Product Description
Never HIGHLIGHT a Book Again!Virtually all testable terms, concepts, persons, places, and events are included. Cram101 Textbook Outlines gives all of the outlines, highlights, notes for your textbook with optional online practice tests. Only Cram101 Out ... Read more

Product Description
Recent years have seen the appearance of several books bridging the gap between mathematics and physics; most are aimed at the graduate level and above. Symmetry in Mechanics: A Gentle, Modern Introduction is aimed at anyone who has observed that symmetry yields simplification and wants to know why.

The monograph was written with two goals in mind: to chip away at the language barrier between physicists and mathematicians and to link the abstract constructions of symplectic mechanics to concrete, explicitly calculated examples. The context is the two-body problem, i.e., the derivation of Kepler's Laws of planetary motion from Newton's laws of gravitation.

After a straightforward and elementary presentation of this derivation in the language of vector calculus, subsequent chapters slowly and carefully introduce symplectic manifolds, Hamiltonian flows, Lie group actions, Lie algebras, momentum maps and symplectic reduction, with many examples, illustrations and exercises. The work ends with the derivation it started with, but in the more sophisticated language of symplectic and differential geometry.

For the student, mathematician or physicist, this gentle introduction to mechanics via symplectic reduction will be a rewarding experience. The freestanding chapter on differential geometry will be a useful supplement to any first course on manifolds. The book contains a number of exercises with solutions, and is an excellent resource for self-study or classroom use at the undergraduate level. Requires only competency in multivariable calculus, linear algebra and introductory physics. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Great book, even for a chemist who doesn't speak fluent math
To calibrate my review, I am a PhD chemist, with an undergraduate background in physics and a minor's worth of mathematics. I have known for a long time that symmetry is the key to a lot of science, but only had an inkling what a Lie Group is, and how symmetry leads to conservation laws.

This book wasn't an easy haul, though I feel like Singer does a very good job being gentle with newbies. The subject matter is quite beautiful- mathematicians and physicists may come to this conclusion easily, but as a chemist, I find it surprising.

I'm out of my depth suggesting it for a physics or math student. For someone who has some interest in abstract mathematics, and a desire to understand how symmetry influences classical physics, it is a great book. Not an easy book. But not impossible, either.

Refreshingly different
There are two classes of books in mechanics: the extremely physical, which are intended to teach you how to solve problems but lack any mathematical rigour, and the mathematical ones, where the examples are generally one-line statements without any explanation. This book sits exactly in the middle of both: if you are a physicist (or mathematician for that matter) with a fair knowledge of classical mechanics and you understand the basics of Hamiltonian systems, but you want to expand your horizon with momentum maps and symplectic reduction, but you don't understand anything of the hardcore abstract books by mathematicians or you are afraid of them, this is where you should put your money.

Physicists usually simplify their equations by using symmetry in a rather ad hoc way; intuition tells you that a rotation around a certain axis does not change anything or that the system is invariant under translations, or that angular momentum is conserved in a certain direction. Symplectic reduction is the systematic study of these symmetries and how to simplify you equations with them. Don't expect to be shocked because most of the analyses can be carried out without knowing anything about symplectic reduction, but it can aid your life if you are working on more complicated systems, where your intuition does not help you very much (or if you just want to impress someone with your knowledge of mathematical mechanics).

The book does not go deeply into the material, but it explains the basics clearly (symplectic two-form, momentum maps, Lie derivative, reduction...) without being pedantically mathematical. Don't expect any proofs or general theorems; e.g. the author uses (dual) MATRIX Lie groups/algebras, which are intuitive for the physicist (just apply the matrices to your coordinate basis and that's it, quick and dirty) but not as general as the idea of coadjoint orbits of an abstract Lie algebra.

I have tried to go through the mathematics library on symplectic topology and symplectic reduction but have never come very far - and in the cases I thought I understood the concepts I found out that I could do absolutely nothing with it in practice, because I had never seen an actual calculation. After reading this book I must say that I have more confidence reading and understanding them. The book prepares you for more to come, which is exactly what it's aimed at. Instead of giving you the dry reality of modern mathematics wrapped in complete generality, it gives you the juicy extract of what it's all about, it lets you think about it, and use it in simple situations. If you want to go beyond this book, you'll have to have a firm knowledge of Lie groups, Lie algebras, and differential geometry, but for this book, you just need undergraduate physics and mathematics.

The book comes with lots of exercises and to some the answers are given at the back. It's a short and easy introduction to the uses of symmetry (reduction) in Hamiltonian mechanics, and it's good value for your money. I am happy to have it and I can only recommend it.

A nice introduction to modern methods
I think the previous review is a bit harsh, and that the book's intents are not what this reviewer expected. I don't think it was the author's intent to write a comprehensive treatise on the subject. The book simply aims at introducing undergraduate students to the use of symmetry in simplifying the analysis of classical mechanic problems, nothing more. If you want a comprehensive treatise, you probably want to read V.I. Arnols's "Mathematical methods in classical mechanics". If what you want is a simple introduction where all the steps are worked out in details, then this book is a good starting point, and I think this is what the author intended. At any rate, the cost ($$$) is quite reasonable.

Poorly written
This is one of the very few books which I returned for refund.
The subject is intrinsicly interesting, and there is a need for a serious introductory text addressing the subject of geometry and physics.This one badly falls short, - carelessly written, with numerous irrelevant asides.She seems even to fail to realize that there exist three distinct geometric solutions to the Kepler problem.The bound, elliptic case is only one.
This book has supposedly been written for high-undergraduate students or early-year graduate students.It serves neither adequately.

