Physics for Scientist and Engineers With Modern Physics [Import] [Hardcover]

Raymond A Serway (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover: 1568 pages
• Publisher: Harcourt College Publishing; 5Rev e. edition (October 27, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0030226570
• ISBN-13: 978-0030226571
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 8.8 x 2.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #487,982 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Waste of Time!..., December 20, 2002

By 

A Customer - See all my reviews

This review is from: Physics for Scientists and Engineers, Chapters 1-46 (with Study Tools CD-ROM) (Hardcover)

This is a terrible book if you are trying to learn fundamentals of calculus based physics. First of all, there are very few examples in each chapter. And if an example is solved, it lacks steps and details.

If you are planning to take advanced courses or MCAT after using this book, well, good luck. Most of us had to use this book because it was required. Rule of thumb for Math and Physics students, it is not something that can be rote memorized. You actually have to see the worked-out problems and try to solve them yourselves. If a book doesn't contain enough examples (like this one), you are one a slippery downward slope. You may be able to get an A by memorizing every word but you won't learn anything. If you're stuck with this book because it is required, start signing up for tutoring sessions.

23 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A very concise and comprehensive text, but..., January 23, 2003

By 

Richard C. Jensen (San Diego, California United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Physics for Scientists and Engineers, Chapters 1-46 (with Study Tools CD-ROM) (Hardcover)

For undergraduates in the physical sciences (Physics, Astronomy, Engineering, Computer Science, Math, and Chemistry), this book is great. If someone has a good math background in Trig and Calculus they should be able to understand almost everything. Where I think it may fail is in its application for undergraduates in the Life Sciences (Biology, possibly Psychology if they are hard-core enough to take a physics class). Half of all science majors are Biology majors, and it's not fair that they have to read the same text that physical science undergraduates read. Most biology programs do not require trigonometry to be taken, so a biology major will quickly be lost reading this book.

Also, life scientists like me can easily figure out things like optics, but are very confused by the terminology of Physics. For example, in Biology a "cell membrane" is a very understandable term. It's the protein-lipid bilayer that surrounds a cell and is semi-permeable to small molecules. It's common sense---anyone can understand it. But in physics, the terminology in this text is anything but common-sense. I will give you two examples. First they define torque as "the moment-arm of rotation about an axis". I understand rotation about an axis, but what the heck is a "moment arm"? Define that please! Second, they define magnetism as the flux force through a charged area. I understand charges, areas, but flux force? This is why lay people and life scientists hate physics, because the terminology is deliberately arcane. Don't just define the terms, explain them!

11 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Very unclear!, December 20, 2003

By 

Charlie Barfield (Southaven, MS United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Physics for Scientists and Engineers, Chapters 1-46 (with Study Tools CD-ROM) (Hardcover)

This book would be fine for a student with a very good teacher but, if you have a teacher that is very hard to understand because of his accent ,as in my case, then you need a book that makes it possible to teach yourself and this one is definitely not it!