Product Description

This book incorporates the developments in digital audio technology, including consumer products, into a firm foundation of the physics of sound. No knowledge of physics, mathematics, or music is required. Includes updated information on musical synthesizers. Provides recent information on the ear, including new advances in cochlear implant technology. Updates material for modern technology, particularly MP3. Features abundant examples, including discussion of demonstration experiments. Includes historical discussion of musical temperaments and instruments. Offers videotapes of musical demonstrations on topics discussed in the book, available from author. A useful reference for musicians or anyone interested in learning more about the physics of music.

Customer Reviews (6)

Class didnt reflect his own textbook.
Whats better than taking a course where the professor actually wrote the book. Well I did just that and was disappointed. The class had many visual demonstrations but the book had very few pictures which made me wonder why his teaching style did not reflect the textbook.

not helpful
Did they even have an editor for this book? I took a class with Dr.Berg and his class was interesting but the book was not helpful nor was it well organized.

Considerably out of date in some places
Acoustics is an interesting subject, at all levels, and very important of course due to the human love for music and the need for high fidelity sound reproduction. This book is written for a readership that does not have expertise in physics or mathematics beyond the high school level. The authors do an excellent job, and the book could be used in classes on music theory or a class in physics for the humanities. The audiophile reader will gain a greater appreciation of the physics behind quality sound reproduction. Heavy use is made of demonstrations to illustrate the properties of sound, and most of these are easily set up in the classroom. I have used most of these demonstrations in the classroom, and can highly recommend their use to reinforce the understanding of the physics of sound.

The book opens, appropriately, with a discussion of simple harmonic motion, with the properties of this type of motion related to sound waves. The nature of simple harmonic motion as periodic, in contrast with noise, which is nonperiodic, is pointed out very early on. To introduce the concept of resonance, in particular the concept of coupling resonance, the author use the coupled pendulum system. This demonstration is easily constructed for classroom use and very effective in illustrating coupled resonance. Lissajous figures, which arise in the study of the relationship between two waves, is discussed in some detail.

The difference between longitudinal waves, which sound waves are, and transverse waves (such as light), is illustrated in chapter 2. To reinforce the difference between sound and light, the authors use the "bell in vacuum" demonstration. A demonstration for measuring the speed of sound is also described. Ripple tanks are used to demonstrate Huygen's principle, interference, and parabolic reflectors. The origin of beats, so important in music theory, is discussed, along with a very detailed overview of the Doppler effect. Ultrasound, very important medically, is treated also. A very brief discussion of infrasonic waves is given. Infrasonic waves, which are outside the range of hearing since they are below 20 Hz, are only experienced as vibrations. They have recently been discussed in the popular press as being explanations behind "haunted" houses. The anxiety felt in some old houses is thought of as being due to infrasonic waves.

The origin of the overtone series, so very important in music theory, is discussed in chapter 3. The three laws of Mersenne, which govern the fundamental frequency of stretched wires, are also treated. The Kundt's tube demonstration is used to describe the properties of longitudinal standing waves, and the famous Chladni plates are used to demonstrate standing waves in two dimensions. All throughout the chapter the properties of standing waves are related to music and musical instruments.

Fourier analysis and synthesis, which is typically very formidable mathematically, is presented in chapter 4 in a manner that is very understandable to the targeted readership. The Fourier synthesis of triangular, square, and sawtooth waves, along with a pulse train, is discussed. After a treatment of Fourier spectrum of these waves, the authors discuss the factors contributing to tone quality.

In chapter 5, the authors turn to more practical considerations, wherein they discuss how to create electronic music. Analog synthesizers, although very antiquated by modern standards, are used to illustrate how to combine waves to obtain special sounds or effects. The authors then immediately turn to digital synthesizers and keyboards. They discuss the Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI), but the equipment they illustrate in the chapter is considerably out of date.

The anatomy and physics of the human ear and voice tract are discussed in chapter 6. The diagrams they include are useful, and they discuss the "place theory of hearing" , which is based on the correlation of sound frequency with position of response along the basilar membrane. The critical band, just noticeable difference, and the limit of frequency discrimination are all discussed in the context of this theory, with several different experiments proposed to illustrate these concepts. Most interesting is the discussion on periodicity pitch, which musicians seem to have a knack for. Also interesting is the treatment of vocal formants, which are frequency regions in which harmonics have large amplitudes. Due to the element of subjectivity in hearing and listening, the connection of the material in this chapter to "psychophysics" and "psychoacoustics" is readily apparent.

Most of the next chapter is out-dated since the authors discuss sound reproduction using LPs and tape recorders. However, the authors do discuss how this is done using compact disks, which though are themselves on their way out, due to the rise of the Internet, MP3 formats, and digital music files. Chapter 8 is timeless though, as the authors discuss the acoustics of auditoriums and rooms, detailing the most important acoustical characteristics that contribute to a pleasant musical experience, and some of the problems that arise in acoustical design. The last section of the chapter gives a fairly good overview of what is involved in setting up a home listening room.

In chapter 9, the authors take the plunge into music theory, discussing temperament and musical pitch. The history behind these concepts is detailed, emphasizing in particular that an ideal temperamentis not available, its choice being dictated by the musical requirements at hand.Arithmetic descriptions of the Pythagorean, just, mean-tone, Werckmeister, and equal temperaments are given.

