Thinking Physics
by Lewis C. Epstein, Paul G. Hewitt · first published 1979
67% recommend33% neutral
Why HN recommends it
Conceptual physics puzzles that ask readers to reason through a question before turning the page, with sharp everyday examples like sailing upwind; suited to curious learners, parents with kids, and puzzle fans.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
Lewis Carroll Epstein explains deep ideas in physics in an easy-to-understand way. Thinking Physics is a perfect beginner's guide to an amazingly wide range of physics-related questions. The book targets topics that science teachers and students spend time wondering about, like wing lift. Epstein elucidates the familiar but misunderstood — such as how tides work — along with more obscure but fascinating phenomena like the "Bernoulli sub" and the "artificial aurora" created by hydrogen bombs. Broken into many short sections and peppered with Epstein's own playful hand-drawn illustrations,
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…for illustrating my favorite fact about sailing: that the fastest speed at which a sailboat can sail is actually upwind. I learned this from an awesome book, no doubt one that many on HN have heard of, Thinking Physics, by Lewis Carroll Epstein that is worth getting, especially if you have kids and they don't already know basic physics.
on “Show HN: Sail boat simulation – try to sail into the wind” ↗If you like these kinds of thought problems, I definitely recommend Thinking Physics by Lewis Carroll Epstein. http://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Physics-Understandable-Practi...
on “A fisherman throws his anchor into the water. What happens to the water level of the lake?” ↗If you like this kind of puzzle, you might enjoy "Thinking Physics" by Lewis Carroll Epstein. This one is right on page 10 of the 3rd edition.
on “If Richard Feynman applied for a job at Microsoft (2002)” ↗If you don't already have it, "Thinking Physics" by Lewis Carroll Epstein is very good. Also: https://www.ocf.berkeley.edu/~abhishek/chicmath.htm Also: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18360071
on “How to Teach Math?” ↗Along those lines, you might enjoy _Thinking Physics_. (http://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Physics-Understandable-Practi...)
on “Teaching Kids to Love Math” ↗Thinking Physics: https://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Physics-Understandable-Pract... It's a little bit like The Little Schemer in that it often asks you a question and expects you to try to answer it before turning the…
on “Eldar Black Holes” ↗…http://www.feynmanlectures.caltech.edu is one source some people swear by. Others say it's too hard for a beginner text. I think both have a point, but it's free to see for yourself. https://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Physics-Understandable-Pract... is not free, but also excellent and gentler.
on “Quantum Leaps, Long Assumed to Be Instantaneous, Take Time” ↗You could try "Thinking Physics," available from Amazon (or LibGen) https://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Physics-Understandable-Pract...
on “Programming, Math, Science: A list with links to useful resources” ↗"Thinking Physics" by Lewis Carroll Epstein, read after I received a B.S. in Aerospace Engineering. I suddenly realized that I hadn't learned anything in my degree and was functionally useless. Since then I have built…
on “Ask HN: The book that did it for you in math and/or CS?” ↗Many older and classic texts, recently I've read a bit of The Art of Electronics and Thinking Physics from there. Just using the search feature. Lots of unrelated content though.
on “Ask HN: Where do you get your PDFs and ePubs (research and texbooks)” ↗In case somebody's interested, Naval mentions a cool book that is not listed in the accompanying blog post : Thinking Physics, by Lewis Carroll Epstein.
on “Naval Ravikant on Reading, Happiness, Decision Making, Habits [audio]” ↗I just started reading this book, "Thinking Physics", which teaches physics the way Feynman talks about, by trying to build intuition. It asks short questions like Feynman's about the table, and expects you to think about the answer for a while, before…
on “Physical Intuition, Not Mathematics (2011)” ↗…reference. I'm specifically looking for math/science/social sciences/literature and language (English)/art - the usual curriculum in schools. These could be ideally one book like (https://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Physics-Understandable-Practical-Reality/dp/0935218084) or a handful. I'm not looking to be an expert - just looking to refresh myself in the absolute fundamentals of the various fields. I didn't do my schooling…
on “Ask HN: What are some fundamental books in math/sciences/art/social sciences?” ↗Do you know which one in particular? I see two books by that author "Thinking Physics: Understandable Practical Reality" and "Thinking Physics: Practical Lessons in Critical Thinking" ?
on “Naval Ravikant on Reading, Happiness, Decision Making, Habits [audio]” ↗