Studying Struggling with relativistic mechanics questions, need a textbook recommended

AI Thread Summary
Struggling with understanding relativity due to a lack of effective instruction, a student seeks resources to catch up after missing a week of classes. They express difficulty finding textbooks that match the notation used in their course and assume prior knowledge of concepts like length contraction and time dilation. The discussion highlights the need for accessible learning materials suitable for second-year undergraduate physics, specifically mentioning introductory modern physics courses that cover special relativity. Recommendations for textbooks and online resources are provided, emphasizing the importance of foundational understanding. The student later reports success in mastering the material and performing well on a test.
alexis12
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I have never done relativity before, my uni professor isn't good enough and I can't understand a word he says, he's all over the place.

Anyway I missed a week due to being sick, and I just can't catch up, I am struggling to find any textbooks that have similar notation or help me solve problems. They all assume I understand things like length contraction, time dilation, proper length, etc.

This is an example of the simplest questions we have been asked: http://i.imgur.com/lHtbXPU.jpg

What textbook, youtube video series, or whatever can I watch to catch up and learn about relativity? This is second year undergraduate physics.
 
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alexis12 said:
This is an example of the simplest questions we have been asked: http://i.imgur.com/lHtbXPU.jpg
It's OK to post that as an example of the sort of coursework that you're dealng with, but if you actually want help solving those particular problems, you'll get more support and help from the homework forums.
 
The level of material in those questions corresponds to a second-year "introductory modern physics" course such as is commonly taught at universities in the US. Books for these courses have a chapter or two about special relativity: length contraction, time dilation, relativistic energy and momentum. Examples:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0471828726/?tag=pfamazon01-20
https://www.amazon.com/dp/0072448482/?tag=pfamazon01-20
https://www.amazon.com/dp/0534417817/?tag=pfamazon01-20

A classic book that's just about relativity:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0716723271/?tag=pfamazon01-20
 
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Thanks guys, I aced the test, it all seems to easy to me now.
 
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