkow's mechanics book which I've been too lazy to work through and now I want to follow a lecture course to sort of supplement it which was also one of the primary and initial motivation/need for the question.

 

[gmax137]

about the textbook, I didn't find the book or the other introductory physics books used at the uni at my high school library

Tell us which books you're going to use in uni, we may have the books or places where you can get them...At least older editions.

 

[SummeryWinter]

It's the first volume of the Berkeley physics course-
Kittel C, Knight W D, Ruderman M A, Helmholz A C and Moyer B J, Mechanics, Berkeley
Physics Course: Volume 1, 2nd Edition (2011)

...and funnily enough it's also(the one I mentioned earlier)-
Kleppner D and Kolenkow R J, An Introduction To Mechanics (Special Indian Edition) (2007)

...and these are the introductory physics books for the second semester which includes relativity(the special theory of relativity):-
1. Serway and Jewitt, Physics for Scientists and Engineers (7th Edition)
2. Young and Friedman, University Physics (12th Edition)
3. Halliday, Resnick and Walker, Fundamentals of Physics, Extended (8th Edition)
4. Harris Benson , University Physics, Revised Edition
5. Kenneth Krane, Modern Physics, Second Edition

 

[gmax137]

Used copies of earlier editions of (all or most) of those books are available. Or so I thought. I just checked Amazon for used K&K and was surprised to see 70 - 80 or more USD. Wow, I paid $8 for mine in 1975.

I'm not sure how the used book market works in India but I expect you could find lots of copies of these books there as well, they're all tried and true classics.

Though worth mentioning that lots of people don't like the K&K relativity (it's out of date with relativistic mass, ict notation, etc.).

 

[SummeryWinter]

Used copies of earlier editions of (all or most) of those books are available. Or so I thought. I just checked Amazon for used K&K and was surprised to see 70 - 80 or more USD. Wow, I paid $8 for mine in 1975.

I'm not sure how the used book market works in India but I expect you could find lots of copies of these books there as well, they're all tried and true classics.

Though worth mentioning that lots of people don't like the K&K relativity (it's out of date with relativistic mass, ict notation, etc.).

I do have K&K, but I just wanted to know if the lecture course could actually provide some valuable introductory overview of the topics and Special Relativity but it seems like we've digressed from the original matter of discussion and I never got my answers...

 

[SummeryWinter]

I do have K&K, but I just wanted to know if the lecture course could actually provide some valuable introductory overview of the topics and Special Relativity but it seems like we've digressed from the original matter of discussion and I never got my answers...

I mean I still haven't gotten any answers not "never"

 

[gmax137]

I mean I still haven't gotten any answers not "never"

Apparently the answer so far is, no one here has used the subject videos to study relativity.

The problem with videos is that some are terrible and can fill your head with wrong ideas that have to be unlearned. That's why responders here are suggesting you use real textbooks.

 

[SummeryWinter]

Apparently the answer so far is, no one here has used the subject videos to study relativity.

The problem with videos is that some are terrible and can fill your head with wrong ideas that have to be unlearned. That's why responders here are suggesting you use real textbooks.

That makes sense, so I guess I'll just use the textbooks instead, thanks