The last five chapters are specialized to the principles behind woodwind, brass, string, and percussion instruments, and the piano. The discussion is purely descriptive, but some of the physical principles studied in the first chapters of the book are applied here to give an understanding of the acoustical and musical properties of these instruments.

counterbalance to the "bites my..." review
Haven't read the book, but Mr. "bites my wacker" shouldn't be allowed to lower the average score.

This is the Book if You want to Know the"Whats" of Sound!
The Physics of Sound is a great book for both musicians and nonmuscians alike. Its not a book for anyone who is afraid of a little mind work. I recommend Physics of Sound because immediately upon after reading it Igained a whole new perspective and deep appreciation for the fundamentalelements,and principles that govern this wonderful phenomena we call"SOUND".

Ever wondered how fast sound travel? What about howvarious sound frequencies react to each other,and in rooms? What exactly issound? All these questions and more,are answered here. Physics of soundeven gives you basic formulas that allow you to manipulate sound in thereal world.

Gain Knowledge,Gain Insight,Gain information. ... Read more

Product Description
This powerful study tool makes it possible--­­even for students with relatively weak training in mathematics and science problem solving­­--to quickly gain the reasoning skills and confidence they need to master physics and excel on exams. It coaxes readers through the subject matter and methodology, helping them to naturally develop a grasp of the material typical of a rigorous, no-calculus-based course. With this guide, so like an excellent tutor, they'll soon develop an ability to deal comfortably with sophisticated problems. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Keeps what it promises
A previous reviewer gave this book a bad rating because she/he was not pleased with the preview pages offered at Amazon. Actually the preview pages are ok - it just happens that the author is dedicating the first chapter to brush up the students math. The book holds what the author promises in the preface: "The book is specifically designed to allow students with relatively weak mathematics and science problem solving to quickly gain the needed quantitative reasoning skills as well as confidence in addressing the subjects in physics"
The book is designed to accompany first year college students. Price/Value ratio seems ok - and it blends in with the second part "Beginning Physics II" (which has received good ratings as well).

Can't really tell about this book
Amazon's preview of the book itself would be more useful if it complemented customer reviews.Yable of Contents always shows only one page when it may consist of two or several pages.The author's Preface and Introduction would tell what the scope and intent of the book would be.One random page, obtained by Surprise Me, shows a delta y over delta x.But is it a calculus-based book?I can't assume it is. ... Read more

Product Description
The writings of more than 60 authors including Isaac Asimov, Albert Einstein, Stephen Hawking, Pierre Curie, Primo Levi and James Gleick, are represented in this volume. Each expresses a perspective on the Sciences. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

Very good, but some of the selections are a bit dated
This book contains 97 essays written by the giants of 20th century physics and mathematics.These include essays by Einstein, Planck, Bohr, Dirac, von Neumann, Feynman, Hawking, Penrose and Bertrand Russell.Almost all are non-mathematical, but a few (for instance, the essay by Dirac) do require some mathematical expertise.The essays are, on the whole, quite good.My only reservation is that many of the selections are quite dated.This is to be expected, since many of the authors are deceased, and some have been dead for a half-century or more.Furthermore, being compiled in 1989 (the publication date for the original hard cover edition) even the essays by living authors, such as Hawking and Penrose, are somewhat obsolete, hence I can only give this book four-stars.However, even if they do not reflect the most up-to-date understanding of the subject matter that they cover, they are still well worth reading.

Scientists at their best, explaining science to the public
Two of the worlds' most odious clichés relate to the scientific elite and are unfortunately often perpetrated by non-scientific academics. The first is that scientists crawl into an artificial environment and create monstrous things without regard to the consequences. The second is that the scientific upper-echelon finds it impossible to "lower" themselves to the level of everyone else. This collection of over 90 essays, written by the prime scientists of the 19th and 20th centuries, demolishes those beliefs.
The pioneers of modern understanding have often been the vanguard of those trying to educate the public about what the newest scientific discoveries really mean. And scientists have always written for the masses, such as they were. Even Kepler and Galileo wrote popular works to explain their positions.
The material in this book represents scientists at their best. You read of joy, anguish, fulfillment, shock, puzzlement, success and failure. In short, you read about humans experiencing the world. The level of difficulty is very low, suitable for high school on up.
Showing scientists at their human best, this book will convince all but the stone-minded that scientists really are at home in the world.

He could have had a V8
In a set of articles by great men that could have been worthwhile
we have a failure. I know because I have something real to compare this to
as contrastSource Book in Mathematics. What results is very like "The End of Science: Facing the Limits of Knowledge in the Twilight of the Scientific Age" in content.
What we have here is an anti-mathematics thesis with only vague points
to the real stuff.What results is a dumbed down collection that is really unworthy of the author.
Praising this book is like praising vanilla pudding!
Without the whipped cream of the mathematics the pudding is
limp and colorless. What we really need is a true source book
with the real material in it.
The closest I've seen is Roger Penrose's"The Road to Reality: A Complete Guide to the Laws of the Universe".
In dumbing it down there is no protection against science and the mathematics
that makes it work .

