Dimensional analysis for quantum gravity
Binary Stars
hare and lynx populations
The Professor never
really seemed to care whether we
figured out the right answer to a problem.
He preferred
our wild, desperate guesses to silence, and
he was even more delighted with those guesses led to new problems that
took us
beyond the original one.
He had a
special feeling for what he called the
"correct miscalculation," for he believed that mistakes were often as
revealing as
the right answers.
This gave us
confidence even when our best efforts came
to nothing.
“…
it was not clear to me as a young student that access to a more
profound
knowledge of the more basic principles of physics depends on the most
intricate
mathematical methods. This dawned
on me only gradually after years of independent scientific work."
---
Albert Einstein
Intuition:
being able
to see the final point of a given path in complete obscurity, chosen
essentially
through the foundation of the experience of the individual.
- Ivan Pavlov
Developing
one's
intuition is a straightforward task -- it is a matter of further study
of the
most diverse games (especially the classics).
-- Genna Sosonko, chess grandmaster
Physical Sciences
Colloquium Series
Text: Introduction
to
Classical
Mechanics, by
David Morin.
author's
web
page
See the
syllabus for more detailed information.
This is the first semester in which you really apply the mathematics you have learned, and in which really begin to discover some of the more sophisticated concepts in physics. Your first taste of this was in PS 303 - Modern Physics, and now your "physical education" begins in earnest.
We will cover:
Fundamentals of mechanics, oscillatory
motion, systems of particles, varying mass, motion under central
forces,
motion in three dimensions, gyroscopic motion, generalized coordinates,
normal coordinates, Lagrangian and Hamiltonian formulations.
Prerequisites: MA 345 (Differential
Equations
and Matrix Methods), ES 204 (Dynamics), PS 219 (Physics III).
Corequisites: PS 303 (Modern Physics)
Other textbooks in the ERAU library
Classical
mechanics, by
Kibble, QA 805 .K5 1986
An
introduction to mechanics, by Daniel Kleppner and Robert J.
Kolenkow; QA 805
.K62
Lectures on
Physics,
by Richard Feynman - a Nobel Prize winner deeply explains the why of
physics.
Mechanics,
by
Keith
Symon
-
QC 125 .S98 1971 - another
text
at about the same level as Morin
Classical Mechanics,
by Herbert Goldstein - QA 805 .G6 1980 - a graduate-level text for those who wish more
detail.
SCHEDULE
|
Week |
Topics |
Chapters in Morin |
|
1-3 |
Newton’s
laws
&
conservation
laws |
1,
3,
5 |
|
6-7 |
Linear
(&
coupled)
oscillations |
4 |
|
11-12 |
Central
force
motion |
7 |
|
|
Final Exam – Tue Dec 14 - 08:00 - 10:00 |
Comprehensive |
Problem Set #1 due Wed 8 Sep Morin: 1.1, 1.2, 1.4, 1.9, 1.12, 1.18, 3.2
Reynolds: 4, 5, 7
Problem Set #2 due Wed 15 Sep Morin: 3.8, 3.11, 3.26, 3.40, 3.57, 5.3, 5.9
Reynolds: 6, 8, 19
Extra credit: Morin 5.10 (Newton’s
shell thm)
Problem Set #3 due Fri 24 Sep Morin: 5.21, 5.39, 5.55
Reynolds: 9, 11, 18, 23, 27
Extra
credit: Morin 5.17, Reynolds 24
Problem Set #4
due
Wed 6 Oct Morin:
4.2,
4.13,
4.16,
4.23(a)
Reynolds:
32,
33,
34,
55
Extra
credit: Morin 4.23(b)
Problem Set #5
due Wed 13 Oct
Morin: 4.6, 4.26
Reynolds:
29,
30,
36
Jordan
& Smith: 1. (i)-(iii), 11, 15
Problem Set #6
due Wed 20 Oct
Reynolds: 31, 35, 37, 49, 50, 51
Problem Set #7
due
Fri 29 Oct
Morin: 6.1, 6.8, 6.20
Reynolds:
39, 52, 53, 54
Extra Credit: Morin
6.7
Problem Set #8
due Mon 8 Nov
Reynolds: 41, 45, 46, 47, 48
Extra Credit:
Reynolds 40, 42, 44
Problem Set #9
due Mon 15 Nov
Morin:
7.1,
7.2,
7.3,
7.11, 7.12,
7.16
Extra Credit:
Morin 7.5, 7.13
Problem Set #10
due Mon 22 Nov
Morin: 7.10
Reynolds: 56, 57, 58
Problem Set #11 due Fri 3 Dec Morin: 10.2, 10.3, 10.7, 10.12(a), 10.14,
10.18, 10.19, 10.20
Extra Credit: Morin 10.29, 10.31
Vito
Volterra
(1860-1940), mathematician interested in integral
equations
and predator-prey models.
Info concerning the Lotka-Volterra
model. Some other models of populations can be found here
and here.
Jocopo Riccati, physicist and mathematician who worked on nonlinear differential equations.
Jacob Bernoulli (1645-1705), first of the great Bernoulli family to study mathematics and astronomy.
Robert
Carpick, contemporary physicist who researches tribology, the study
of
friction.
Available
at the Jack R. Hunt Library are the following items:
Lectures on
Physics,
by Richard Feynman - a Nobel Prize winner deeply explains the why of
physics.
Mechanics,
by
Keith
Symon
-
another
text
at
about
the
same
level as Marion.
Classical Mechanics,
by Herbert Goldstein - a graduate-level text for those who wish more
detail.
Intermediate
An Introduction to Mechanics, by Kleppner and Kolenkow QA 805 .K62
(The following items are suggested for
my Physics I course. They can be, however, useful for you if you
feel
that you need some review. Do not hesitate to read through them,
if only to realize how far you have come in two years!)
Understanding
Physics, by Isaac Asimov - a great science fiction writer
explains
physics.
Cartoon Guide
to Physics, by Huffman - physical principles in a visual
format.