Self-learning Definition and 40 Threads

G'day from Australia! I loved physics and maths in high school and I have been trying to teach myself some physics on the side whilst doing another course at university. So far, I have read and done problems from "Introduction to Thermal Physics (Schroeder)" [I got up to around 7.4] and...

I am attempting to teach myself all the necessary prerequisites of calculus, and attain mastery of them. This has been my goal for quite some time, and recently, I encountered a topic I was unfamiliar with (listed under precalculus). This topic of interest is spherical and cylindrical...

Hello everyone. I'm assuming many similar threads to this one have been posted previously but I wanted to make one that is fitting to my specific situation, hopefully it's not to much trouble. So I want to seriously start teaching myself physics at a deep level, and this post is basically my...

Greetings people from PF! I want to start my journey as a Data Scientist and currently I'm doing baby steps. I heard from people that every Data Scientist should learn Python, but problem is that I'm currently learning Java from the book Head First Java where they intuitively explain object...

(I don't know if this is the right place to post it, but I think the "textbooks" section is'nt. So I'm going to put it here.) I have been self studying S&G relativity for almost eight months, mostly from Weinberg's book on S&G relativity, but also from papers I occasionally find on web and from...

(Sorry for my bad English.) I've been reading severous QM textbooks that people say are good to learn QM: Sakurai, Shankar, Thankappan. I start reading and understand things in principle, but then I don't get anymore. The only book I think really helped me was QM by McIntyre but it goes not deep...

So I have been preparing to transfer into a physics program at the university from a community college. However, I am debating on whether I should go back and cover the material from my previous physics courses to build a strong foundation or if I should start learning the new material that will...

Hey everybody! I am a physics junior in education college and I feel that I am not getting a good preparation in Physics and Mathematics. I have a basic understanding of Algebra, Calculus I and General Physics And I am totally free for THREE months period and I am ready to study for at least 12...

Hello, What would be the best online resources for learning modern physics and quantum physics (at the undergraduate level). Also, what is the highest math that would be necessary? I think the only one I am lacking is PDE but I can self study that one as well if necessary. Thanks in advance.

Dear Physics Forum advisers, Could you recommend books that treat the multivariable calculus from a theoretical aspect (and applications too, if possible)? I have been reading Rudin's PMA and Apostol's Mathematical Analysis, but their treatment of vector calculus is very confusing and not...

Dear Physics Forum advisers, I am trying to learn the C++ programming language as I need it for my upcoming research in the theoretical computing and cryptography. This is my first time learning the programming language so I am seeking two books (I prefer to learn from the books than using...

Dear Physics Forum advisers, My name is Phoenix Kim, a rising junior with major in mathematics and an aspiring applied mathematician & algebraist. I wrote this email to seek your recommendation on great books for problem-solving skills (techniques, strategies, etc.) in the mathematical...

The safe path for me is pre-med, which means biology. For career purposes, I imagine it's in my best interests to double major (Bio, computer sci, maybe a minor in business or economics). I've been told that having tech schools will make an M.D. even more valuable. Which reminds me-- I've been...

I must say at first that my English is not that good. If that's important to state, i am living in Brazil, waiting currently to start my Physics college in the next seven months. My question is pretty simple: What is good to learn before starting college, in terms of Math and Physics itself? I...

Dear Physics Forum advisers, I am a college sophomore with double majors in mathematics and microbiology. I wrote this email to seek your recommendation on selecting the introductory analysis textbook, particularly one that complement with Rudin's PMA well. Starting on this Fall, I will be...

Hello all, I am interested in physics and I know that a some amount of calculus is required for high school physics. We don't start calculus until the end of next year i.e end of 11th grade (I have just finished 9th grade), although the level of physics we do is quite high. Can someone...

Hi there! My name is Andrew, and I am currently a high school junior. I aspire pursue a doctorate degree in Theoretical Physics, specializing in Quantum Physics for thesis, and hopefully becoming a researcher in the field. My small dilemma is that schools become awfully tiresome, and the...

Hello, I still haven't introduced my self, I'm new here. Since I don't like typing about things on the wrong place I will jump directly into my problem. I have learned to program at home, I'm familiar with the syntax of C/C++/C#/Java/Python/PHP/HTML & CSS/JavaScript/bash/batch and a little bit...

I would like to learn topological insulator. But what kind of reference should I look for. I just have some basic solid state physics knowledge. I know there are lots of Hall Effects (e.g. spin hall effect, quantum hall effect ...etc). and I just know the idea of them, but not the math

Hi! I'm a physics bachelor and amateur oboist. I started a formal education in a conservatory, but I left it a few years ago and I've just been attending oboe classes. A music career is already out of discussion for me, but I'm interested on learning on my own the most "theoretical" side...

