Classical Mechanics - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0470473959 ISBN 13: 9780470473955

Synopsis

This is the fifth edition of a well-established textbook. It is intended to provide a thorough coverage of the fundamental principles and techniques of classical mechanics, an old subject that is at the base of all of physics, but in which there has also in recent years been rapid development. The book is aimed at undergraduate students of physics and applied mathematics. It emphasizes the basic principles, and aims to progress rapidly to the point of being able to handle physically and mathematically interesting problems, without getting bogged down in excessive formalism. Lagrangian methods are introduced at a relatively early stage, to get students to appreciate their use in simple contexts. Later chapters use Lagrangian and Hamiltonian methods extensively, but in a way that aims to be accessible to undergraduates, while including modern developments at the appropriate level of detail. The subject has been developed considerably recently while retaining a truly central role for all students of physics and applied mathematics. This edition retains all the main features of the fourth edition, including the two chapters on geometry of dynamical systems and on order and chaos.

About this title

Review:

Classical Mechanics by T Kibble and F Berkshire is tailor-made for budding theoreticians. It lays the groundwork for relativity and quantum theory, quickly progressing beyond Newtonian mechanics to the alternative formulations of Joseph Lagrange and William Hamilton. --New Scientist

[...] the student who requires a good book on the older aspects of Classical Mechanics together with a brief introduction to newer ideas will find the third edition useful. --Contemporary Physics

This volume, by Kibble and Berkshire, has proved to be a successful book [...] the written content and presentation are all excellent. --European Journal of Physics

From the Back Cover:

This well established text, now in its fourth edition, continues to set out the fundamental principles of the mechanics of particles and rigid bodies, with new added features.
Classical Mechanics now includes two new chapters on the qualitative geometrical features of dynamical systems, and on the distinction between regular and chaotic motion. The book assumes some prior acquaintance with the elementary concepts, but begins with a review of these first principles. Needed results on vectors are summarized in an appendix. Those features of classical mechanics, which are of importance in other branches of physics, particularly the conservation laws and symmetries, are highlighted.
Key Features of this edition include-
- Two new chapters on dynamical systems and their geometry, and on order and chaos
- A wide range of problems with answers. In this edition, the more demanding problems are starred.
- Two new appendices- on conic sections and on the classification of the behaviour of a dynamical system near a critical point
- Emphasis on the basic principles of wide applicability
- End of chapter summaries
- A comprehensive index and list of symbols

Classical Mechanics is written for undergraduate students of physics. It assumes some previous knowledge of the basic concepts and reasonable familiarity with differential and integral calculus.
Tom Kibble is Professor of Theoretical Physics, Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, London, UK, and a Fellow of the Royal Society. He has published many articles on theoretical particle physics and cosmology. Frank Berkshire is also at the Imperial College. He is Senior Lecturer and Director of Undergraduate Studies in the Department of Mathematics, and has published on dynamical systems, waves and fluids. Both authors have long experience of lecturing to physics students.

About this edition

• ISBN 10: 0470473959
• ISBN 13: 9780470473955
• Binding: Paperback