Reading   Suggestions

Here is a list of books to read to supplement Physics 202.   You can probably buy them online from an online bookseller like Amazon, or Barnes & Noble, etc.

As expained in the syllabus, the required textbook is   "Physics (7^th ed.)"   by Paul E. Tippens.   The books listed below are certainly not required.

• General Physics
  • "Physics for Scientists and Engineers" (2 vol.) by Paul A. Tipler   Basic physics with calculus.
  • "Fundamentals of Physics" by D. Halliday, R. Resnick, et.al.   Basic physics with calculus. Similar to Tipler; some people prefer this text.
  • "Feynman Lectures On Physics" (3. vol) by R. P. Feynman.   Although not a simple introduction to the subject, it is full of deep insight.
• Thermodynamics
  • "Understanding Thermodynamics" by H.C. Van Ness.   A short, pedagogical monograph.
  • "Thermodynamics" by E. Fermi.   Classic short monograph at an advanced level.
  • "Fundamentals of Statistical and Thermal Physics" by F. Reif.   Advanced text on the subject.
• Electricity and Magnetism and Optics
  • "Introduction to Electrodynamics (3^rd ed)" by David J. Griffiths.   Advanced E&M.
  • "The Art of Electronics" by P. Horowitz and W. Hill.   Wide range of practical electronics.   Unfortunately a bit out-of-date, but still ~90% useful.
  • "Optics" by E. Hecht and A. Zajac.   Thorough introduction to optics.
  • "QED:   The Strange Theory of Light and Matter" by Richard P. Feynman   Excellent, short, and inexpensive treatise on "Quantum Electrodynamics" (QED) for the lay-person.
• Modern Physics
  • "The Elegant Universe" by Brian Greene   Superstring Theory -- a potential "theory of everything" -- for the intelligent lay person. Written by an expert in the field, including a nice introduction to quantum mechanics and relativity as needed for string theory. Beautifully descriptive without any math.
  • "A Traveler's Guide to Spacetime" by Thomas A. Moore .   Intuitive, clear, and largely non-mathematical introduction to relativity.
  • "The State of the Universe - A Primer in Modern Cosmology" by Pedro Ferreira.   Introduction to Cosmology :   content, structure, and evolution of the universe.