A welcome book
There are a number of books available on the "geometric" view of physics (Classical Mathematical Physics, by Thirring, The Geometry of Physics, by Frankel, and Foundations of Mechanics, by Abraham & Marsden). The size, level of sophistication and extensive background assumed by these books can be very intimidating. On the other hand, the subject "looks" beautiful, and the benefits of using geometric intuition are desirable to many people.

Singer's book stands class of its own in these respects. All the basics of the geometrical "machinery" are there, in a book that is only 224 pages in length. Chapter one starts with a standard derivation of the equations of the "two-body planetary motion" problem; subsequent chapters proceed to introduce the necessary modern geometrical and mathematical concepts (differential geometry). The final chapter then revisits the "planetary motion" problem using the modern concepts previously introduced. Excellent!

There are some misprints, but the author has a Web page of errata. The book has numerous exercises, with many solutions included. I find myself rereading parts of this book over and over.

Reader be warned; the concepts are new, and it does take work to internalize them. However, this is the most accessible book on the subject available, and also one of the most affordable. The author references many other books, for the reader who wants to go further in the mastery of this subject (one excellent book which is not mentioned, however, is "Differential Forms: A Complement to Vector Calculus", by Weintraub).Enjoy! ... Read more

Product Description
Quantum Mechanics: Classical Results, Modern Systems, and Visualized Examples is a comprehensive introduction to non-relativistic quantum mechanics for advanced undergraduate students in physics and related fields. It provides students with a strong conceptual background in the most important theoretical aspects of quantum mechanics, extensive experience with the mathematical tools required to solve problems, the opportunity to use quantum ideas to confront modern experimental realizations of quantum systems, and numerous visualizations of quantum concepts and phenomena. Changes from the First Edition include many new discussions of modern quantum systems (such as Bose-Einstein condensates, the quantum Hall effect, and wave packet revivals) all in the context of familiar textbook level examples. The book continues to emphasize the many connections to classical mechanics and wave physics to help students use their existing intuition to better learn new quantum concepts. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

A serious attempt at teaching quantum mechanics
I have been much impressed by Robinett's introduction to quantum mechanics. He seriously attempts to teach the principles of the subject, and does so with considerable effect. His quasi-derivation of the Schroedinger equation is notable.

I have used this twice in introductory quantum mechanics courses. Some students were vocal in their dislike of the book. However they seemed to have learned quite a bit from it. Given the adverse comments to be found about all other books in physics on Amazon the negative comments inspire contempt rather than respect. If Robinett errs, it is in attempting to teach Qm rather than in pounding formulae into students.

Not for the Undergrad!
Bought this book to assist me in the introductory level of Q.M. What a waste! Couldn't understand much of it and I already have a BS degree with over 2years of college math. This is defintely an intermediate to upper level Q.M book even though its said to be an undergrad. I wish that some of the people that give these reviews would mention the level their basing their opinion on. The reviews when I bought this book were very good but it must have been from graduates or such.

An interesting presentation of the subject
Robinett's book is a comprehensive is somewhat mathematical treatment of the fundamental aspects of this fascinating subject.

Among the things most pleasing about the book are:
1. A constant connection with classical physics principles;
2. An early introduction to and development of the wave packet and operators and a physical interpretation of Schrodinger's equation;
3. A comprehensive discussion of various QM models in both their mathematical and physical aspects: the infinite well and other 1-D potentials, SHO, scattering;
4. Two-D and Three-D QM and the development of the Hydrogen atom;
5. Development of Gravity and QM;
6. An abundance of examples, many based on experimental results for the student to try out.

The mathematics is clear, and unlike many other books, the author takes the trouble to present many of the intermediate steps. I should say, however, that there are quite a few TYPOS sprinkled throughout the text. They are only a minor distraction and if anything, finding and fixing them can be a useful learning experience! My criticsm would be that the sections on the physical and mathematical development of Spin is too short. Indeed, the Stern-Gerlach and associated gedanken experiments which are so fundamental to an understanding of the postulates of QM do not get much of a mention.

Having said this, the book is certainly a good introduction to the subject. It complements other traditional texts like French and Taylor quite well.

This Book Should Not Exist
We used this book in my undergrad quantum class, and not a single student ever had anything good to say about this book.The entire semester was a complete haze.Griffiths writes a beatiful intro QM text.

Very interesting but a bit on the esoteric side
This is only intro level quantum mechanics book that I have seen that really makes an attempt to get to the heart of the matter of quantum mechanics and its connections to classical physics.The notion of breakingthe subject down by dimensionality of the problems is certainly unique andcreative. The book covers a wide range of topics ranging from quantumgravity to chaos. Derivations are presented in a clear and readable way. Moreover, the problems are really fun and interesting.My ONLYreservation is that what *I* really like about the book, first timestudents would probably hate!However, for a course aimed at theoretical students in physics or in chemistry, this would be a hit. ... Read more

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Including 720 Solved Problems ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Simply Outstanding
This book is far superior, in every respect, to that atrocious scrapheap written by Marion-Thornton. Many new mathematical techniques are introduced here; however, more than enough supplementary problems are provided to illustrate their application.If one desires more practice/familiarity with the math alone, then an excellent supplement would be Spiegal's "Outline of Vector Calculus."That said, the book is complete and of itself; after going through Spiegel's book, one should be well-prepared for a graduate mechanics course that uses Goldstein's book.

