Head First Physics: A Learner's Companion to Mechanics and Practical Physics (AP Physics B - Advanced Placement)

A superb book for practical physics. Written in a clear and easy to understand way. Definitely a help.

Hey, where was this book when I was in high school? This is an easy to read guide to basic mechanical physics with plenty of real world examples and fun problems to work out. It is more written for a high school audience, but early college students will find plenty of help as well. It starts with lessons in scientific notation, equations, and graphing, and works its way through velocity and acceleration, torque, pulleys, circular motion, and more. Some of the examples used are the use of levers to get Excalibur out of the stone, and shooting cannonballs at a ghost pirate ship as lessons in momentum conservation. /Head First Physics/ is billed as a good aid for students working on AP physics classes, but would also be a good guide for someone just interested in knowing more about how the world works. The illustrations range from photos to fairly crude stick figures and are probably the largest flaw in the book. More consistency there would have been nice, but it isn't a large enough flaw to detract from the quality of the instruction.

If you're in high school or college and struggle with physics concepts, HEAD FIRST PHYSICS is a recommended pick. It provides a lively connection between physics theory and the world we live in, examining basic concepts, using the latest research in learning theory to enliven presentations, and covering math and physics concepts using lively black and white drawings, photos, and large-size graphs. An outstanding physics survey evolves.

'Head First Physics: A Learner's Companion to Mechanics and Practical Physics' is a wonderful book for anyone that wants to learn physics in a fun and practical way. This book is geared toward new learners or basic ones that want to learn without knowing they are doing so. Instead of a bland 1,500+ page book with just text regarding Newton and the other great minds, you get a USABLE book that is FUN FUN FUN. I love the Head First books because they present subject matter in a way that is DIFFERENT. Written by an experienced academic, Heather Lang writes in a format that is truly a delight. If you are looking for a masters Physics book you will be disappointed. If you are young, in high school or just an adult that wants to learn more in a BETTER way this book is a gem. ***** HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

This book is as good any of the Head First books I have purchased and used. In this case I used it to tutor some kids in the mechanics portion of physics. However, be sure to read the ENTIRE title - "Head First Physics: A Learner's Companion to Mechanics and Practical Physics". Thus the emphasis is on the mechanics portion of physics and the tone is practical in nature. There is enough rigor there, but the tone is conversational as in all of the Head First books by O'Reilly. If you are looking for a tutorial on optics, acoustics, electricity and magnetism, and the rest of what composes a college freshman two-semester sequence on general engineering physics prepare to be disappointed - very disappointed. However, that is not what the author is selling you. I wouldn't recommend this as a stand-alone text - I don't think it is rigorous enough to be that. However, as a supplement to a standard college physics text on the mechanics portion of physics, I think it does a great job. It turns the incomprehensible into something that a good student willing to put forth some effort can understand and turns all of the talk of vectors and forces into an approach to mechanics problems that the student can use to attack most mechanics problems. For that purpose I highly recommend it. The student doesn't need to know calculus. The highest mathematics used is trigonometry. The following is the table of contents that is currently unavailable in the product description: Chapter 1. think like a physicist Chapter 2. making it all MEAN something Chapter 3. scientific notation, area, and volume Chapter 4. equations and graphs Chapter 5. dealing with directions Chapter 6. Displacement, Velocity, and Acceleration Chapter 7. Equations of motion (part 1) Chapter 8. Equations of motion (part 2) Chapter 9. triangles, trig and trajectories Chapter 10. momentum conservation Chapter 11. weight and the normal force Chapter 12. using forces, momentum, friction and impulse Chapter 13. torque and work Chapter 14. energy conservation Chapter 15. tension, pulleys and problem solving Chapter 16. circular motion (part 1) Chapter 17. circular motion (part 2) Chapter 18. gravitation and orbits Chapter 19. Oscillations (part 1) Chapter 20. Oscillations (part 2) Chapter 21. think like a physicist Appendix A. leftovers Appendix B. equation table