Intro Physics What do you think about the Feynman lectures?

[hubot]

Hi! I've bought book Feynman lectures, Feynman exercises and Physics Jay Orear. Is worthwhile to buy Landau and Lifshitz books? I'm beginner in physics. I'm not sure what to school textbooks. School programme is too easy for me. I need more accurate source to learn physics. Although in my school math teacher think that square roots from negative numbers doesn't exists and if delta is negative, then equation doesn't have any solutions. What do you think about Feynman lectures, Jay Orear Physics, A.S. Davydov's books, L.D.Landau's & Lifshitz's books and Resnick & Halliday Physics?

 

[Hornbein]

Hi! I've bought book Feynman lectures, Feynman exercises and Physics Jay Orear. Is worthwhile to buy Landau and Lifshitz books? I'm beginner in physics. I'm not sure what to school textbooks. School programme is too easy for me. I need more accurate source to learn physics. Although in my school math teacher think that square roots from negative numbers doesn't exists and if delta is negative, then equation doesn't have any solutions. What do you think about Feynman lectures, Jay Orear Physics, A.S. Davydov's books, L.D.Landau's & Lifshitz's books and Resnick & Halliday Physics?

I think Feynman lectures are wonderful. They are quite detailed. For EM I often go to a much more concise series of lectures here http://farside.ph.utexas.edu/teaching/em/lectures/

 

[hubot]

I learn from Feynman lectures but I wanted to ask you what do you think about this. Lectures sometimes seem to be written as popular science. Feynman exercises from this book https://www.amazon.com/dp/0465060714/?tag=pfamazon01-20 aren't easy. How do you know ways to fast and smoothly solve this problems? Are all exercises related to lectures or are any exercises extra-curricular?

 

[Reveille]

Richard Feynman has been called by some "The Great Explainer".
These lectures were given to undergraduates during Feynman's time at Caltech. While I'm sure that they know more physics than the Average Joe, they are not experts in any way.
That's why it sometimes may feel like popular science. I actually grew up to hate physics. I am not interested in pursuing it as a career but Feynman managed to turn my opinion on physics around and made me like it.
His way of explaining made me understand the concepts behind physics and that's where it will be fun.
If you don't understand something in any way, will it be fun? No.
That's why mathematics and the "exact" sciences are not so popular. During my time at English and History, I could improvize a little.
With mathematics, you can't. You need to study before you understand it and teenagers, myself included, just don't want to study.

As far as I can recall, those exercises are all related to the lectures in the book itself.

 

[hubot]

I actually grew up to hate physics. I am not interested in pursuing it as acareer but Feynman managed to turn my opinion on physics around and made me like it.

I similarly grew up to hate physics. I mean that some people don't accept my passions but I'm into in IT and physics. Some people said to me that I shouldn't learn physics and I should follow to school programme.

As far as I can recall, those exercises are all related to the lectures in the book itself.

So, as I can't solve any problem then it means that I don't something read in lectures?

 

[Reveille]

At times, it can become a little overwhelming due to the large slab of text thrown at you.
That may make it more difficult to filter out the essentials.
You most likely missed a detail in there.

 

[phyzguy]

So, as I can't solve any problem then it means that I don't something read in lectures?

Why don't you pick one of the problems, try to solve it, and if you can't then post it here in the homework section with your attempt at a solution so we can help? Please read the homework help guidelines and use the appropriate template.

 

[Mondayman]

Landau and Lifshitz books? I'm beginner in physics

The L&L series is terrific but well beyond the ability of a beginner.

Resnick & Halliday Physics?

If you know some calculus, this is a terrific place to start. Supplement with the Feynman Lectures.

 

[vanhees71]

The Feynman lectures are among the best physics textbooks ever written. I think, they are only topped by Sommerfeld's Lectures on Theoretical Physics (concerning classical physics, because these are only covering classical physics and are quite old-fashioned nowadays, but concerning the mathematical methods they are still the best I can think of).

Forget school books. They are usually more confusing than helpful, written by people more involved towards didactics rather than physics and then think to simplify things they have to get inaccurate on the edge of becoming wrong.

Landau and Lifshitz are also marvelous books but not quite for a beginner. My favorites are vol. II on classical field theory (E&M and GR) and vol. X (kinetic theory, including a very intuitive introduction of the Schwinger-Keldysh real-time formalism of quantum many-body theory).

However, concerning quantum field theory, I'd recommend a more modern book than vol. IV of L&L. My favorite at the intro level at the moment is M. Schwartz, Quantum Field Theory and the Standard Model.

 

[Hornbein]

I learn from Feynman lectures but I wanted to ask you what do you think about this. Lectures sometimes seem to be written as popular science. Feynman exercises from this book https://www.amazon.com/dp/0465060714/?tag=pfamazon01-20 aren't easy. How do you know ways to fast and smoothly solve this problems? Are all exercises related to lectures or are any exercises extra-curricular?

I'm not the problem solving type. But if you want to acquire skill, that is the only way. Feynman himself was extremely skilled. Freeman Dyson said he never saw anyone else work so hard. So...

Fumbling with problems is normal. Fortunately you have Physics Forums for when you get stuck. Make an honest try, and when you get stuck write a clear report and ask your question.

 

[vanhees71]

...in the homework section of the forums!

 

[JorisL]

So, as I can't solve any problem then it means that I don't something read in lectures?

As said before, try some and ask for help in the appropriate section of the forums.
Its a fact that solving problems is a skill you obtain in a way similar to learning theory. Work at it.

I'm not the problem solving type. But if you want to acquire skill, that is the only way. Feynman himself was extremely skilled. Freeman Dyson said he never saw anyone else work so hard. So...

He (supposedly) had this very quick way to work through a problem/derivation where he ignored numerical prefactors.
This is a great method to use, first see if you get what's happening without getting lost in details.
When studying theory, this can be enough to just skip the detailed derivation.
When doing problems you basically get a plan on how to approach the problem when looking for an exact solution.