11 replies to this topic

[TheDiplomat]

Hi!

Quite urgent: I'm wondering whether any of you could recommend a good textbook for physics?

It should be such that it would have a lot of theory but also a lot of exercises with solutions.

We have Giancoli at school and I find it good because it has a lot of exercises but I don't like the way it's written so I need something similar to it but it shouldn't be Giancoli.

I'm actually SL but the book that we have for SL is really bad in my opinion (we have Pearson Bac. Phy. SL) and I'd rather have a HL book for I really need a good grade for physics. But in case you have a SL book that is really good, please recommend it as well.

Thank you

TD

Edited by TheDiplomat, Dec 28, 2011 - 10:25.

[Vol de Mort]

The Tsokos book by Cambridge. I personally don`t like it though. The questions are very hard and the explanations convoluted. But lots of people like it and it is HL and SL.

[Trololol Marf]

I personally detest the Tsokos textbook as well, and I have the Pearson one. I couldn't understand one damn thing I read in the Tsokos book, but there are worked out online solutions. I guess I'm not really the physics-inclined person (although I'm math-inclined, which is pretty weird)

The Pearson one, which was mildly passable, did not help me during my exam at all. Perhaps you take a look at the study guide and course companion.

[Drake Glau]

Hmm I used some book...it was purple...and tsoko sounds familiar. It was bad.

We also used a physics book by Giancolli (spelling might be off). It is not an "IB" book but it does cover most, if not all, of the curriculum so you could always use that. I used it much more than that other purple book.

[IB Suicidal]

I have tried four different books in physics and here are my impressions and opinions,

- Course companion (Kirk and Hodgson)(based on IB-syllabus): Boring and difficult to understand. Concise and short. Hardly any worked examples, problems or questions.

- Pearson Physics (Hamper)(based on IB-syllabus): Also short and concise. Only includes what is absolutely necessary and can be difficult to grasp. Has some examples but not enough. However the worked solutions online come in handy.

- Physics (Giancoli): Elaborated and well explained. Has many examples, worked examples, problems, quizzes and illustrations. Easy to understand and also explains background/basis (contrary to the two books above), which can be very helpful. Excellent book!

- Physics for scientist and engineers (Serway and Jewett): Sounds intimidating but is by far the best I have used. Very similar to Giancoli with very easily understandable text. I understand everything I read in this book. Of course, this book reaches far beyond the IB syllabus and must be handled with care.

What I do is to use the Pearson book and look up what I don't understand (which probably is 50 % of what I read in Pearson) in Giancoli or Serway (where it usually is explained way better).

Edited by IB Suicidal, Feb 09, 2012 - 20:00.

[HiggsHunter]

Which edition of Jewett and Serway did you use? New copies of the many versions of the 8th edition are very expensive, while second-hand copies of the 7th edition are available at reasonable prices. Did your edition include the exercises, or did it need a WebAssign code to access them via the internet?

[IB Suicidal]

I use the seventh edition and yes, it contains exercises (questions, problems and quizzes to each chapter). I haven't tried out the WebAssign, so I don't know about that. I suppose the seventh edition would be sufficient and because I also use other books, I am able to cover the IB syllabus. However, the eight edition is available with the modern physics chapter (I don't know if that chapter is available in the seventh edition). I also don't know if the modern physics chapter is relevant for the IB syllabus. Perhaps it contains something on digital technology or astrophysics...? What is modern in physics?

I borrowed the book at my local university's library and then I can have it for two months. They have about ten of this book there, so I don't think I have to turn it in 'till after the exam. So my advice is: Check out your library

On the other hand, if you are going to study physics later it would be neat to buy the book. I suppose I will buy it myself one day

:>

[HiggsHunter]

Thanks for the info, Suicidal. "Very good condition" used copies of the book were offered on Amazon from $15, so I've ordered one to see. The contents list of the 7th edition suggests that Chapters 39 - 46 should cover some of the Modern Physics topics. (Relativity, quantum mechanics, nuclear structure, and particle physics up to the standard model)

[ananya.agrawal95]

There are copies of pearson physics as pdf files floating around online, though its quite large at around 200 mb.

[HiggsHunter]

PhysicsSource provide the Pearson Physics eBook with each chapter as a separate file that can be downloaded rapidly. There is a 2-page list of errata and updates, too. I haven't come across Jewett and Serway online, though.

[ananya.agrawal95]

Yup, michio kaku is what got me interested in physics again, but i dont think it matches the OPs requirements

[Jasmeena]

I don't know if you're a visual type, but I love this book. It doesn't have any tasks, well, not many but it is amazing when it comes to understanding topics. It explains everything but with pictures and stuff. http://www.amazon.com/Physics-Illustrated-Science-Visual-Resources/dp/081606167X
But for tasks and solved examples, I recommend this one: http://www.amazon.co...l/dp/0471151831