Doubles as a cheap textbook and source of problems
This book is out of print, but if you can find it and you are a student of theoretical mechanics, it is very much worth it. Theoretical mechanics is a complex field, and incorporates a good deal of linear algebra, calculus, differential equations, and in some cases even some differential geometry. Thus you should have your statics, dynamics, and undergraduate mathematics complete before you even think about tackling this material. The explanations that come with the text are quite good and outperform any textbook with a triple digit price tag I have ever seen. If you are taking a course in this subject, it is an essential purchase. The contents of the outline are as follows:

Lagrangian Mechanics: Generalized coordinates; Hamilton Principle; Lagrange Equation; Symmetries & Conservation Laws;

Classical Integrable Problems: 1D motion; Mechanical analogies in physics;Two-body problem; Motion in central field & Kepler's problem; Virial theorem; Scattering;

Mechanics of Rigid Body: Rotational motion; Angular momentum; Inertia tensor;Euler Equations; Precession; Heavy Spinning Top;

Oscillations: Small oscillations: normal mode problem; Damping, Forced oscillations and Resonance;

Hamiltonian Mechanics: Canonical Variables & Hamiltonian; Hamilton Equations; Phase Space; Poisson Brackets; Liouville Theorem; Canonical Transformations; Action-angle variables;

Non-integrable systems and an Introduction to Chaos: KAM theorem;Lyapunov exponent; Poincare Maps; Stable and chaotic trajectories; ... Read more

Product Description
An outstanding volume in the McGraw-Hill series in pure and applied physics, Barger/ Olsson provides solid coverage of the principles of mechanics in a well-written, accessible style. Covering linear motion, energy conservation, Lagrange's Equations, Momentum Conservation and moving all the way through to Non-Linear Mechanics and Relativity, the text is comprehensive and appropriate for the two-semester course. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

Excellent and super-fast service
Hi: Thanks for your expeditious processing of my order. I received it well-within expected time-frame. Highly recommended !

Short but has some interesting examples
This book, although short, is a fairly good overview of classical mechanics, which emphasizes more recent developments in the theory, such as chaotic dynamical systems. The authors do however remain concrete in their treatment, with real-world examples permeating the text. The details behind the theory of classical mechanics are presented very quickly in the book, and this might make the book difficult to read for students first exposed to mechanics at this level.

Chapter one is an introduction to motion in one dimension. After a brief review of Newton's laws, the authors solve some neat problemsdealing with damping forces, one being the frictional force on a drag racer, and the other with aerodynamic drag on a parachute. They also treat the undamped and damped harmonic oscillator, and the discussion is very standard. The authors are careful to point out that some force laws are too complicated to be solved analytically, but that computing methods can be used to solve the cases that are not. Computational approaches are now the rule rather than the exception in problems in mechanics, and this trend will continue in the future.

After a short discussion of energy conservation, the authors introduce motion in three dimensions and give a fairly detailed overview of vector notation. Their approach to tensors though is kind of antiquated, for it motivates them via the outer product, which is reminiscent of the dyadic approach that is currently "out of fashion". The authors also discuss the simple pendulum, but do not of course introduce the elliptic curve solutions that accompany this problem. Such a treatment, however fascinating, would drive this book to a height that would make it inaccessible to the audience of students it addresses. Coupled harmonic oscillators are solved using the normal mode approach.

Lagrangian mechanics is introduced in chapter 3, but not from the standpoint of variational calculus at first. Instead the authors choose to present this formulation via generalized forces. They include a discussion of constraints, and give as an example the simple pendulum with a moving support. Only later do they give the Lagrangian formulation via variational calculus, and do so rather hurriedly. Hamilton's equations are derived, and it is shown (again briefly) how Legendre transformations enter into the formalism of Hamiltonian mechanics.

Conservation principles are then thought of as fundamental in the rest of the book, and the authors use momentum conservation to discuss elastic and inelastic collisions in chapter 4. Angular momentum conservation is then used in chapter 5 to discuss central forces and planetary motion. Kepler's laws are also discussed, and Rutherford scattering is discussed. All of the discussion is pretty standard and can be found in most textbooks on classical mechanics.

Rigid body mechanics makes its appearance in chapter 6, wherein the authors discuss the rotational equations of motion of many-particle systems and rigid bodies. A very brief discussion of gyroscopic mechanics is given, but the authors make up for this by explaining the motion of boomerangs. The discussion is fun to read and should satisfy the curious reader as to why a boomerang returns. And, after a discussion of how to calculate the moment of inertia, the authors give a neat introduction to the physics of billiards and the superball. The latter is a popular physics demonstration and the authors show how its motion differs from an ordinary smooth ball.

The difficult (and controversial) topic of accelerated coordinate systems is treated in chapter 7. The four famous "fictitious" forces are introduced, and to develop the reader's intution on these, the authors give a nice example dealing with the manufacture of telescope mirrors. The casting of the mirrors is a neat illustration of the famous Newtonian water pail experiment. The motion of the Foucault pendulum is also discussed briefly. Then after a discussion of principal axes and Euler's equations, the authors give another neat example, this time dealing with the motion of tennis rackets, which illustrates the motion of a rigid body with unequal principal moments of inertia. The physics of tops is then discussed, and in a manner which makes the underlying physics more intuitive for the reader. The authors make an attempt to understand the motion of the famous tippie-top, but don't really do so. The tippie-top is another popular demonstration in the classroom but its physics has eluded the best attempts, and this treatment is no exception. The flip times that are calculated are not in agreement at all with what is observed in the demonstration.