Excellent
An excellent book to read on science and mathematic related ideas. It's easy to understand and fun to read. It doesn't only stop at the scientists' and mathematicians' lives and their work. Read it and find out... More!

This book was well worth both my time and money.
I loved this book.It brings together the writings of some of the worlds greatest minds on the subject of science.This is a most read. ... Read more

Product Description

This new series will explain major areas of science in an interesting, visually compelling, and accessible manner. The "101" in the title refers not only to an introductory course but also to the 101 key facts and topics presented in each book. These books will fill the need for popular reference on all aspects of science and technology.

Product Description
A supplement for courses in Algebra-Based Physics and Calculus-Based Physics. Ranking Task Exercises in Physics are an innovative type of conceptual exercise that asks students to make comparative judgments about variations on a particular physicals situation.It includes 200 exercises covering classical physics and optics. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Valuable resource for teaching physics...
...forces the student to think about what is actually happening in any given situation as opposed to simply remembering what equations they're supposed to use...two complaints...first, too short...should have at least five times as many problems over a broad range of difficulty...second, it would benefit from a "hints" page...some students "freeze up" when asked to actually think about a problem...a hint on where to begin and/or how to approach the problem might help "jump start" them...

would be great if the book was in color instead of black and white.
This book is fun.
I take it with me to the 8 am - 11:40 am, Mon-Wed-Fri physics class.
Before the class starts and everyone looks bored and sleepy, I open the book and ask my neighbors to rank a task, randomly picked. Some guess. Some ponder. Some become awake:)
We all get excited.
With clear eyes and sudden splash of curiosity, we are pre-cooked and ready to be grilled hard on the stove of physics:)

Simply excellent!
Even practicing physicists will find much here (in fact, more than a small number would benefit from a little refresher!).

An Excellent Teaching Tool
In the interest of self-disclosure I should note that I am a co-author of one of the ranking tasks in this book.

That having been said, I have found this collection of assessment tools to be a valuable addition to the various pencil and paper activities I use in my physics classes.

The idea of the ranking task is to have a student compare a umber of physically similar systems that are allowed to vary in only one or two ways.The student must rank the systems (usually from greatest to least) on the basis of one of the system's physical variables (i.e.-velocity, acceleration, electric field strength, currect, etc.).The variables that are allowed to change may or may not affect the ranking of the systems.As an example, the mass of a falling object may be allowed to vary over rocks allowed to fall under the influence of gravity only.The ranking task may ask the student to rank the systems ont he basis of which one took the longest time to fall.In this case, the mass, while different in each situation, is irrelevant to the fall time and thus would not be used to determine the ranking.

The real power of these assessment tools is that they can quickly and clearly get at a student's mis/alternative conceptions as to which physical variables might change a system's behavior. The items can be used as quiz and test questions as well as during class time as a "self-check" on "in-class check" by the educator to assist students in working through a Karplus learnign cycle of ellicit-confront-resolve and apply for a concent or concept cluster in a subject area.

In addition to ranking tasks for most of the areas found in standard first year physics curriculum that book also discusses the pedagogical theory behind the assessment tool and has an answer key.As a physics educator, I have found this resource to be extraordinarily helpful both as a source of material for my classes and as an inspiration in creating my own material.I would rcommend this for any physics educator teaching high school or college physics at the introductory level.

Ranking task Exercises in Physics
New approach to old thinking.Great learning tool.Made sense on difficult concepts. ... Read more

Product Description
Intended for undergraduate courses in physics for students in biological physics, life sciences, biophysics, physiology, medical physics, and biomedical engineering, this book is an introduction to statistical physics with examples and problems from the medical and biological sciences. Topics include the elements of the theory of probability, Poisson statistics, thermal equilibrium, entropy and free energy, and the second law of thermodynamics.

This new edition of the classic set of books, originally published in 1974 from the authors' typescript, has been edited, updated, corrected, indexed, and typeset. It will satisfy the growing need for a working knowledge of the physical sciences among students and practitioners in the medical and biological sciences. The books can be used as supplements to standard introductory physics courses, as texts for medical schools, medical physics courses, and biology departments, and as a reference for practitioners. Chapters include problems and references.

The authors are recognized experts in the field. Benedek was the recipient of the 1995 Irving Langmuir Prize from the American Physical Society's Division of Chemical Physics, and the 1994 Biological Physics Prize from the American Physical Society.

FROM THE REVIEWS:

PHYSICS TODAY"These are classic books, and anyone planning to include bio-physical examples in a calculus-level course should study them carefully...The authors are to be congratulated for their work, and I commend AIP Press and Springer-Verlag for making the books available again." ... Read more

Product Description
Teleportation, time machines, force fields, and interstellar space ships—the stuff of science fiction or potentially attainable future technologies? Inspired by the fantastic worlds of Star Trek, Star Wars, and Back to the Future, renowned theoretical physicist and bestselling author Michio Kaku takes an informed, serious, and often surprising look at what our current understanding of the universe's physical laws may permit in the near and distant future.Entertaining, informative, and imaginative, Physics of the Impossible probes the very limits of human ingenuity and scientific possibility. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (144)

Physics f the Impossible
As with the rest of the Kaku books and videos this is perfect non math major work.I love reading about quantum physics and theory of everything stuff so this was a joy.

