New member attempting to understand

[msst8dog]

How did you find PF?

recommenation

Hello everyone,
I am a retired, disabled veteran. I have worked in information technology for a long time and now am retired from that. I have never had a physics class, nor will I enroll in one. Just want to broaden my base of knowledge.

 

[jedishrfu]

Welcome to PF!

Have you considered taking some online courses at Khan Academy for physics and some related math courses?

It would be more effective than simply reading and posting here at PF. However, taking the courses and posting your questions about what you've learned or what confuses would be quite productive.

There are also some book resources, like Schaum's Outlines on Physics. One good example, I've liked is this one by Michael Browne:

https://www.amazon.com/Schaums-Outline-Physics-Engineering-Outlines/dp/1260453839?tag=pfamazon01-20

or this one with solved problems:

https://www.amazon.com/Schaums-Solved-Problems-Physics-Outlines/dp/0071763465?tag=pfamazon01-20

and this one on useful math formulas and tables:

https://www.amazon.com/Schaums-Math...ulas-Outlines/dp/1260010538?tag=pfamazon01-20

---

If you still have some recall on physics and calculus learned years ago, then Leonard Susskind books are good to check out:

https://www.amazon.com/Theoretical-Minimum-Start-Doing-Physics/dp/0465075681?tag=pfamazon01-20

Popular science books abound at the bookstore but they aren't good at conveying the essential ideas of physics as they use broken analogies that while useful to explain a concept can't be extended beyond that for a truer understanding.

 

[berkeman]

I am a retired, disabled veteran.

Welcome to PF, and thank you for your service.

 

[msst8dog]

Welcome to PF!

Have you considered taking some online courses at Khan Academy for physics and some related math courses?

It would be more effective than simply reading and posting here at PF. However, taking the courses and posting your questions about what you've learned or what confuses would be quite productive.

There are also some book resources, like Schaum's Outlines on Physics. One good example, I've liked is this one by Michael Browne:

https://www.amazon.com/Schaums-Outline-Physics-Engineering-Outlines/dp/1260453839?tag=pfamazon01-20

or this one with solved problems:

https://www.amazon.com/Schaums-Solved-Problems-Physics-Outlines/dp/0071763465?tag=pfamazon01-20

and this one on useful math formulas and tables:

https://www.amazon.com/Schaums-Math...ulas-Outlines/dp/1260010538?tag=pfamazon01-20

---

If you still have some recall on physics and calculus learned years ago, then Leonard Susskind books are good to check out:

https://www.amazon.com/Theoretical-Minimum-Start-Doing-Physics/dp/0465075681?tag=pfamazon01-20

Popular science books abound at the bookstore but they aren't good at conveying the essential ideas of physics as they use broken analogies that while useful to explain a concept can't be extended beyond that for a truer understanding.

Thank you for the information. I will look into these.
I have no background in physics, I was never proficient in math unless there were $ signs involved.
I am also attempting to understand calculus and become proficient in advanced algebra.

I think I have discovered the main problem with these subjects concerning my learning... It is the formulas, I seem unable to grasp them in a collection. I can learn one and solve the problems with not much difficulty, but then, I can't seem to separate the problems into the area of application of formulas. I get them all jumbled up.

I will see if I can learn. If it turns out to be futile, I will do more woodwork projects.

Lee

 

[msst8dog]

Welcome to PF, and thank you for your service.

Thank you for your service. Morse code was fun to learn. Sending was fun, but we never actually did it in the real world. Only used it in school and after graduation, only used HF radios.