Chapter 8 is an overview of gravitational physics, and the authors show the effects of a body moving in a non-uniform gravitational field, with an example dealing with the tides. Interestingly, the authors attempt to introduce the general theory of relativity, and do so more at a level of elementary mathematics and arm-waving arguments, but the treatment is suitable at this level.The authors show the difference between the orbits predicted by general relativity and the Newtonian theory, i.e. the famous perihelion advance.

A brief overview of Newtonian cosmology is given in chapter 9, wherein the authors discuss the expansion of the universe and the cosmic redshift. After proving the virial theorem, they discuss the effects of dark matter on the rotations of spiral galaxies and groups of galaxies, which is currently a very hot topic in astrophysics.

The special theory of relativity is treated in chapter 10, and the discussion is very standard. Readers are introduced to relativistic mechanics and some of the counterintuitive physics of the theory.

The last chapter of the book is an introduction to non-linear dynamics and chaos. It is defined as sensitive dependence on initial conditions, although this is not a strong enough condition. The Duffing oscillator is offered as an example of chaotic behavior and the transition to chaos is studied as a function of the driving frequency. This brings up concepts from bifurcation theory, such as the idea of a strange attractor. Numerical analysis plays the dominant role in these theories.

Not good for the new-bee but a fair reference for the vet
This book made me violently angry for the first semester, the lagrangianis presented well, and the Foucault Pendulum is ok if it weren't for allthe errors (not glaring missing d/dt in a couple places, if you know thematerial you pick it out quickly).NOTICE: IF YOU KNOW THE MATERIAL!! Howis a new CM student supposed to do that!!!I did learn well because of thetorture of surviving my CM class, the problems sets are pretty neat I willsay, but vague at times and a HUGE array of difficulties, from "what's2+2?" to problems that made me nauseous, and produced intantaneousnarcolepsy. In hindsight I learned quite a bit and its a neat litle handbook for the Grad, but man its painful for the new student.I agree WHOLEHEARTIDLY that saying "HEY! this is a tensor" is ridiculous, amath appendix would do WONDERS, or having the Feynman lectures nearby aswell.I'd say with some better editing and some more appendecies it wouldbe a good book, beware though the book is TINY and the price is meaty.

Needs more examples
I had studied "Classical Dynamics" by Marion more than 25 years ago. At the time I found Marion to be a difficult leap from the relatively easy first courses. Most of the critism, I suspect, comes from hitting thecold water for the first time. I thought the authors did a good job ofexplaining the concepts I wanted to review. I do not know how I would havefelt if this were a first reading as my textbook 25 years ago. The onesuggestion I can make is a plea for more example problems worked in detail.Like most physics students, problem solving is the most difficult task tomaster and seeing the techniques used by the masters are not to beunderestimated. Having spent years looking for the one book from which allis clear on first reading this one does not qualify. But it is a goodbeginning if you choose to stay in the water.

This book has too many errors
Of all the physics books, I have seen and used, this has the most errors in it. And they arn't just typeo's, this book also has conceptual errors in it. This book also has "unique" and sometimes cryptic ways ofproving, and presenting concepts. This apparitly apeals to Professors whoalready know classical mechanics, but for the first time sudent it is quitetroublesome. In short if you want a book you can trust, and you can learnthe first time around from, don't choose this one. It has to be the worstphysics text I have had inflected on me yet at this level. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (19)

Excellent Text
A timeless introduction to the study of mechanics at the advanced undergraduate level.The multitude of thought provoking problems provide the user with the uncommon fortune to discover and develop problem solving methods not explicitly given in the text.This is not a "plug and chug" text but rather one that pushes the student to use a combination of previously learned and text given concepts to develop a foundation of applying appropriate mathematical tools to solve problems related to mechanics and other disciplines, a text that is designed to expose the student to the fascinating world of analytical applied mathematics.

Difficult, but enlightening
I used Symon's book in the late 70's when I learned mechanics. At the time the only other intermediate machanics book really in use was by Jerry Marion. Marion died shortly afterwards and the book was updated by another author. From the reviews I've read it appears the update was very poor. This leaves Symon's book.

For me, Symon's book is an absolute classic for learning mechanics. The sequence of topics progresses from single particle mechanics, system of particles, rigid bodies, gravitation, rotating cooridinate systems, continuum mechanics, Lagrange's equations, rotational dynamics, theory of small vibrations, and, finally, special relativity. The sequence is logical and one chapter leads to another. The chapter on small vibrations is basically an introduction to classical field theory -- a beginner's step to quantum field theory.

My one complaint about Symon, which Marion's old book covered in great detail, is the omission of calculus of variations and its use in deriving Lagrange's equations. Having said that, however, Symon's approach is a more intuitive and physically-based approach. This is what is needed when you are first learning the subject. If you use Symon's book to learn mechanics, go to the library and check out Marion's old mechanics book and use it as a reference to learn the basics of calculus of variations and an alternate derivation of Lagrange's equations. If you are going to graduate school for physics, then you *must* know the other derivation. It is fundamental in physics.

