Thinking Physics (3e, Tr)

I struggle to find a category of person to whom one should not recommend this book. People with very little background in physics will find it excellent as a simple to follow and illuminating lay description of most of the branches of the subject (including relativity and QM to some extent), all the while testing their understanding through non-mathematical yet entirely non-obvious multiple choice questions. Those studying physics at high school or college level are of course unlikely to learn many new concepts, but will benefit greatly from the intuitive presentation of ideas that are very often delivered in purely mathematical form in formal education. The questions will prove useful for these students too, since they encourage intuitive thinking about the subject and are also often of the style encountered in oral examinations.

Epstein for some reason chose to include a political rant about how all of the world's ills can be directly attributed to people who don't study science at university. This section is utterly ridiculous and completely unnecessary and portrays Epstein as an embittered old sod. My advice would be to tear out these pages and enjoy the book for the wonderful educational physics text it is supposed to be.

Should be forced on every high school student (2/2 people found this helpful)

Every so often I pick up a book that I wish I read 10 years ago. Feynman's Lectures on Physics and Van Hess's Thermodynamics are among these, as well as Polya's How To Solve It for those more mathematically inclined. These would have certainly saved me from much confusion during my college engineering curriculum, for they focus on teaching the material to the reader, as opposed to masking it in the equations of a textbook. Some lucky folks have the ability to glance at equations and immediately grasp their meaning; for the other 99.99% of us, an intuitive explanation replete with real-world analogies helps to bring the meaning to life.

With a presentation both unique and entertaining, Lewis Carroll Epstein's Thinking Physics has certainly claimed a rightful seat at the roundtable of wonderful didactic books. Every page poses a question that challenges the reader on his view of the physical world, and nearly every answer tears down the fallacies of his intuition. Socrates would have been proud of the format, with each new question expanding on concepts developed in earlier answers. By the end of the book, the reader will not only improve his physics sense, but he will have a better idea of how to use thought experiments to explore the realms of any field.

So you think you know your physics? (5/5 people found this helpful)

Whether you're sitting your school exams, university physics degree or just have that niggling curiosity about why things are the way they are, you'll be scratching your head at this wonderful collection of 'gedanken physics' problems. You ceratinly won't be able to put it down. If you thought physics was about learning all the answers or the formulae to get them, this book will show you how even the science you think you know very well has hidden secrets. Amazingly, you find that these secrets can be unlocked by your own thinking as you come to realise that all those theories have a deep qualitative meaning far more important than every formula you ever learned. Try one of the problems on a group of friends and stand back while the arguments rage! I cannot recommend this book highly enough.

At last - a book that makes Physics interesting! (4/4 people found this helpful)

This book is a breath of fresh air after the usual uninspiring, get-em-through-the-exam-but-no-more books around. The format is a series of thought-experiments involving simple objects and situations ( deflating ballons, leaking barrels, moving objects, etc ). The reader is encouraged to really "get his head around" the subject and is rewarded with the "aha" of sudden comprehension and realisation.A basic knowledge around the level of Newton's laws is assumed. This should be required reading for all physics teachers and recommended to all physics students of the appropriate level.

Wonderful. Engaging. Terrific explanations. (2/2 people found this helpful)

Not a textbook, and probably not like any physics books you've seen. The book consists of asking a question that gets you thinking, and then explaining the answer. And the explanation really helps you to understand the problem more deeply. A great book to feed the curiosity.

Lewis Carroll Epstein

Reader Reviews:

Deep intuition from start to finish (0/0 people found this helpful)

Should be forced on every high school student (2/2 people found this helpful)

So you think you know your physics? (5/5 people found this helpful)

At last - a book that makes Physics interesting! (4/4 people found this helpful)

Wonderful. Engaging. Terrific explanations. (2/2 people found this helpful)

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