Great book for science-fiction enthusiasts, but some topics of interest were omitted
This is a good book that will be sure to enthrall science fiction enthusiasts. The subject matter is about as interesting as it gets. As other reviewers have noted, Michio Kaku is talented in storytelling, and in reducing highly complex topics into analogies, comparisons, and other communication devices that the reader can understand - well, sort of, at least. For those who have watched Through the Wormhole and similar programs on TV, the subject matter follows suit closely in this book.

There are a couple of topics that I was disappointed not to see addressed in the book, given that - at least to me - they would have seemed in-scope. One is personal human flight (a la Daedalus and Icarus of Greek mythology). Among the "physical impossibles", this is perhaps the oldest and most deeply held human desire of all. I have read that if humans ever colonize the moon and build aerated gymnasium-like spaces, then they will be able to strap wings on and fly around at will, courtesy of the moon's weak gravity. I would be curious to hear the author's comment on the feasibility of that. Along those lines, the subject of flying cars could have been covered also, though maybe this isn't in-scope for the book since these are no longer viewed as technically impossible, but rather just needing an economic and/or social justification.

The second omitted topic is out-of-body consciousness. Very indirectly, the author touches on this subject in the chapter on parallel universes, when he mentions religious concepts of heaven. However, I think out-of-body experiences have been reported absent the spectrum of near-death-experiences that most readers are familiar with. Maybe this is too complex and emotional a topic to be covered in this book, I don't know.

Also, I have a comment regarding the chapter on psychokinesis and its sub-topic - molecular fabricators - i.e. the concept of rearranging molecules and atoms so as to create an object, or change one thing to another. The author comments that it could eliminate poverty and rearrange notions of scarcity and hierarchy in society. That is no doubt partially true, but somehow I think society would still find a way to stratify its "haves" and "have nots". Perhaps gold would become the new exclusive measure of wealth (unless the technology could create gold atoms rather than just rearrange existing atoms). Or social status could be based on land ownership, or knowledge, or access to the technology or the required raw materials, or anything else not able to be directly addressed by the molecular fabricator itself.

Despite the omitted topics, I still would give this book 5 stars - mainly because of the highly interesting and complex nature of the subject matter, and the author's skill in taking it on so convincingly.

My Introduction to Michio Kaku And His World(s) of Science
BookTV is showing an InDepth interview of Michio Kaku done October 3, 1010. This is my first exposure to him and to his ideas and naturally, I am in awe; grateful too for his easy ability to bridge his world of physics to this little layperson. I immediately came here to order at least one of his books, and find out more about Dr. Kaku and his books written for the general public. I want to thank Amazon and the reviewers here for having the rating bar graph and forum for input. All is thoughtfully done, and helpful...thank you. So, my review is more a comment with gratitude attached for this review process available. To mention, if you can make the time, this InDepth interview gives three and a half hours, (booktv.org), of this amazing author and theoretical physicist talking about science in quite an engaging, personable way.

Physics all in words
Some of the other "popular" accounts of physics look like daunting text books compared to this diagram and math free book.

Most interesting science book I've read in a while
I really thought this book was good.I really liked the concept of three different types of impossibilities.He wrote about the science of what was entailed of popular sci-fi things in a way that I could follow 99% of the time.The only reason why I didn't give it 5 stars is that I felt that he sometimes talked about the sci-fi stuff too much when I wanted him to get on and talk about the science behind it.However I definitely recommend. ... Read more

Product Description
A study aid for senior and graduate level students needing a review of undergraduate physics. Covers a broad range of topics, with carefully worked examples illustrating important problem-solving methods. A collection of self-test problems helps students prepare for the College Entrance Advanced Physics Examination and the Qualifying Written Examination for the PhD. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Good for grad school reference as well...
I used this book to prepare for both my comprehensives and qualifiers.Partial solutions are offered in most cases--always a plus for those seeking self-study.I felt that some of the exercises were above the level of an undergraduate's curriculum, but that just makes it a better graduate school reference.

It's Okay.
I'm not as wild about this book as some of the other reviewers.The E&M section is in CGS, which is a big bummer.I found the best review for the qualifier was to just do lots of physics problems for 3 months prior to taking it, and look things up as necessary using the physics books that I was already familiar with.

An excellent overview of physics for Qualifying Exam Prep
I used this book when I prepared forthe qualifying exams.It is an excellent review to get you back up to speed in an organized way on all of the topics covered... Gets you ready for Cronin's "University ofChicago Graduate Problems in Physics, with solutions"The two make agreat team. I am nowbuying them for my students.

Excellent Study Guide for Comprehensive Exams
I like the set-up of the book.Each concept is presented in three parts.The first part is a concise (very concise) summary of concept, the second is problems with worked solutions, and the third is problems with answersso that you can check your work.

This three part combination makes itvery easy to quickly identify your own strengths and weaknesses in problemsolving; as well as testing your understanding of physics.

