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Just to note for people who know about SICP: this book is not like that. The book jumps straight into basic principles of Lagrangian mechanics, talking about th

Just to note for people who know about SICP: this book is not like that. The book jumps straight into basic principles of Lagrangian mechanics, talking about the least action principle and the Euler-Lagrange equations. It is not "mechanics 101 for smart people" like SICP is for computer science. With that said, the computational approach they take is unique and useful. You'd especially like it if you like Scheme and the coding style found in SICP.

batbomb 13y ago
Learning Lagrangian mechanics was like falling in love all over again with your girlfriend when you discovered exactly how elegant she could be. Easily my favorite part of classical mechanics as an undergrad.
- weland 13y ago
  Same here. In highschool, I really struggled with classical mechanics. A lot of things didn't click, because they were taught to us before we were taught calculus, and a lot of what I was seeing in class simply didn't make much sense. I understood the words and I could do the math, but never actually felt like I had a grip on it. Fast forward to my freshman year and poof! mechanics suddely isn't a mess of because-i-said-so formulae that sort of make some physical sense. It's an elegant, well-thought system that can help you understand the world. I had a further moment of revelation later on, when I seriously studied philosophy. It doesn't look like much now, but when put into their historical context, the discoveries made by Galilei and Newton are amazing leaps in human thought.
  - CurtMonash 13y ago
    Microeconomics is as bad as physics in that respect -- if the course doesn't assume calculus, they wind up reinventing anyway. It's not worth the trouble to study either subject unless knowledge of calculus is assumed.
- zbinga 13y ago
  This. Exactly this, and I think it's not a coincidence that learning Scheme was also like this, but for programming.
tgb 13y ago
On the idea of "mechanics 101 for smart people" - can anyone recommend good books that are the analogs of SICP for other subjects? I'd love to know ones for, say, genetics or evolution as well as stats. I can say that Hubbard + Hubbard "Vector Calculus, Linear Algebra, and Differential Equations" does a good job of being that for vector calculus specifically and for exposure to theoretical mathematics.
- fancyketchup 13y ago
  I'm currently preparing for a course based around The Theoretical Minimum by Leonard Susskind, which (so far) seems like exactly what you're looking for. The beginning has a very quick recap of state spaces, vectors, calculus, etc. It goes over Lagrangian mechanics and conservation laws in the middle before finishing with Poisson brackets. The table of contents also claims a chapter on E&M, but I haven't looked at that yet.
- cconroy 13y ago
  Almost finished Vol I of Feynman Lectures On Physics. So far, Im picking up on the same enthusiasm and joy. A real pleasure to read. Euclid's Elements too for geometry is fantastic. (I think reading "from the horses mouth" is necessary but not sufficient. With guys like Newton especially, since there are no translation barriers (for us English speakers), and they are quite relatable.) I have noticed that excursions? in history of a topic; its people, places, culture, enhance the quality of the book. Feynman goes on historical asides, as does say, Apostol (in his calculus texts), and it has been a while but I believe SICP does too. I think the teaching of something should be coupled with its history. In this same vein, I'm too am interested in a book covering evolution and biology, but I have not found one, or heard of one, so if anybody knows I would greatly appreciate it. Two good bio books I have read are The Selfish Gene, and The Machinery Of Life (Goodsell), but they're more auxiliary.
- nextos 13y ago
  I'm quite fond of Watson's Molecular Biology of the Gene (not to be confused with Molecular Biology of the Cell). In the stats camp, Jaynes is fantastic, alas a bit difficult. But the prerequisites are very modest. It's self-contained. Hoel, Port & Stone's volume is a great introduction to basic (w/o measure theory) probability.
wuschel 13y ago
Neat. Does anyone have a epub/mobi version of this book?
tjr 13y ago
What would be good prerequisite reading before SICM?
- reikonomusha 13y ago
  At least an understanding of: * Newtonian mechanics * Multivariable calculus * Ordinary differential equations * Basic functional programming, Scheme, SICP * A developed discipline for reading higher level mathematical material, including new notations and ideas

batbomb 13y ago

Learning Lagrangian mechanics was like falling in love all over again with your girlfriend when you discovered exactly how elegant she could be. Easily my favorite part of classical mechanics as an undergrad.

weland 13y ago
Same here. In highschool, I really struggled with classical mechanics. A lot of things didn't click, because they were taught to us before we were taught calculus, and a lot of what I was seeing in class simply didn't make much sense. I understood the words and I could do the math, but never actually felt like I had a grip on it. Fast forward to my freshman year and poof! mechanics suddely isn't a mess of because-i-said-so formulae that sort of make some physical sense. It's an elegant, well-thought system that can help you understand the world. I had a further moment of revelation later on, when I seriously studied philosophy. It doesn't look like much now, but when put into their historical context, the discoveries made by Galilei and Newton are amazing leaps in human thought.
- CurtMonash 13y ago
  Microeconomics is as bad as physics in that respect -- if the course doesn't assume calculus, they wind up reinventing anyway. It's not worth the trouble to study either subject unless knowledge of calculus is assumed.
zbinga 13y ago
This. Exactly this, and I think it's not a coincidence that learning Scheme was also like this, but for programming.

tgb 13y ago

On the idea of "mechanics 101 for smart people" - can anyone recommend good books that are the analogs of SICP for other subjects? I'd love to know ones for, say, genetics or evolution as well as stats. I can say that Hubbard + Hubbard "Vector Calculus, Linear Algebra, and Differential Equations" does a good job of being that for vector calculus specifically and for exposure to theoretical mathematics.

fancyketchup 13y ago
I'm currently preparing for a course based around The Theoretical Minimum by Leonard Susskind, which (so far) seems like exactly what you're looking for. The beginning has a very quick recap of state spaces, vectors, calculus, etc. It goes over Lagrangian mechanics and conservation laws in the middle before finishing with Poisson brackets. The table of contents also claims a chapter on E&M, but I haven't looked at that yet.
cconroy 13y ago
Almost finished Vol I of Feynman Lectures On Physics. So far, Im picking up on the same enthusiasm and joy. A real pleasure to read. Euclid's Elements too for geometry is fantastic. (I think reading "from the horses mouth" is necessary but not sufficient. With guys like Newton especially, since there are no translation barriers (for us English speakers), and they are quite relatable.) I have noticed that excursions? in history of a topic; its people, places, culture, enhance the quality of the book. Feynman goes on historical asides, as does say, Apostol (in his calculus texts), and it has been a while but I believe SICP does too. I think the teaching of something should be coupled with its history. In this same vein, I'm too am interested in a book covering evolution and biology, but I have not found one, or heard of one, so if anybody knows I would greatly appreciate it. Two good bio books I have read are The Selfish Gene, and The Machinery Of Life (Goodsell), but they're more auxiliary.
nextos 13y ago
I'm quite fond of Watson's Molecular Biology of the Gene (not to be confused with Molecular Biology of the Cell). In the stats camp, Jaynes is fantastic, alas a bit difficult. But the prerequisites are very modest. It's self-contained. Hoel, Port & Stone's volume is a great introduction to basic (w/o measure theory) probability.

wuschel 13y ago

Neat. Does anyone have a epub/mobi version of this book?

tjr 13y ago

What would be good prerequisite reading before SICM?

reikonomusha 13y ago
At least an understanding of: * Newtonian mechanics * Multivariable calculus * Ordinary differential equations * Basic functional programming, Scheme, SICP * A developed discipline for reading higher level mathematical material, including new notations and ideas