My final comment is on the problems. Symon contains 100's of problems. The answers to all the odd numbered problems are given at the end of the book. I remember working through most, if not all, the odd numbered problems later on during graduate school. It was *very* nice to have the solutions. The problems range from very easy "one, two, three" type of problems, to long and difficult problems. To expect any thing else from a physics text book is totally unrealistic. Get used to it. In graduate school -- all the problems are long and tedious.

Great for intermediates, not for a first Mechanics course
This is a good book, but not great.For after your first mechanics course, not before (but after your first mechanics course you probably use Goldstein).

I think it's a serious criticism when a theorist complains that a book is too mathematical.It's not that it's too mathematical in the problems assigned, my criticism is in the textual commentary.These are physical processes going on, the name of the book is Mechanics.A discussion of what is physically going on is essential to any beginner in the subject.I remember when I first used the book, I had no idea what was actually being illustrated physically (I was good at math and could just follow the arguments like they were non-physical, like it was a pure math problem).It's still OK and one should not be afraid if one has it in a first semester mechanics class, I just think there are better options (Marion and Thornton is not, little easy, but good at saying what's going on).

I think this would be a great intermediate book for second semester mechanics.I personally believe an introductory book should rely more on discussing what's physically going on and all books thereafter should be heavily mathematical, because math is power.But physicists need to know what is being described, and this book is thus good if you are struggling in Goldstein, but not so great in a first course.

Good and organized text
Here in Brazil Symon's book is the standard for every undergraduate course in mechanics. And for a good reason. It has the most lucid and organized text, a lot of details and a lot of subject-matter (even mechanics of continuous media, which is rarely treated in courses). On the whole, the book is great. It takes care of every important step in the derivations, but does not do everything, so you must read it with paper and pencil to do intermediate steps. But that is the right way. One does not learn mechanics, or any other part of theoretical physics, if one does not follow the course of the mathematics in his own head. Symon just leaves us the easier steps, and in such a way to be, at the same time, a good way of learning. The exercises range from simple applications to very challenging (as in most books), and in many ways supplement text material. You must not be discouraged if you cannot succeed in solving many - as I couldn't. Just reading the text makes you understand this beautiful branch of human culture called mechanics. Goldstein's classic work, the basis for today's graduate school's teaching on mechanics, is much more understandable after Symon - as many point out, even Goldstein himself!

Dense and outdated
As a teaching tool, this textbook is lacking.In the preface the author states that the problems are too difficult to be solved using information contained in the book, which results in much frustration for a student attempting to understand the material.Few examples are worked out, and those that are present are often overly simplistic and inapplicable to the problems included in the book.The text emphasizes a mathematical derivation approach to mechanics without sufficient conceptual background, often merely noting "We can see ..." before making large conceptual jumps.

These issues result in trouble planning courses.Even with students working in groups, a single problem will often take over three hours of solid work to complete, and some will take days.Assigning more than one or two problems per class period would be an excessive amount of work for an undergraduate.This means that often the students will only understand how to solve the assigned problems, but not understand the concepts behind them as they have not been able to see more applications.This situation is exacerbated by the lack of examples in the text.

Finally the book is outdated.In the 35 years since the book has been last updated, there have been vast improvements in technology.The text refers to a problem as being difficult to solve using even large "automated computing machines", when it can now be worked with a sufficiently advanced graphing calculator.While reliance upon technology is not desired, neither is the total lack of knowledge of its applications.The book also often refers to the student as "he" or other masculine terms, which may be offsetting to female students.Using contemporary examples or situations in problems would make the text more interesting for students.

As a reference book, this text is more useful, but again it is over 35 years old.Classical mechanics may not change much with time, but in using this text one is running the risk of quoting outdated material and reasoning.Regardless of its age, the book is well organized for citing, and has a good bibliography.

In conjunction with another textbook to better explain concepts, Symon could have a place in current undergraduate courses.If used by itself, this textbook will spawn frustration and dislike in students instead of understanding and familiarity.
... Read more

Product Description
Classical Mechanics helps students learn to use calculus to solve problems in classical mechanics. Chapter 1 is a brief refresher in BASIC and applies it to solving the harmonic oscillator. Problems are arranged by section: those involving computers are noted with a star. Worked examples are included for each chapter. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Well written book about classical mechanics
I have this book and it has good information and examples about classical mechanics. It starts out with a little primer about writing your own programs and graphs of dynamical systems.It moves on into Newton's laws, harmonic oscillators, rigid systems, and finally the Lagragian-Hamiltonian stuff. Well worth looking at if your taking a class in Mechanics or are interested in mechanical systems.

Davis has an easy to learn from style!
I am about to embark on a semester of classical mechanics. I was looking for books on it and the college catalogue suggested the text would be at the level of Davis. I didn't know who in the world Davis was. I started looking at titles on Amazon and lo and behold I found him. Douglas A. Davis that his. His text was dated at 1986 which is relatively recent for some of the Mechanics books out there (although a few have 1994&95 editions). Davis' first edition was what I bought. I don't know if he has another one. Although I wish Amazon had this book in common stock and sold it reasonably (I bought it at Barnes&Nobles) I still found a copy.

