Buy Quantum Mechanics: The Theoretical Minimum on desertcart.com ✓ FREE SHIPPING on qualified orders Review: THEE quantum book + Solutions available online - I've been working through this book. I learned quantum in my undergrad years from the Tannoudji book. It was very dry and I spend most my time trying to figure out what he (Tannoudji) was trying to say, THEN figure out whether I can prove it, etc. Funny how really smart people can create creatively new ways to make stuff more difficult through weird explanations. This is not so with Susskind. Susskind writes like Feynman: clear explanations on complex topics. I assume he's a native english speaker, as his tone is very colloquial and uninimtidating. He assumes the reader knows nothing of quantum and explains things in bit-sized pieces which are easy to digest. He rarely says things like "well OBVIOUSLY this flows from this" (when the things are so obvious). Anyways, the book is a bit unorthodox. It starts off talking about spin states and vector spaces. This is different than the typical quantum books that start off with talking about solving the Schrodinger equation. Which, now that I think about it, isn't really a great place to start. It's a wave equation that's only once-piece of the bigger picture. The result is a book that has a very gradual learning curve. That said, readers still need a bit of math background if they want to get through this book. I'd say at least a decent understanding of complex numbers and matrix algebra are a prerequisite. Both those subjects are thoroughly explained in places online (Khan Academy) for free. SOLUTIONS: I read another reviewer rate the book low because there is a lack of worked out solutions. That I disagree with. Google search "Quantum theoretical minimum solutions" and they will pop up. There are several unofficial sites out there that have answers to the solutions. For instance, google search "the uncertain biscuit quantum" or "chris brittain quantum". The solutions are out there. Also, on that note, the problems in this book are few..but concise and great. Very on-point. Regarding the reviewers who are rating this book low b/c it's too difficult. That's not really a good reason to rate a QUANTUM book low. For two reasons (1) it's a quantum book for christsakes. it is by far the most math-friendly book written on the subject. reading about quantum mechanics without math is not "doing" physics..it's just cataloging knowledge (e.g. stamp collecting), (2) how can you rate a book low if you don't understand it? What are your reviewing parameters? If you have a little complex number knowledge and rudimentary matrix operations (e.g. matrix multiplication, etc.) under your belt, you'll be fine. The Kindle version is fine. That's what I bought (I have a paper copy too). I prefer the kindle version because I can read it on my phone while waiting in line, etc. The equations come out fine (I'm not sure what the other revieweres were complaining about, I'm reading it on my iPhone 5s just fine.) If you know nothing of quantum and want to learn, I highly HIGHLY recommend this book. Review: Real quantum mechanics with real math. - This is a marvelous introduction to quantum mechanics. As Professor Susskind and many other physicists have noted, our natural intuition of how everyday objects behave simply does not apply to things at scales on the order of Plank’s length. Indeed, there is no reason to expect humans to have any intuitive sense of these phenomena—aside from an improbable extrapolation down 35 orders of magnitude! Our window into this world is, instead, a beautifully crafted mathematical framework, faithful to experimental observations. This book successfully presents that framework in a compelling and very approachable way, provided you commit to studying it closely and doing the (generally simple) exercises. The online video lectures are an excellent supplement and former students have posted solutions to the exercises (some more reliable than others). Your efforts will be amply rewarded with a satisfying understanding of the theoretical foundations of what is arguably the towering achievement of 20th century physics. It is intended for the mathematically literate. You will need • A basic knowledge of linear algebra — really no more than undergraduate-level familiarity with vectors/matrices and operations on them. The core engineering curriculum is more than enough. • A good working knowledge of complex variables. • Undergraduate calculus. I quickly discovered I needed to refresh my own memory on the chain rule for differentiation. I did take a class in differential equations while in grad school some 40+ years ago, have forgotten most of it, but found I really did not need it to get through this book. • Finally, a willingness to learn some unfamiliar notation. There is quite a lot of this, but Professor Susskind is careful to distinguish notation from new concepts.