Brilliant overview of undergrad physics
This book did the rounds when our 'class' was studying for the comprehensives in grad school. It is an excellent review of undergraduate physics in a concise manner. ... Read more

Product Description
Publisher: New York, MacMillanPublication date: 1908Subjects: PhysicsNotes: This is an OCR reprint. There may be typos or missing text. There are no illustrations or indexes.When you buy the General Books edition of this book you get free trial access to Million-Books.com where you can select from more than a million books for free. You can also preview the book there. ... Read more

Product Description
Over 3,000 terms with clear, working definitions, alternative meanings, and related references comprise this uniquely focused lexicon. Published in a convenient, paperback format, it covers chemical, energy, nuclear, plasma, condensed matter, and solid-state physics, fluid dynamics, quantum mechanics, quantum optics, thermodynamics, and materials science. ... Read more

Product Description
This Sixth Edition helps readers understand the interrelationships among basic physics concepts and how they fit together to describe our physical world. Throughout the book, the authors emphasize the relevance of physics to our everyday lives.

Real-world physics applications, including many biomedical applications, show how physics principles come into play over and over again in our lives.

Problem Solving Insights explain each calculation in detail, guiding readers through the quantitative process

Includes a CD containing physics simulations ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

a for effort
it's just what i needed, it arrived 4 days after i placed the order, it's in great condition, no missing pages

Mint condition book
The only indication this was a used book was the small sticker on the spine stating Used; otherwise it was in perfect, mint condition and shipped within a reasonable time.

Good Book
This came pretty quick and was in good condition. I'm happy with the purchase and price.

the most horrible experience with the seller
the most horrible experience with the seller. they are punch of thiefs. I would never buy anything from them.

G's book
I ordered this book for my son who is a junior in college.He needed this book for class. ... Read more

Product Description
Calculus-based introductory physics text that provides a modern approach to traditional topics. This revised edition retains the accurate writing of the first edition and incorporates feedback obtained over five successive printings, resulting in a virtually error-free text. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Negative feedback
This book has writing in Japanese in just about every page. It has writing in pen and pencil. The previous owner worked problems in the book. It is very distracting and I am going to have to buy another one.

saved me $100
this saved me $100 on a book that we dont even use for class. its in pretty rough shape but like i said we dont use it so im not too worried about it

The most lucid Introductory Text in Physics I have come across
Harris Benson has written one of the most lucidly written Physics introductory Text Book I have ever come across. Being a trainer for the IIT-JEE & Olympiads in India, this superb book has given me personally a lot of interesting insights - both conceptual and historical and has helped me enhance my teaching. The interesting historical references helps the reader to appreciate how concepts in Physics evolved over the years. University Physics is a must-read for all students and teachers. However, this book must not be looked upon as a problem-solving enhancer but certainly a concept-builder. For problem-solving, books like Irodov, Gnadig, Krotov, Clark etc. could be preferrable.

Ups And Downs
Having picked up a Physics with Calculus class roughly three years after I took Physics in high school, I was surprised to discover how well this book describes many of the basic concepts.It manages to not only remind you of what you already know, but also bolsters that knowledge with new information.

However, considering that the course is highly math-oriented, one would think that the word problems would be a little easier to comprehend.I'm not asking to be handed everything on a silver platter, but I would hope that when a text book asks you how long it takes a train to get past a certain point they would specify whether they mean how long it takes the length of the train to go past that point or how long it takes to get past it from where the train currently is.

That may not make sense, but then that just means you understand my issue with the problems given.Many times you spend longer trying to figure out what information they want rather than working the problem.It's disappointing that a solutions manual is not available to students--such manuals can be a lot of help in discovering whether your calculation was wrong or you simply misunderstood what the problem was asking for.

I want to get exercise.
Chapter 11. 1,5,23,29,39,61 Chapter 12. 1,9,13,17,31 Chapter 13. 1,5,9,23

c.f>I am a korean student. ... Read more

Product Description
Derived from the content of the respected McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms, Sixth Edition, each title provides thousands of definitions of words and phrases encountered in a specific discipline. All include:

* Pronunciation guide for every term
* Acronyms, cross-references, and abbreviations
* Appendices with conversion tables; listings of scientific, technical, and mathematical notation; tables of relevant data; and more
* A convenient, quick-find format (20030924) ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Excellent Dictionary
I found that this dictionary gives lucid definitions to physics terms. Also, categorizing the terms according to the field they belong in gives an added value to the book. In fact, it is very specific in regards to the subfield/branch of physics that a term is used in. I also own "Oxford Dictionary of Physics" and "Penguin Dictionary of Physics" both published by companies in based in England. I can assure you that this book is a lot less complicated and saves the technical jargon for the layman. It defines terms in a very simple and understandable English. If you like, go to the library and compare the three dictionaries before purchasing any of them and see for yourself. However, the bottom line is that you just need more than one dictionary on a particular subject. That is because one dictionary may define a particlar term in a better fashion than another.

zero stars
As a physicist I thought this book would be handy to have around, but my experience with it suggests that the authors' goal was to use as many trees as possible while providing as little information as possible.After a while I started looking up topics that I was already familiar with, and wasamused by the totally opaque definitions I found. A whole lot of not muchin this book. zero stars. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (6)

