Help Finding Physics and Chemistry Books

[redfarmer]

It has been several years since I was in school and I'm currently studying for my GED. I'm finding that two areas I'm having trouble in are Chemistry and Physics. The reason why I think I'm having so much trouble is that I was never taught to concretize principles in school. This isn't as much of a problem in Biology and Earth Sciences as they are more concrete subjects whereas Chemistry and Physics are more abstract. I remember being overwhelmed in my Chemistry and Physics classes by teachers throwing mathmatical formulas at us with little or no explanation of the theory behind them.

My question is does anyone know of any good books I could pick up which would help me concretize the principles of Physics and Chemistry? Right now, I need as much help as I can get.

(On a side note, I wonder if this is the same reason I had trouble with Math in school...)

[stephen_speicher]

My question is does anyone know of any good books I could pick up which would help me concretize the principles of Physics and Chemistry? Right now, I need as much help as I can get.

Have you looked at the three volume set, The Feynman Lectures on Physics? If you can follow it along it might be what you want.

[ewv]

The Feynman lectures are very good for physics but seem to be of value mostly to those already familiar with most of the material and hard to follow otherwise. (The original freshman class who took the course at Cal Tech were mostly lost.) That may be ok for redfarmer, depending on previous background, because Feynman's explanations of abstract principles in relation to facts of reality are very good if you know enough to follow them. In that sense they help with concretization, but to the extent refarmer needs concretization in the sense of applications and specific problem solving, the Feynman lectures don't do that and could be too abstract. He would at least need the problem supplements not part of the lectures as usually sold(?), but I think the Feynman Lectures would be best used in conjunction with engineering physics and chemistry texts with a more traditional emphasis on worked examples and problems. But they are excellent and well worth reading.

As for the reasons for previously having trouble with math in school, it all depends on how it was taught and what is meant by concretization: You generally need both problem solving with examples of the concepts and a bottom-up development of the abstract concepts and theorems, together with thorough understanding before moving on to the next level. Math courses taught as manipulations of floating abstractions with no inductive explanation of how the concepts arise would certainly cause problems. Not everyone can just plunge in and catch on to "the game", nor is that what you want. When all they do is start with "we define" and off they go, it's hopeless.

[EC]

I'd try the Elegant Universe by Brian Greene.

Also Hyperspace by Micio Kaku.

They both give good introductions into physics at all levels from ancient Greek to modern day.

Both are made for the general reader and are mostly devoid of mathematics exept where crucial or in the apendices'. Another good book is Three Roads to Quantum Gravity by Lee Smolin. It is also very accesible to the average reader.

[EC]

A few more I just thought of that might be decent choices are: Brian Greene's newest book "The Fabric of the Cosmos"(pretty informative and conceptual), "The Accelerating Universe" by Mario Livio (which gives you a nice introduction into astrophysics including newer fidings), and last Stephen Hawking's "The Universe in a Nutshell".

Hawking's book is the one I would probalaly recommend the least, but it's still relatively informatitive, completely conceptual, and has the most illustrations.

Eric

[stephen_speicher]

I'd try the Elegant Universe by Brian Greene.

Also Hyperspace by Micio Kaku.

They both give good introductions into physics at all levels from ancient Greek to modern day.

Both are made for the general reader and are mostly devoid of mathematics exept where crucial or in the apendices'. Another good book is Three Roads to Quantum Gravity by Lee Smolin. It is also very accesible to the average reader.

and

A few more I just thought of that might be decent choices are: Brian Greene's newest book "The Fabric of the Cosmos"(pretty informative and conceptual), "The Accelerating Universe" by Mario Livio (which gives you a nice introduction into astrophysics including newer fidings), and last Stephen Hawking's "The Universe in a Nutshell".

Hawking's book is the one I would probalaly recommend the least, but it's still relatively informatitive, completely conceptual, and has the most illustrations.

As I understand redfarmer's request for physics books which concretize principles, the context is his study for the GED. Most all of the books you suggested are popular books which focus on relatively esoteric subjects that are speculative in origin, not exactly the physics which he needs to study and learn for the GED.

[ex_banana-eater]

My question is does anyone know of any good books I could pick up which would help me concretize the principles of Physics and Chemistry? Right now, I need as much help as I can get.

If you are going for your GED, drop by a high school and ask a science teacher about the titles of supplemental textbooks. I purchased one for Principles of Math 12 this year; the book first teaches the theory and concepts step by step, and then offers pages of questions with answers. I've seen the same types for physics before too. I can't offer you a title because they're not usually made by the same company, since the criteria is different province by province (or state to state). They're usually written by retired teachers who've spent years defining the best way to help students learn.

[mechanicsbook]

It has been several years since I was in school and I'm currently studying for my GED. I'm finding that two areas I'm having trouble in are Chemistry and Physics. The reason why I think I'm having so much trouble is that I was never taught to concretize principles in school. This isn't as much of a problem in Biology and Earth Sciences as they are more concrete subjects whereas Chemistry and Physics are more abstract. I remember being overwhelmed in my Chemistry and Physics classes by teachers throwing mathmatical formulas at us with little or no explanation of the theory behind them.

My question is does anyone know of any good books I could pick up which would help me concretize the principles of Physics and Chemistry? Right now, I need as much help as I can get.

(On a side note, I wonder if this is the same reason I had trouble with Math in school...)

My Dear Friend , I am a Physics teacher from Bucharest .If you are interested about Physics problems book you can visit www.mechanics-book.net and then give me a mesage ( [email protected] ) Thank you Octavian Radu.

[Hugh Akston]

You should go to your local college book store. There are catalogs at the end of the end caps. They might seem confusing in the beginning but they really are not. They go in alphabetical order. When you find for example physics. Look in the 100's. Then look for the number that matches that text book. Look at the table of contents and skim the book. If it sounds too easy go back to the catalog and look at the 200's and so on.

The books range in pricing. Or you could go to the public library and look for introductory books and the like. However, it's easy to get confused in a big library so you might want to speak with the librarian.

Edited February 12, 2005 by Hugh Akston

[Thales]

This is likely too late to help, but Schaum's Outline has outlines for physics and chemistry. The College Physics outline is great for concretizing principles. It uses algebra only, so that you can focus more on the principles, and won't get lost in the math (ie. calculus and differential equations), and there are lots of worked out problems.

I've used those to supplement my main texts, and they are great. They're also low cost. In fact, you might find some "used" copies on Amazon for a very low cost. Many of the "used" are actually new, i.e. in mint condition.

Amazon also has a "Search Inside" feature, which allows you to read a few pages of a book to get a feel for it.