Items related to How Things Work: The Physics of Everyday Life
Synopsis
Written primarily for a one–term, undergraduate level course, this book attempts to convey an understanding and appreciation for the concepts and principles of Physics by finding them within specific objects of everyday experience. It′s primary market are liberal arts students who are seeking a connection between science and the world they live in; among its many secondary markets are the growing number of institutions offering courses with scientific real–world context. These courses may also be offered to students from the Sciences, Engineering, Architecture, and other technical fields.
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From the Publisher
Uses a unique approach to convey an understanding and appreciation for the concepts and principles of physics and science by finding them within specific objects of everyday experience. Each of the 51 sections tells the story of its object with a minimum of distractions. Every physical notion is held in place by the objects that use it rather than the abstract structure of more traditional physics books. Contains many review questions, historical/biographical vignettes, case studies, exercises and simple experiments.
From the Back Cover
Though his moves appear magical, this skateboarder is performing his stunts entirely within the laws of physics. More importantly, he is making those laws real and relevant. This book is all about putting the laws of physics in context. By finding physics in the objects of everyday experience, How Things Work transforms the field from a remote and abstract academic discipline into the essential basis for understanding our world and everything in it.
Our skateboarder illustrates the same physics we'll explore in the first two chapters of this book. Like someone who is skating (Section 1.1), he spends much of his time coasting forward because of his own inertia. But his recent trip up a ramp (Section 1.3) has lifted him high above the ground so that he is subject only to his weight-the downward pull of gravity-and travels in the arc of a falling ball (Section 1.2).
Of course, since both he and the board rotate like seesaws (Section 2.1) as they fall, landing safely is more than half the challenge. His concentration is a sure sign that he intends to ride the skateboard back down the slope on its friction-reducing wheels (Section 2.2) in another second or two. However, if he makes a mistake and collides with something, as he would in a bumper car(Section 2.3), it's Reassuring to note that he's warning a helmet.
If this all sounds rather ordinary, it's because physics is ordinary. It's everywhere you look. But understanding physics well will require some guidance and thought, so it's time to venture inside this book.
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