Head First Physics: A learner's companion to mechanics and practical physics (AP Physics B - Advanced Placement)

by Heather Lang

Overview

Wouldn't it be great if there were a physics book that showed you how things work instead of telling you how? Finally, with Head First Physics, there is. This comprehensive book takes the stress out of learning mechanics and practical physics by providing a fun and engaging experience, especially for students who "just don't get it."

Head First Physics offers a format that's rich in visuals and full of activities, including pictures, illustrations, puzzles, stories, and quizzes — a mixed-media style proven to stimulate learning and retention. One look will convince you: This isn't mere theory, this is physics brought to life through real-world scenarios, simple experiments, and hypothetical projects. Head First Physics is perfect for anyone who's intrigued by how things work in the natural world.

You'll quickly discover that physics isn't a dry subject. It's all about the world we live in, encompassing everything from falling objects and speeding cars, to conservation of energy and gravity and weightlessness, and orbital behavior. This book:

• Helps you think like a physicist so you can understand why things really work the way they do
• Gives you relevant examples so you can fully grasp the principles before moving on to more complex concepts
• Designed to be used as a supplement study guide for the College Board's Advanced Placement Physics B Exam
• Introduces principles for the purpose of solving real-world problems, not memorization
• Teaches you how to measure, observe, calculate — and yes — how to do the math
• Covers scientific notation, SI units, vectors, motion, momentum conservation, Newton's Laws, energy conservation, weight and mass, gravitation and orbits, circular motion and simple harmonic motion, and much more

If "Myth Busters" and other TV programs make you curious about our physical world — or if you're a student forced to take a physics course — now you can pursue the subject without the dread of boredom or the fear that it will be over your head. Head First Physics comes to rescue with an innovative, engaging, and inspirational way to learn physics!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780596102371
Publisher:	O'Reilly Media, Incorporated
Publication date:	08/29/2008
Series:	Head First
Pages:	940
Product dimensions:	7.90(w) x 9.00(h) x 1.80(d)
Age Range:	9 - 18 Years

About the Author

Heather Lang has a physics degree, a PhD in the grey area between biochemistry and physics, and international caps at both chess and cricket. She has a great interest in educational and coaching methods and has run after-school chess clubs for a number of years, bringing many complete beginners on to national and international level.



Heather has been able to transfer many of these successful methods across to her book Head First Physics. She is also the co-author of the Babar Particle Physics Teaching Package (Manchester UniversityDepartment of Physics and Astronomy, 1999) and joint first author of a 2002 Nature Immunology paper with a lot of jargon and some pretty pictures in it.

Table of Contents

• Advance Praise for Head First Physics
• Praise for other Head First academic titles
• Praise for the Head First Approach
•  
• Author of Head First Physics
• How to Use this Book: Intro
• Acknowledgments
• Chapter 1: Think Like a Physicist: In the beginning ...
• Chapter 2: Making it all MEAN Something: Units and measurements
• Chapter 3: Scientific Notation, Area, and Volume: All numbers great and small
• Chapter 4: Equations and Graphs: Learning the lingo
• Chapter 5: Dealing with Directions: Vectors
• Chapter 6: Displacement, Velocity, and Acceleration: What’s going on?
• Chapter 7: Equations of motion (part 1): Playing With Equations
• Chapter 8: Equations of Motion (Part 2): Up, up, and... back down
• Chapter 9: Triangles, Trig and Trajectories: Going two-dimensional
• Chapter 10: Momentum Conservation: What Newton Did
• Chapter 11: Weight and the normal force: Forces for courses
• Chapter 12: Using forces, momentum, friction and impulse: Getting on with it
• Chapter 13: Torque and Work: Getting a lift
• Chapter 14: Energy Conservation: Making your life easier
• Chapter 15: Tension, Pulleys and Problem Solving: Changing direction
• Chapter 16: Circular Motion (Part 1): From α to ω
• Chapter 17: Circular Motion (Part 2) Staying on track
• Chapter 18: Gravitation and Orbits: Getting away from it all
• Chapter 19: Oscillations (Part 1): Round and round
• Chapter 20: Oscillations (Part 2): Springs ‘n’ swings
• Chapter 21: Think Like a Physicist: It’s the final chapter
• Leftovers: The top 6 things (that we didn’t cover before, but are covering now)
• Equation Table: Point of Reference