It's OK.
There are two types of people: people who are physics majors, and people who don't really care about the subject and are taking because it is a required course for their ultimate goal. I belong to the first group(physics major) and have a few semesters of experience with this text.
In my opinion it falls short compared to the more mainstream university texts. Each chapter is divided into section with a brief introductory paragraph or two, then dives head first into the examples. Diagrams are adequate and appropriatelycorrelates with the examples and explanations. This text can be thought of as an extremely detailed outline of physics, not a comprehensive study. It is also assumed that you know your calculus. From time to time, he'll explain where got this from or that from but generally you have to have excellent math skills. This can cause some of the examples to become quite frustrating as your left wondering "why"? I do however like the difficulty of his examples, and they semi prepare you for the end of chapter problems. What I don't like is that there is no coherence of the examples-they are random. They don't follow any particular problem solving strategy. This results in relative difficulty in trying to solve the end of chapter problems. The text is written in a colloquial style and is relatively easy to read like previous reviewers have mentioned. The biggest problem I find is the lack of outside resources. There is no companion site or anything web related to help reinforce topics. The solutions manual only provides solution for 1 out of 6 problems-very, very, very inadequate in my opinion. There is mastering physics, but this is only used if your professor uses it.
So all in all this text is perfect for non physics majors, providing a roughly solid foundation of physics. One other thing that I forgot to mention is that the examples are kind of boring and uninsightful. This can cause one to lose interest relatively quickly.
So I felt I was getting a loose foundation of physics, and as a physics major this wasn't going to cut it. I needed a supplementary text so the search was on. After much research I found that it is generally confirmed that the textbook University Physics 12th ed. is the best. It is the subject of choice for many universities and is used by MIT. The numbers of pictures and diagrams filled with color is incredible. Calculus is integrated and explained effortlessly and the authors literally bend over backward to hand physics over on a silver platter if you're willing to put in the work. The examples are both complex and interesting and build confidence using the authors4 step problem solving approach to each example. Plus the supplementary options that are available for the book are extremely helpful such as the study guides. When I study this book, I am able to solve the end of chapter Giancoli problems a lot easier, and more accurately. It really is a great text and an excellent supplementary source for any seeking a deeper understanding in physics.

Physics Teacher
This is one of the better texts for an introductory Calculus-based physics course.While the center of any good science course should be laboratory experiments, this text is a good supplement, with clear writing and well explained examples.

Horrible book
This is probably one of the worst books i have had the displeasure of using. The book is written not for ease of understanding by the student; it seems as if this book is written for someone already well versed in physics. The Variables are never clearly defined, examples are very poor, are not explained thoroughly, and have little to do with the questions in the chapter review. I find it appalling that any school would mandate this book for physics.

Great book to learn from
As a student, I used this book for two semesters. Although the material is pretty tough at times, the book actually helped me learn concepts that I didn't fully understand in class, and even touch on things I hadn't learned. Compared to most other textbooks I've ever used, this was one of the more well written books. Topics covered are simple enough to learn easily, yet thorough enough to really understand some of the fundamentals of physics.

A very good, modern and didatic introductory physics textbook
The title says it all. It's one of the best and modern textbooks for introductory physics courses. The "Physics for Scientists & Engineers, with modern physics" is definitely a must-have! I strongly recommend it. ... Read more

Product Description
Like Bohr, Einstein and Heisenberg, Wolfgang Pauli was notonly a Nobel laureate and one of the creators of modernphysics, but also an eminent philosopher of modern science.This is the first book in English to include all his famousarticles on physics and epistemology. They wereactuallytranslated during Pauli's lifetime by R. Schlapp and are nowedited and annotated by Pauli's former assistant Ch. Enz.Pauli writes about the philosophical significance ofcomplementarity, about space,time and causality, symmetryand the exclusion principle, but also about therole of theunconscious in modern science. His famous article onKepleris included as well as many historical essays on Bohr,Ehrenfest,and Einstein as well as on the influence of theunconscious on scientific theories.The book addresses not only physicists, philosophersandhistorians of science, but also the general public. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Wonderfully Interesting
This book is a wonderfully interesting series of philosophical writings by one of the foremost quantum physicists.Wolfgang Pauli, one of the originators of the Copenhagen interpretation of quantum physics, provides incredibly interesting, if sometimes overly pedantic, philosophical perspectives on a number of issues.One of the more marginalized selections is concerning archetypes and reveals the strong connections that Pauli had with one of the foremost thinkers in the field of psychology: Carl Jung.I highly recommend this book for those interested in gaining greater perspective in the depth of thought that was involved in the development of perhaps the most original and groundbreaking theories of physics. ... Read more

Product Description
Designed for medical professionals who may struggle with making the leap to conceptual understanding and applying physics, the eighth edition continues to build transferable problem-solving skills. It includes a set of features such as Analyzing-Multiple-Concept Problems, Check Your Understanding, Concepts & Calculations, and Concepts at a Glance. This helps the reader to first identify the physics concepts, then associate the appropriate mathematical equations, and finally to work out an algebraic solution. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (42)

this book sucks
the condition of the book and the seller were amazing.i hate the book though.

Good book
Although I ordered this book as an old one, I have received itin a very good condition

awesome
the book came quickly and was in much better condition than i expected. I am very satisfied!

Book
A page was ripped. The book was a little old. It doesn't really fit with very condition.