| Best Sellers Rank | #26,373 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #6 in Mathematical Physics (Books) #24 in Quantum Theory (Books) #39 in Astrophysics & Space Science (Books) |
| Customer Reviews | 4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars (2,483) |
| Dimensions | 5.45 x 1.2 x 8.2 inches |
| ISBN-10 | 0465062903 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-0465062904 |
| Item Weight | 13.4 ounces |
| Language | English |
| Part of series | The Theoretical Minimum |
| Print length | 384 pages |
| Publication date | May 12, 2015 |
| Publisher | Basic Books |
J**A
THEE quantum book + Solutions available online
I've been working through this book. I learned quantum in my undergrad years from the Tannoudji book. It was very dry and I spend most my time trying to figure out what he (Tannoudji) was trying to say, THEN figure out whether I can prove it, etc. Funny how really smart people can create creatively new ways to make stuff more difficult through weird explanations. This is not so with Susskind. Susskind writes like Feynman: clear explanations on complex topics. I assume he's a native english speaker, as his tone is very colloquial and uninimtidating. He assumes the reader knows nothing of quantum and explains things in bit-sized pieces which are easy to digest. He rarely says things like "well OBVIOUSLY this flows from this" (when the things are so obvious). Anyways, the book is a bit unorthodox. It starts off talking about spin states and vector spaces. This is different than the typical quantum books that start off with talking about solving the Schrodinger equation. Which, now that I think about it, isn't really a great place to start. It's a wave equation that's only once-piece of the bigger picture. The result is a book that has a very gradual learning curve. That said, readers still need a bit of math background if they want to get through this book. I'd say at least a decent understanding of complex numbers and matrix algebra are a prerequisite. Both those subjects are thoroughly explained in places online (Khan Academy) for free. SOLUTIONS: I read another reviewer rate the book low because there is a lack of worked out solutions. That I disagree with. Google search "Quantum theoretical minimum solutions" and they will pop up. There are several unofficial sites out there that have answers to the solutions. For instance, google search "the uncertain biscuit quantum" or "chris brittain quantum". The solutions are out there. Also, on that note, the problems in this book are few..but concise and great. Very on-point. Regarding the reviewers who are rating this book low b/c it's too difficult. That's not really a good reason to rate a QUANTUM book low. For two reasons (1) it's a quantum book for christsakes. it is by far the most math-friendly book written on the subject. reading about quantum mechanics without math is not "doing" physics..it's just cataloging knowledge (e.g. stamp collecting), (2) how can you rate a book low if you don't understand it? What are your reviewing parameters? If you have a little complex number knowledge and rudimentary matrix operations (e.g. matrix multiplication, etc.) under your belt, you'll be fine. The Kindle version is fine. That's what I bought (I have a paper copy too). I prefer the kindle version because I can read it on my phone while waiting in line, etc. The equations come out fine (I'm not sure what the other revieweres were complaining about, I'm reading it on my iPhone 5s just fine.) If you know nothing of quantum and want to learn, I highly HIGHLY recommend this book.
A**R
Real quantum mechanics with real math.
This is a marvelous introduction to quantum mechanics. As Professor Susskind and many other physicists have noted, our natural intuition of how everyday objects behave simply does not apply to things at scales on the order of Plank’s length. Indeed, there is no reason to expect humans to have any intuitive sense of these phenomena—aside from an improbable extrapolation down 35 orders of magnitude! Our window into this world is, instead, a beautifully crafted mathematical framework, faithful to experimental observations. This book successfully presents that framework in a compelling and very approachable way, provided you commit to studying it closely and doing the (generally simple) exercises. The online video lectures are an excellent supplement and former students have posted solutions to the exercises (some more reliable than others). Your efforts will be amply rewarded with a satisfying understanding of the theoretical foundations of what is arguably the towering achievement of 20th century physics. It is intended for the mathematically literate. You will need • A basic knowledge of linear algebra — really no more than undergraduate-level familiarity with vectors/matrices and operations on them. The core engineering curriculum is more than enough. • A good working knowledge of complex variables. • Undergraduate calculus. I quickly discovered I needed to refresh my own memory on the chain rule for differentiation. I did take a class in differential equations while in grad school some 40+ years ago, have forgotten most of it, but found I really did not need it to get through this book. • Finally, a willingness to learn some unfamiliar notation. There is quite a lot of this, but Professor Susskind is careful to distinguish notation from new concepts.
A**R
Great book, very informative.
L**M
The book begins with simple and accessible language and increases in difficulty according to the theme, without ever losing clarity. In it, many scholars find new themes of mathematics and physics to be studied. The book together with the course that Professor Leonard Susskind and Stanford University make available for free on YouTube (in English) is enough to begin to understand the immensity of this theme that is applied to everything we use in our day to day, both in electronics as in medicine. Anyone who thinks that Quantum Mechanics is only theoretical is wrong. So, don't think twice, buy the book and watch the 10 classes of 2 hours each on YouTube for free and start understanding more advanced books on the subject.
C**N
Una excelente y peculiar introducción a la mecánica cuántica, con la participación de Leonard Susskind, uno de los padres de la teoría de cuerdas. El texto es relativamente sencillo, pero riguroso. Hay que tener en cuenta de que libro va dirigido a personas que tengan una cierta formación científica-matemática. Yo diría como mínimo un estudiante de ciencias (física, química, matemáticas) de 2º curso. Se necesita también cierto nivel de inglés. Aunque este libro está traducido, yo la que tengo es la versión en el idioma original. Desconozco si la versión traducida al castellano es buena o no. Las lecciones vienen con bastantes ejercicios, que no vienen resueltos en el libro, aunque hay un página web con las soluciones donde se pueden comprobar los resultados. No recuerdo la dirección de la página ahora, pero no es difícil encontrar.
I**N
Mycket bra bok som kräver eftertanke. Ingen snabbläsning
A**S
Un buen acercamiento a los principios elementales del tema. Los ejercicios son muy básicos (y son pocos) pero son suficientes para reforzar lo aprendido. El libro es excelente para personas que no han tenido mucha experiencia en el area de la física. Si quieres una formación más rigurosa busca otra opción
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