Ok Ok about the book

Well this book looked like it was pretty well written, some of the material was dated like the front chapter on BASIC (you could still use it I guess) or Pascal(ditto). It is fairly simple to write little programs describing simple dynamics. I've seen it done more recently with Java and C--.(This would be good for a 2 or 3 edition). If you want to solve hard hitting stuff numerically for mechanics you would be better off with Maple or Mathematica, or MathCAD (again a *hint* for later editions).Chapters 2,3,5,6,7,9,11. pack the most info as they progress into rigid body problems and the Lagragian Hamiltonians eqs. also conservation and harmonics and orbital-Keplerian probls. I espically liked that Davis included a chapter on Statics as this was something I taken before but was rusty on. Chpt 4 was review as was parts of 2,5, and 6 (read if you need it).Overall a pretty decent book with a nice friendly tone in the writing. I will probably keep this one for reference or review. ... Read more

Product Description
Master introductory mechanics with ANALYTICAL MECHANICS! Direct and practical, this physics text is designed to help you grasp the challenging concepts of physics. Specific cases are included to help you master theoretical material. Numerous worked examples found throughout increase your problem-solving skills and prepare you to succeed on tests. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (21)

Analytical Mechanics 7th Edition
Book recieved in near perfect condition within days. Extremely quick delivery
and quick inquiry response time. Also included supplemental materials.
Great person to do business with.

Too much buck for too little bang!
This book covers the bare minimum for an upper-division course on classical mechanics.Its not much different from other standard texts at this level, however for its price it should come with a personal tutor and a complimentary spa treatment.My biggest beef with this book is that for more than twice the cost (about 3x's if you go by the original price tag of $232.95) of a book like Taylor's it covers almost half as many topics (however I concede that the binding is quite poor on Taylor's book).Its sad that this text stops at Langrangian mechanics and doesn't even offer even a section in that chapter (let alone a separate chapter) on Hamiltonian mechanics.

Honest seller.
This seller is an honest person. I would buy from them again with no worries.
I misunderstood the product I was ordering and he promptly returned my money.

Not a good book
This book seems to skip steps that would have help the reader understand the material better. I had to use another book as a reference which made everything make more sense.

It is also very unorganized because of the squeezing of everything into this small sized book. Sections can start right at the bottom of the page. Diagrams and examples are often not on the same page making you flip the pages back and forth 200 times.

This book is a no no for beginners as it is very uncomfortable to read and same goes for the information in it, just throwing stuff at you as ifyou knew it already.

Bad book=headache

Excellent
This is a very good undergrad. book on mechanics. Pretty standard in its coverage: newton's laws, oscillating systems, rigid bodies, lagrangian dynamics. The problems are interesting and doable. The notation remains reasonable at this level (better than marion). The section on rigid body motion is better than most books although the section on lagrangian dynamics is less than average (relative to marion, which is great on this LD). There is a good deal of sample problems provided, which is always helpful. Be prepared to solve ODEs, expand functions and work in various coordinate systems. I would put this book in the 80th percentile of the ten or so books that I have studied on this topic. ... Read more

Product Description
For comprehensive--and comprehensible--coverage of both theory and real-world applications, you can't find a better study guide than Schaum's Outline of Continuum Mechanics. It gives you everything you need to get ready for tests and earn better grades! You get plenty of worked problems--solved for you step by step--along with hundreds of practice problems. From the mathematical foundations to fluid mechanics and viscoelasticity, this guide covers all the fundamentals--plus it shows you how theory is applied. This is the study guide to choose if you want to ace continuum mechanics! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

Excellent course outline
This outline was excellent.The chapters summarize what we went over in class.The worked problems allowed for more practice actually using the theory.

Good complement to textbooks
This is a good source for supplemental problems and alternate explanations of some of the basic results and concepts in continuum mechanics.I typically recommend it to my students.Information/$ ratio is very high.

Nice condensed book
This is a great book to support all the information you can get in a single continuum mechanics class. It could be nice if it has a more detailed treatment of the mohr's circle because of his power in 2D and an approach to the analysis of shells and plates.
Best regards and enjoy it!

a good source for a "quick review"
Like most other Schaum's series, the theory sections are condensed, which makes the part more like a compendium of continuum mechanics. The theoretical sections are thus good for a quick review of the material but not a good resource for "learning" the material. The biggest advantage of the book is that it provides an inexpensive summary of continuum mechanics.

The downside of the book is that the solved problems are not similar to the type of problems one confronts in a typical continuum course. In most cases several problems (statement together with the solution) are presented in a single page, which shows that each problem has been solved in 1-5 lines. I personally don't like most of the problems presented here; however, the problems could be useful for warming up.

A better book is "Introduction to the Mechanics of a Continuous Medium" by Malvern, which is the best I've seen in explaining the intricacies of the theory. Another good complement is Holzapfel's "Nonlinear Solid Mechanics: A Continuum Approach for Engineering", which contains both the theory AND some solved sample problems.

better than most professors, but...
Better than most professors, but concepts are still difficult to grasp.Have you ever had one of those tennis ball machines go crazy at you?That is how continuum mechanics is, you constantly have things hurled in your direction and you don't know how to stop them.The concepts are very difficult to understand since I'm sure many professors have a hard time understanding the course material itself.The Schaum's outline helps very much in the sense that it slows down the hurling of material and it explains where many equations are derived from.This book stands out above the rest of continuum mechanics books in the sense that it offers solved problems, which is rare for such a theoretical class. ... Read more

Product Description
The main purpose of the book is to acquaint mathematicians, physicists and engineers with classical mechanics as a whole, in both its traditional and its contemporary aspects. As such, it describes the fundamental principles, problems, and methods of classical mechanics, with the emphasis firmly laid on the working apparatus, rather than the physical foundations or applications. Chapters cover the n-body problem, symmetry groups of mechanical systems and the corresponding conservation laws, the problem of the integrability of the equations of motion, the theory of oscillations and perturbation theory. ... Read more

