Customer Reviews

Physics for Scientists & Engineers Vol. 1 (Chs 1-20) with MasteringPhysics™ (4th Edition)

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book is well organized, fairly rigorous, and contains lots of useful examples and problems. This text requires, at very least, a semester of calculus for an excellent understanding. 3 semesters of calculus will allow the reader to have a truly complete understanding of the text. The organization is mainly by color/font and is self-explanitory. The text is calc-based and the level of this material is the hardest that is actually covered in any freshman physics course in the country. (This is based off the info that that this text is used at MIT, which has one of the most difficult and best physics programs in the U.S.) The examples in this text really top it off; they lead the reader through the text and make all the problems at the end of the chapter feasible.

The main difference between this book and Serway's calc-based text (Serway's larger set ISBN: 0030317169) is that Serway's is slightly harder. (One review believed the Serway text to be easier, but I am guessing this was one of Serway's non-calc texts. Serway's calc-based text covers more than what is needed for the AP Phys-C Exam.)

Topics covered: Classical Mechanics, Oscillations/Waves, Fluids, and Thermodynamics.

THIS BOOK IS EXCELLENT FOR SELF-STUDY.

I am a physicist and a few years ago taught a university physics course using this text. I cannot praise it enough. It is thorough and extensive, but its greatest asset is pedagogy. For students who haven't seen other texts, believe me, this is the easiest to learn from. Physics is not easy, but other texts make it a lot harder than this one. I had taught a similar course some years before the more recent one and used Tipler. In my own day, I learned from Halliday and Resnick. From a new learner's perspective, Giancoli has it all over those books. Highest possible recommendation.

I bought this because the text for my class is a worthless convoluted piece of crap that assumes you already have two semesters and A's in the classes it is for... and now it is going to show you fancy notation and pictures.

This book from Giancoli, however, is amazing. I learn from this book in order to do the problems from my required text.

If you are a physics professor, do not use Tipler, use Giancoli. Tipler assumes you already know physics, or want to spend hours a day in self discovery, sorry I am not Isaac Newton.

This textbook is informative and useful. It is calculus-based and I used it for a freshman level physics course. The examples throughout the chapters are helpful. At the end of each chapter, there around 20-30 concept questions and around 100 problems. The concept questions help me to understand the fundamentals of the chapter. Most of the problems are rated on a scale of 1 to 3 with 1 being the easiest. Level 1 problems are usually just applying a formula. Level 2 problems make you think about the problem more and use multiple formulas and concepts. Level 3 problems are very challenging. This breakup can be very helpful when studying.

This is a fine example of what a good physics book should be. If you ever get confused in lectures all you need to do is flip through the book and find what you are looking for. The example problems provide great practice and often contain some humorous elements. It is a great book, but save the money and buy used.

I used this book for a course at a community college that did not require calculus. The professor had enough experience to know which exercises to select for homework so that no calculus was required. I actually wanted to take the calculus based course, but could not fit it into my schedule, so I was glad to see that he used the same text for both courses. The book in itself is very clear to read. I would recommend this for self study. I found that I could understand the material just from reading the text and doing the exercises. You can tell that the reading and problems are selected very carefully. It is a great book for understanding physics with or without accompanying lectures. It's not easy, but if you really want to learn physics, it's a soild choice. Also, the problems are given a I,II, or III based on their level of difficulty, and the odd answers can be looked up in the back. And be sure that you get the right version. You can get three smaller books separately (this is the 1st of 3) or all three in one. A final recommendation for self study is to accompany any physics text with Walter Lewin's lectures online.

THE TEXTBOOK IS AS GOOD AS ANY I HAVE SEEN. KNOW YOUR CALCULUS IF YOU USE THE BOOK FOR SELF STUDY.

FOR WHAT PROBLEMS DOES THE SOLUTIONS MANUAL GIVE SOLUTIONS?

ALL OR SOME OF THE ODD, OR EVEN, OR SELECTED FROM ODD AND EVEN?

If you're getting this book for a college course, just know that I got this and I haven't even used it. All I really needed the book for was an online access code for the homework, which I bought directly from the website along with getting this book from amazon.

This book came super fast and looks brand new. I am completely satisfied by the book's quality. Unfortunately, now I have to do all the reading and work.

the book is ok but amazon suggested the wrong solutions manuel and I can't seem to get an answer on if you carry the correct book or not? disappointed with amazon with this issue.