Which resources should I use to prepare for the F=ma contest and USAPhO?

[member 659869]

What textbook should I go through to be prepared for the F=MA contest and advance to USAPhO? Is Khan Academy AP Physics Enough? I have started HRK Physics but it seems to me to be quite boring, and out of ~50 practice problems at the end of each chapter I would say ~4-5 of them are interesting and actually difficult enough to be intellectually stimulating.

 

[jedishrfu]

Have you checked the AAPT site?

https://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/2019/exams.cfm
I would start there and assess your weaknesses and then focus on those problem sets.

 

[member 659869]

Thanks, I will definitely do that but I also want to learn for fun from a textbook. Currently I am deciding between David Morins Introduction to Classical Mechanics and Taylor's Classical Mechanics? Which is better?

 

[Dragon27]

Morin's textbook (especially the problems) is much more difficult and is not for the novice, in my opinion. Of course, if you're able to work through it you will end up with a much better and deeper understanding of the subject. I especially liked the chapters devoted to special relativity in this regard - solving all the problems leaves you with a clear and thorough understanding of this beautiful theory (at this level of sophistication).

Taylor's is much friendlier as an introductory book and introduces all the basic stuff (Newton's laws, conservations laws, oscillations and normal modes, Kepler's problem, rigid bodies, non-inertial frames, collision theory, Lagrange's and Hamiltonian formulaiton, special relativity, even some chaos and continuum mechanics) in a very clear and lively manner. This is a very good book (as is Morin's) and Taylor is a great expositor. Though this book is not that advanced. I recommend starting with Taylor first, and the read Morin's one as a second textbook. Don't think you can just go for the latter, without having some skills and experience in classical mechanics.

Both books are pitched at the undergraduate level, so you better have studied some freshman physics course already.

 

[member 659869]

For context, I am a freshman in high school, and I therefore i have little knowledge of physics relative to an entire year's course (basically nothing more than free-body diagrams). I think I will do Barron's E-Z Physics and Khan Academy, brush up on calculus then go into Morin from there

 

[ibkev]

For context, I am a freshman in high school

Morin has another physics book that is aimed at high school AP students, and is intended as a stepping stone to his university text. It’s still calculus-based but the problems are more accessible and includes discussions on problem solving strategies.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1482086921/?tag=pfamazon01-20

As a bonus, the book is quite inexpensive!

I also recommend Walter Lewin’s physics lectures on YouTube for their excellent content and sheer fun.

https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCliSRiiRVQuDfgxI_QN_Fmw/playlists