I am studying relativity by myself. There is one problem in the book which says that the 4-dot product of the Minkowski force and proper velocity is zero. But again it say that qE.u = change in energy over time. Is there a contradiction? If not, Am I missing something important. here q is...

Hi, what would be some of the best self-learning University physics introductor materials, books, (perhaps online video courses) you could recommend? I’ve been looking through the “physics learning materials” where I found some great pdf files/notes, but what would be great is if there...

sorry just found out this is the wrong thread

I'm a Polish high school student (in Poland education is like this: preschool → primary school → middle school → high school (entrance age 16) → graduate school (entrance age 19~20)). My school is very good (in top 2.2% in Poland). I don't have problems with mathematics in school, but I have the...

Hello, next semester I'm taking first year physics. The course covers: Mechanics and waves, dynamics, momentum, energy, traveling waves, superposition and fluid dynamics. The problem is that in grade 12 I didn't gain a good foundation. So, I'm looking for something that I could use to study from...

I'm a physics major and I'm pretty sure that I want to go into theoretical physics research. Due to scheduling difficulties and such, I haven't been able to systematically study math. I'm am very comfortable with all the basic math that any physics major should know - multivariable calc, PDEs...

First of all, let me just say hello to the community here, as I am new and this is my first post (hopefully of many). Now on to business. Recently I have been reading a book by Silvanus Thompson called Calculus Made Easy. Now, I took Calculus in my junior year of H.S (I am a senior now) but...

Hey guys, I'm an electrical engineering student with a strong interest in physics. I would like to work through classical mechanics, E&M, and thermodynamics books. I'm not sure if there's another subject that is usually covered in classical physics (perhaps waves/optics?) but if so, I'd like...

When professors are insufficient or don't teach very well, is Khan Academy a good alternative to learning topics such as calculus/differential equations, etc. as well as the sciences (bio, chem, physics)? I can't tell if the content is good resource material because I'm not an expert on any of...

Hello PF group. Long time reader, first time poster. Can someone please make some recommendations for a good classical physics textbook, particularity suited to self-learning classical physics? I'd also like the recommendation to not be calculus based. My preferences are for something...

Hey guys, I am currently trying to learn special relativity independently. I just read thru the 1st chapter of Spacetime physics and is trying out some questions. Just a few questions though: 1. How long did it took you guys to grasp special relativity? 2. Is A level math(high school level)...

Hello! I am a high-schooler, and I was thinking of learning physics on my own. Can anyone please suggest me some good books for self-learning physics? Also, I thought of strengthening my math as well(I only know upto the basics of differential calculus). So I recently started learning...

Hello all, I'm beginning a self-administered education in math and physics as substitution for a college curriculum, and am looking for some advice on what my general course of study should be. My goal is to learn advanced physics and maths -- I'm most interested in topology and...

Hi, I am looking to develop my mathematical mind as much as possible. The "highest" classes I have taken are Calculus I & II as well as linear algebra. I'd be looking for either a bunch of books or some sort of guide (similar to the guide "How to become a good theoretical physicist" for...

I'm self-learning calculus. I'm not good at maths. Well, I just tried to solve a random problem in a math software Integral [ Sin^(-1) x ] dx The solution is here: http://img43.imageshack.us/img43/4597/60496310.png Now the problem is I don't how it's going. How do we get to step 2...

Hi all, I am pretty sure this post is repetitive. But I am asking from a mathematician's point of view. I am currently a final-year grad student in a respectable university. I will get my phD next summer. My research interest is mainly in symplectic geometry and some operator algebras. I...

Hi, I'm a sophmore in high school, right now I am in honors chemistry and algebra 2, (if you are familiar with science bowl, my school, mira loma, won last year) I want to learn trig and eventually calculus on my own, with the hopes of understanding high school and college level physics. I...

I plan to study particle physics especially about the quantum field theory but i don't know how to start with. I have studied mechanics,modern physics,electromagnetism using Serway Physics for Sciencetist and Engineers.I have also studied Waves and Vibrations using H.J Paind Book and also...

Hello all. I ran a search on the forums, but didn't find anything specific to my query. Does anyone here have a favorite book for self-teaching Calculus? Preferably, the book should have a small refresher for older needed maths before the actual Calculus segment. Thanks for the help.

Your guys physics knowledge is so awesome! I am a secondary student, and I wish to learn more about physic. Can anyone suggest a website to me?