Great
The book was in very good condition for an older version and it arrived in a timely manner. ... Read more

Product Description
Student Solutions Manual to accompany Fundamentals of Physics 9th Edition by Halliday ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Fast and Easy
Within 24 hours of ordering the solution to Fundamentals of Physics, I started receiving the PDF files in my emails. The seller worked with me to address any concerns right away. I would recommend this seller to anyone seeking this solution manual quickly.

nothing like i thought
very unhelpful...make sure you read the reviews before buying this...i have had it now two months and my teacher has yet to select a problem that it might help you with...needs to have more problems worked

Publisher should be sued for false titling
Should have read other comments more thoroughly."Student Solutions Manual" should have caveat reading "to very few select problems from the end of the chapter".How does Wiley get away with this???

Excellent
good solution manual...only few problems answers are available not like the other math answer books.

Not very useful
really not very helpful overall.Almost none of the problems at the end of the chapter are actually worked out (maybe 3 or 4 per chapter) and I assume more professors prefer to assign those that they know are not worked out.I returned this because it was basically useless in helping me understand problems and concepts for my homework. ... Read more

Product Description
Using an interactive learning strategy, this text provides a hands on introduction to the fundamentals of Physics. Built on the foundations of Halliday, Resnick, and Walker’s FUNDAMENTALS OF PHYSICS 6e, this text represents the latest methods in physics instruction. Incorporating new approaches based upon Physics Education Research (PER), this book is designed for courses that use computer-based laboratory tools, and promote Activity Based Physics in lectures, labs, and recitations. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Understanding Physics Solutions Manual
This is a good solutions manual; however, not all of the odd questions are in the manual only a FEW selected questions.

Not very helpful
As a senior I took AP Physics, and this was the text the teacher used. Not the text I used. The information is there, but the writing is not interesting at all. Also, other texts, such as Physics for Scientists and Engineers or Fundamentals of Physics, present more complete information than found in this book.
Practice problems in this book are also very week. In particular, problems difficulty is not given, so someone who wants to practice physics really has to look for a problem that matches the level of challenge they want in a problem.
If you must use this book, there isn't much choice. But if you can, find another text.

You get what you pay for
As a thrifty college student, I'm inclined to finding my books for the lowest price online and while I don't expect them to be new or anywhere close to perfect, a decent enough condition is expected especially when the book's status is "good". However, I found it a little disappointing when I opened my package to find my "good" book missing parts of the binding and that is was being held together with tape. While still functional for class and homework, an extra $5 might have been worth the peace of mind that it won't fall apart at any second.

When you purchase a product with a certain expectation and then you get a desilution
I have bought this item because the book does not have all the answers of the question.Everybody who studied physics know that a physics`s student needs to do a lot of exercises to understand and know what he did. I bought this solution manual thinking that it will have all or the majority of answers and explanation to those practice exercises, but first, the book was very expensive and then does not have the majority of answers, specially the even or even numbers of the exercises.I will like that the next time people who buy this product could know the real content and a good or significant rebate to the price of it.

Good but not what I expected
This student solutions manual do not havethe complete answers for all the problems in the text book. I bought it because I thought it had all the solutions to the problems that the text book did not had (even ones). It really just explain how to do five or seven problems in each chapter; some of the ones that have the solution in the text book. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (11)

good gift idea
Another book that was bought as a gift and I know it was much appreciated.

Good Book
The Manga Guide to Physics presents a simple, but quite effective, introduction to the topics of mechanics, such as Newton's Laws, and energy. The manga style lends itself quite well to the presentation of the various topics.

The book begins by discussing the three laws of motion: inertia, acceleration, and reaction. With the basic topics down, it moves on to more complex ideas, such as momentum and the transfer of energy. These ideas are all explained with copious examples and pictures to reinforce the concepts that are being taught. There is also a longer, more detailed explanation of each idea at the end of each chapter, to expand on what was said during the chapter.

There are few downsides to this book, as physics is best explained with lots of pictures and examples, but occasionally I found myself needing to reread sections due to the amount of information being presented.

Despite the differences from the traditional textbook, I highly recommend The Manga Guide to Physics to any beginner or veteran looking for an less complicated way to review the basics of physics. Overall, I believe Hideo Nitta and Keita Takatsu have created a very high quality guide that is successful at both teaching physics and being enjoyable to read.

Manga guide to...
The manga guide to... series is a great one so far. These books are a great way to get to learn such hard coledge level courses in a fast, easy, and fun way thanks to some cool manga and a professor from japan. Overall the book was very easy to follow and even at times very funny and made the process of learning more fun and enjoyable. I like to think of the fact that as a kid we were taught like this, so why can't those old ways work with such topics as physics? This isn't some sort of little kid comic the jokes and manga itself are for teens and up, and is meant to help out high schoolers or even college students. I really liked this book, and I am even going to try out some of the others, and would highly recommend any of these books to someone who wants to or needs to learn one of the topics of these books.

Learn Physics Manga style
Reviewed by Ken Rogers, GCPCUG Member

Should cartoon characters be smarter than their readers?Brilliantly mad scientists and charming absent-minded professors may be stock characters in the comics, but their intellects always seem more fantastic than realistic.A cartoon character with realistic scientific intellect - someone who might remind us of our high school physics teacher, or that lab partner who always seemed one step ahead of you - can too easily remind us of our own intellectual shortcomings, and spoil the casual fun that is at the heart of comics' appeal.

