Modern Classical Physics
by Kip S. Thorne, Roger D. Blandford · first published 2017
67% recommend33% neutral
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You might be interested in Kip Thorne (of Gravitation fame) and Roger Blandford's book Modern Classical Physics, which is designed to cover the elements of non-quantum physics that are generally ignored in the first year PhD curriculum. Part headers: statistical physics; optics; elasticity; fluid dynamics; plasma…
on “So You Want to Learn Physics” ↗…to read over to prepare you for more advanced QFT texts. The first chapter is especially good as a history of the development of particle physics. 12. Quantum Field Theory in a Nutshell by Zee. 13. Modern Classical Physics by Thorne & Blandford. This is a tour de force. It's an enormous book but it really touches on everything that is left out by the above books. It covers optics, fluid dynamics, statistical physics,…
on “Ask HN: How to self-study physics?” ↗…the rare cases where the worse meaning of von Neumann’s oft-abused quote is in force. If you like the geometric viewpoint proselytized in the earlier parts of MTW before it gets to GR proper, try also Modern Classical Physics by Thorne and Blandford, which is that in doorstopper form (an early version[2] is available online though not advertised). [1] https://www.ihes.fr/~gromov/expository/34/ [2] http://www.pmaweb.caltech.edu/Courses/ph136/yr2012/
on “Ask HN: Which books do you consider real gems in your field of work/study?” ↗…invariant representations. (I highly recommend the first edition over the second edition, the second edition was a massive downgrade.) Kip Thorne was also heavily influenced by this geometric approach. Modern Classical Physics by Thorne & Blandford uses a frame invariant, geometric approach throughout, which (imo) makes for much simpler and more intuitive representations. It allows you to separate out the internal physics…
on “What is a manifold?” ↗Modern Classical Physics is a great book - I've recently started working through it (just about to move on to chapter 2). I'd be interested in chatting about it with others/cross-checking solutions. Anyone who's interested, drop…
on “Ask HN: Physicists of HN, what are you working on these days?” ↗…alive by developing physics based Unity assets (nbodyphysics.com) and supporting a package for GR on github (grtensor). I still buy WAY too many physics books. Current aspiration is to work through "Modern Classical Physics" Thorne/Blandford.
on “Ask HN: Physicists of HN, what are you working on these days?” ↗For those who would like a print version, this manuscript eventually got published as Modern Classical Physics https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691159027/mo...
on “Applications of Classical Physics” ↗