Cheap Physics : Principles with Applications Volume I (Ch. 1-15) (6th Edition) (Book) (Douglas C. Giancoli) Price

Related Products

Customer Reviews of Physics : Principles with Applications Volume I (Ch. 1-15) (6th Edition)

TRY AND SEE: IT'S NOT PERFECT, BUT NOT BAD AT ALL!
In this edition of "Physics: Principles with Applications", Douglas C. Giancoli did his best in alleviating the problems many Engineering and Science students face during their fresh year in the university. Physics is not the easiest course in the world; yet, the analyses of the chapters of this book are straightforward enough. Its coverage of Fluid Mechanics is much better than what I have seen in many books, (outside the British-based "Advanced Level Physics" by M. Nelkon and P. Parker). The same applies to Geometrical Optics, Waves, Sound, and Current Electricity. In each case, the mathematical dimension is simplified enough: and enriched with illustrated examples.
The fact that this book used lengthy verbal explanations in supporting its mathematical analyses should be appreciated, and not condemned. It shows that the author is not interested in scaring students with Differential Calculus and Complex Geometry, but merely interested in thorough explanations.
In conclusion, I would agree that this is no perfect physics text: none exist; however, it is not as bad as many reviewers have labelled it to be. Physics is a complex subject. It can be difficult; but, any student who diligently pay attention to the lessons of this book would not be disappointed. Only a trial will convince you!

---

Tough, Demanding, Excellent
I just completed an Advanced Placement (AP) Physics course atmy high school, using this book as our text. Although College-levelphysics is an extremely tough subject to comprehend, Douglas Giancoli does an excellent job in laying out the principals and applications of every aspect of the science. He starts with the basics: One and Two dimensional Kinematics, then moves on to cover Forces and Rotational motion, Gravitation, Torque, Momentum, Simple Harmonic Motion, Thermal Physics, Electricty and Magnetism, Relativity, Quantum and Nuclear Physics, and Astrophysics. Each chapter comes complete with practice questions and problems, and although they are sometimes incredibly difficult, they can be solved by using the information provided in the chapter, even though you sometimes have to extend the information one step further. The textbook has a companion website as well ..., complete with online questions and problems which made a great companion to the text. Occasionally throughout the year, we found a few errors in the text, and some of his explanations leave things to be desired, but overall it was a terrific textbook.

---

Outstanding text
I used Giancoli as my primary text in high school, and found it to be a superb text. I think those complaining of a lack of worked problems are missing the entire point of this text and the essence of studying physics. This book is about understanding physics principles and the equations you use to solve physics problems. You will find that with this understanding (certainly provided by this excellent text), the need for mindless ploughing through physics problems is lost. You will be able to solve physics problems on the basis of your conceptual understanding of the problems. So many students rely on rote learning and repetition by doing hundreds of questions. Sure, you might be able to attack similar problems for the next week or so, but as soon as you stop practicing, the skill is lost. True mastery of physics comes from appreciation of principles, not mere recognition of patterns in problems...this text will help you achieve such an appreciation.