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This introduction to the history of science in the seventeenth century examines the so-called 'scientific revolution' in terms of the interplay between two major themes. The Platonic-Pythagorean tradition looked on nature in geometric terms with the conviction that the cosmos was constructed according to the principles of mathematical order, while the mechanical philosophy conceived of nature as a huge machine and sought to explain the hidden mechanisms behind phenomena. Pursuing different goals, these two movements of thought tended to conflict with each other, and more than the obviously mathematical sciences were affected - the influence spread as far as chemistry and the life sciences. As this book demonstrates, the full fruition of the scientific revolution required a resolution of the tension between the two dominant trends. ... Read more

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Another review
First, I want to abandon any pretentions of expertise in the history of ideas or science. With that caveat in mind, or out of mind, I agree with one of the other posters who said "the historiography is dated." Although the author defends himself against the use of "social and political" currents, --- I find that the latter criticism is extrensic to the authors stated purpose. However, As a history of ideas this work fails for me.

First, the author assumes some psuedo- hegalian, "spirit" without naming it as such, as a way of interpreting the development of ideas in the disclipines (chemistry, physics, biology) across time. So, why does author X, (insert Pascal if you like and his tube experiments), fail to realize Y, since he lacked Z (which by the way was not discovered until the 19th century).Wellthe "facts" of science only require the puzzling arrangment of certain variables which are always already discovered in advance.I wonder how the author would respond to this criticism, well he wouldn't read it, but still I wonder with deep awe and all of the psychical imagination of my neoplatonic spirit of the Renaissance.

The freedom of thought!
Classical antiquity and the Greek and Roman worlds are the source of and foundation of modern science. Without Aristotle, Pythagoras, Democritus, Ptolemy, Vitruvius, Archimedes, Ptolemy and many others we would not have Newton, Malpighi, Leibniz, Kepler, Galileo, Descartes, Copernico or Einstein.

In this sense this book is a very interesting journey through the development of the Modern Science, and its countless obstacles to surmount with the Status Quo of different ages and historical moments

Albert Einstein stated once "The science without religion is cripple but the religion without science is blind."

Totally recommended.

A staple of university history of Science courses
Good introduction to the history of early modern science. Historiographically a little dated and therefore lacking in the thorough treatment of the broader social and political origins of science in this time period. Still, it is a classic.

Crystal clear style, illuminating depth on the scientific process
There are several aspects of this book that render it superior but the one aspect which stands out is manner in which the author presents the reasoning behind the development of a revolutionary scientific idea from the perspective of the originator of the idea, and the process by which the originator used developing philosophical trends, and scientific methods to fully realize a new idea despite the mental entanglements of centuries-old "factual" dogma or presuppositions about natural law.Beautifully presented and fully relevant diagrams as well.The first chapter is the clearest description I've ever read of the rationale behind the development of Kepler's Laws.

Great introduction to the 17th century scientific revolution
This book really is a great introduction to the scientific revolution of the 17th century. It's part of a series of books called "History of Science Series" and is dedicated to bringing the history of science to a wider audience. It presents the general reader with an accurate, short narrative and analysis of the scientific revolution of the 17th century. Unlike other books on this subject it does not require the reader to be familiar with a lot of technical background knowledge.

Two major themes dominated the period covered in the book; the Platonic-Pythagorean tradition, which looked on nature in geometric terms, and the mechanical philosophy, which conceived of nature as a huge machine and sought to explain the hidden mechanisms behind phenomena. These themes run through the various chapters of the book. Starting out in the first chapter with the copernican revolution in astronomy (the heliocentric theory) it shows how two men, Kepler and Galileo, reformed the theory and opened up new questions for the comming century. The following chapters cover the various sciences such as mechanics, chemistry and biology. After an interluding chapter covering the organization of the scientific enterprise (showing that universities were not always the principal centers of scientific research) it ends with two chapters in which the two themes mentioned above are drawn together and ultimately lead to the discovery of Newton's laws, solving major problems opened up at the beginning of the century.

I had to read this book as part of a course at the university where I study. I enjoyed the book (and the course) a lot (which I don't say verry often) even though it doesn't have anything to do the primary subject of my study, business information technology. If you're at all 'science minded' this book is a must. You wont regret purchasing it. ... Read more

Product Description
The main goal of this book is to present principles of classical mechanics using case studies involving human movement. The book assumes a background in calculus and physics. Vector algebra and vector differentiation are introduced in the text and are used to describe the motion of objects. Advanced topics such as three-dimensional motion mechanics are treated in some depth. Whenever possible, the analysis is also presented graphically, by using diagrams and software-created sequences of human movement in an athletic event or a dance performance. Each chapter contains illustrative examples and problem sets.

It can be used for as a text for undergraduate biomedical engineering students in their core course in mechanics. It can also be an used as a text for a graduate course in sports biomechanics, and as a supplement for general engineering statics and dynamics courses. In addition, the book will be of interest to orthopaedic surgeons, physical therapists and graduate students in sports medicine.