This absence of ordinary genius in comics is what makes Ryota and Megumi, the main characters in The Manga Guide to Physics, so remarkable.The latest in the delightful series of manga technical guides from TREND-PRO and No Starch Press, The Manga Guide to Physics uses a tutor-student relationship to explain complex scientific concepts with real-world examples.Ryota, the tutor, is a schoolboy science whiz who has to be the most unremarkable character I've ever seen in a manga comic.Clean-cut, dressed in a conservative suit and tie, ever polite and reserved - if manga characters were soft drinks, Megumi would be a glass of tepid water.Megumi, the frustrated student-athlete who pleads with Ryota to provide her with physics lessons, is only slightly more colorful - call her a decaffeinated, sugar-free soda.

Both tutor and student are ordinary, but the same cannot be said of their lessons.Make no mistake; The Manga Guide to Physics is a serious work of technical writing.If you don't find vector diagrams and algebraic equations inherently appealing, you'll find this book more than challenging at times.Yet Ryota explains the mysteries of Newton's three laws of motion with the ease of a newscaster reading from a teleprompter, and while Megumi clearly struggles at times she is able to master the material by book's end.

Watching these two unremarkable characters breeze through this remarkably difficult subject could easily be alienating - Ryota could seem aloof and condescending, Megumi annoyingly perky.Yet the relationship that develops between them makes for an appealing story.Ryota awkwardly approaches Megumi after her loss in a tennis match to Sayaka, her rival on the court as well as the classroom.Recognizing and respecting Ryota's knowledge, Megumi politely but forcefully insists that he become her tutor.Ryota feeds off Megumi's eagerness and launches into his fast-paced lessons with confidence.His respect for Megumi's curiosity prevents him from ever talking down to her, and his repeated use of sports analogies shows he understands how best to relate with his student.Megumi's appreciation for Ryota's knowledge and patience keeps her engaged in their lessons, and being the bold one she is the first to acknowledge their mutual attraction.An embarrassed Ryota at first angrily rebukes her observation, but Megumi convinces him to not feel threatened and enjoy their relationship.Ryota and Megumi may indeed be smarter than their readers, but their charming, genuine relationship provides a perfect complement to the technical information provided in the text.

And it bears repeating that The Manga Guide to Physics is a serious, weighty piece of technical writing - Physics for Dummies this is not .While it is certainly no substitute for a physics text, The Manga Guide to Physics is a wonderful introduction to the subject for manga fans with an interest in science.

Cute but too easy
My 15 year old daughter loved this book, and it took us as much as 4 days to read it through and through (we read it together). The pictures are lovely, and the comic strips are very very good. But in terms of education I don't feel this book was what we needed. It has lots of theoretical material (comments) which looked unnecessary here. Pictures and stories occupy about 1/3 of the book only. The rest was the comments. The entire book seemed too concise to me.
Anyway, we had a great time to brush up our physics in summer and have some fun. I am going to purchase other books from this series keeping in mind how short they are. ... Read more

Product Description
If you want top grades and thorough understanding of beginning physics, this powerful study tool is the best tutor you can have! It takes you step-by-step through the subject and gives you accompanying related problems with fully worked solutions. You also get hundreds of additional problems to solve on your own, working at your own speed. Famous for their clarity, wealth of illustrations and examples, and lack of dreary minutie, SchaumOs Outlines have sold more than 30 million copies worldwideNand this guide will show you why! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Better tutor than my professor
I had a very uninspired professor that was mad at life and refused to explain concepts clearly. He would yell at us alot. Anyway I bought this book to prepare myself for exams and engineering certifications that require you to know Modern Physics and related concepts. BIG HELP!

A Big Help in your Modern Physics Course
Physics 212 (Modern Physics) is a required course for Aerospace Engineering Students at KFUPM University in Saudi Arabia. I bought this book instead of Schaum's Outline of Modern Physics (ISBN 0070248303) as it was out of print when I needed to buy it. Only 107 out of 527 pages of this book, which I bought, covers the chapters related to modern physics. Therefore, it does not, to my way of thinking, worth to buy it if Schaum's Outline of Modern Physics (ISBN 0070248303) is on stock. However, if this book, which I did not buy, is out of print. Then I have got another talk.

Schaum's outline Beginning physics II: waves, electromagnetism, optics, and modern physics explains modern physics concepts very well indeed.More importantly, it solves problems clearly. Moreover, it helped me a lot in doing my homeworks problems quickly. Finally, it has a lot of solved problems of different ideas that I did not find in the textbook I used for this course, which was Modern Physics (ISBN 0030015472).

I strongly believe that you can make use of this book not only in your modern physics, but also in freshman physics courses as it covers topics such as waves and electromagnetism, which I had already studied in my freshman year physics courses. So, this book could be helpful for you inmore than two physics courses and, in that case, you will hit two birds with one stone if you buy this book. In addition, it is possible that you find Schaum's Outline of Modern Physics (ISBN 0070248303) to be not good. Then, in that event, you know the alternative: Make a beeline to this book.

(Dear readers: Please note that I have rated only the modern physics chapters of this book). ... Read more