"Human Body Dynamics is a remarkable book. A concise, comprehensive, well-written and well illustrated first chapter gives a necessary introduction to the anatomy of the human body. In the following chapters human body dynamics is explored using the principles of classical mechanics. The concluding chapter deals with the methods of three-dimensional mechanics. With these powerful tools, a myriad of very interesting problems are solved. This, I would say is the dessert of the feast."H. Bülent Atabek, Professor Emeritus of Biomedical Engineering, The Catholic University of America.

"This book represents a very ambitious undertaking of providing, in a single volume, a comprehensive exposition of the kinematics and dynamics governing the motion of the human body as well as a complete course of general mechanics. The author has been remarkably successful in achieving both objectives. He has produced a very accessible text without sacrificing the accuracy of arguments and avoiding undue simplifications of the problems. The book should prove to be a great value to the practitioners in orthopedics, sports medicine and bioengineering research. University students interested in careers in medicine or bioengineering may find it an interesting alternative to the standard courses in mechanics."Maciej P. Bieniek, Renwick Professor Emeritus of Engineering Mechanics, Columbia University.

"The distinguishing feature of this book is that the development of the fundamentals of classical mechanics, which govern the biological applications, is so careful and precise, despite its compactness. This book will be especially appealing to students of human body motion who are seriously interested in understanding the laws which determine that motion. It most certainly should be owned and studied by all instructors of courses in biomechanics."Frank L. DiMaggio, Carleton Professor of Civil Engineering, Columbia University. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Really Biomechanics and a Good Buy
A very good presentation of the knowledge of engineering mechanics applied to human motion. The first chapter provides a necessary and sufficient outline of the human system and the related studies. After that, basic engineering mechanics theories are discussed with elaborations and examples zeroing on human body motions. A candidate for a textbook for undergraduate course in biomechanics, and a book to be owned by engineering mechanics instructors. ... Read more

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The Mechanics and Thermodynamics of Continua presents a unified treatment of continuum mechanics and thermodynamics that emphasizes the universal status of the basic balances and the entropy imbalance. These laws are viewed as fundamental building blocks on which to frame theories of material behavior. As a valuable reference source, this book presents a detailed and complete treatment of continuum mechanics and thermodynamics for graduates and advanced undergraduates in engineering, physics, and mathematics. The chapters on plasticity discuss the standard isotropic theories and, in addition, crystal plasticity and gradient plasticity. ... Read more

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A really useful handbook for both mathematicians and engineers
Covers most fundamentals of continuum mechanics which is key to FEM, FVM et al. I suggest it can be used as a textbook of graduate level classes. This book covers all contents in previous book (Gurtin 1981) with extension to thermodynamics and entropy/free energy imbalance analysis. Good price compared to previous book too (100 vs. 120-180 of Gurtin 1981, less than 300 pages). Strongly recommend it. I would be happy to listen to your comments. ... Read more

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Providing a textbook introduction to the formalism, foundations and applications of quantum mechanics, Part I covers the basic material necessary to understand the transition from classical to wave mechanics. The Weyl quantization is presented in Part II, along with the postulates of quantum mechanics. Part III is devoted to advances in quantum physics. Intended for use in beginning graduate and advanced undergraduate courses, the volume is self-contained and includes problems to enhance reading comprehension. ... Read more

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This book offers a broad overview of the potential of continuum mechanics to describe a wide range of macroscopic phenomena in real-world problems. Building on the fundamentals presented in the authors’ previous book, Continuum Mechanics using Mathematica®, this new work explores interesting models of continuum mechanics, with an emphasis on exploring the flexibility of their applications in a wide variety of fields.Specific topics, which have been chosen to show the power of continuum mechanics to characterize the experimental behavior of real phenomena, include:* various aspects of nonlinear elasticity, including equilibrium equations and their variational formulation, nonlinear constitutive equations, existence and uniqueness theorems of Van Buren and Stoppelli, and Signorini's method with some extensions to live loads and acceleration waves* continua with directors* a model of a continuum with a nonmaterial moving interface* mixture theory: The Gibbs Rule in a binary mixture* interaction between electric or magnetic fields with matter* micromagnetism* continua in special relativity and relativistic interactions between matter and electromagnetic fieldsAppendices are included to provide background information on topics such as surface geometry, first-order PDEs, and weak solutions to models. Mathematica® notebooks also accompanying the text are available for download at http://www.birkhauser.com/978-0-8176-4869-5.Aimed at advanced graduate students, applied mathematicians, mathematical physicists, and engineers, the work will be an excellent self-study reference or supplementary textbook in graduate-level courses focusing on advanced topics and research trends in continuum mechanics. ... Read more

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Illustrates basic equations and strategies used to analyze fluid dynamics, mechanisms, and behavior, and offers solutions to fluid flow dilemmas encountered in common engineering applications. ... Read more

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Great Text
This book is perfect for a graduate level fluid mechanics text book.It covers both inviscid and viscous flow.Currie proves the equations with a great level of accuracy.This book is an ideal companion to study for a qualifying exam.This is probably the most thorough graduate level text on fluid mechanics.Currie takes the time to prove everything very accurately. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (2)

nonlinear mechanics
A good introduction to nonlinear phenomena. The examples shown in the text present a wide selection from different areas of knowledge. This volume can be accesible to engineering and science students, but also can be a vauable source of information for graduate courses on dynamical systems.Theoretical Mechanics of Particles and Continua

Very in-depth
This book analyzes very complicated systems concisely, which I presume is why it is a supplement. Get this book if you're interested in the various solutions to certain complex systems and are not afraid of advanced mathematics. ... Read more