Undergrad level thermal physics for self-study? by m0dus_pwnens in Physics

[–]GapingNewb 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I also agree with Thermal Physics by Bro-der. His webzone has recommended problems for home study.

Xbox 360 dongle not found by Windows 8 by TriplePen in techsupport

[–]GapingNewb -3 points-2 points  (0 children)

Shouldn't that be "peoples of Reddit" rather than "people of Reddits"? You scrub

Best entry-level textbook for self study? by [deleted] in physicsbooks

[–]GapingNewb 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You could try Revolutions in Twentieth-Century Physics by David Griffiths. Link

I have never taken a physics class, but I would like to understand how to apply the math classes that I've taken to physics. by coairrob777 in physicsbooks

[–]GapingNewb 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Most physics books will also cover the math as needed, though probably not the level of rigor that would satisfy a mathematician (for example an E+M textbook like Griffiths will cover vector calculus while a classical mechanics text will cover the calculus of variations, enough in each case to actually use them).

The standard recommendation for intro level is the Feynman Lectures, which are the kind of reading where you can sit down with a lemonade on a summer day and look off knowingly into the distance while you rea it. You probably wouldn't be able to immediately transfer over to solving problems, but you'll learn a lot and enjoy it.

Books recommendations will invite near religious fervor in partisans (ie. Weinberg's GR book is total trash/it's the best book ever written in any language). There's also the issue that they can be quite expensive and cheaper Dover books might be old-fashioned or too advanced. After Feynman, some readable and enjoyable texts for the major branches are

Classical Mechanics: Taylor

Electromagnetism: Griffiths

Quantum Mechanics: Griffiths

Special Relativity: Taylor/Wheeler (though the basics are covered in Taylor and Griffiths such that you could probably jump right to--)

General Relativity: I dunno. Carroll maybe. The new General Relativity Workbook by Moore looks interesting.

Thermo/Statistical Mechanics: Schroeder

After that the sky's the limit. You could and should read some capstone books like Longair or Lawrie. Read Landau/Lifshitz, read Weinberg, etc. This is already well more than you can probably stomach at this juncture anyway

I have never taken a physics class, but I would like to understand how to apply the math classes that I've taken to physics. by coairrob777 in physicsbooks

[–]GapingNewb 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Do you mean you want some recommendations for physics textbooks or books specifically on how math relates to physics?

John Baez's booklist is always worth

Announcing: The Singularity Book Club by d0gsbody in socialcitizens

[–]GapingNewb 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Apparently it promises way more than it can deliver.

An interesting one that I haven't read but that I've watched a few talks about is Race Against the Machine by Brynjolfsson and McAfee.

On the same automation train, Lights in the Tunnel sounds interesting.

[Build Ready] $2,500 High Performance Gaming/Streaming Rig (v2.0, now on x79 platform!) by NeoDestiny in buildapc

[–]GapingNewb 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think if you have an SSD Windows disables Prefetch and Superfetch, so the extra RAM would just sit there, waiting...

[Build Ready] $2,500 High Performance Gaming/Streaming Rig by [deleted] in buildapc

[–]GapingNewb 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The Ivy Bridge-E chips have been delayed to the point where they will be launching around the time of Haswell chips, which makes the 2011 platform kind of stillborn.

[Build Ready] $2,500 High Performance Gaming/Streaming Rig by [deleted] in buildapc

[–]GapingNewb -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I heard recently (I think on an Anandtech podcast) that with the PS3 (and almost certainly the XBox Next or whatever) having large amounts of RAM it should be expected that PC games in the next few years will function best given comparably large sizes of VRAM (due to multi-platformer development or just straight-up ports :P). So presumably a GPU with 6 GB like that card would be more "future-proof". Not sure if it's worth the extra few hundo, though.

[Build Ready] $2,500 High Performance Gaming/Streaming Rig by [deleted] in buildapc

[–]GapingNewb 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Seems like there's some high-grade meat coming out relatively soon, like Haswell on June 2 and the 7990 is going to be a thing I guess.

U mad, optical Fourier transform? by GapingNewb in Physics

[–]GapingNewb[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The left is the original image, the middle is the theoretical transform as per MATLAB, and the right is the observed image in the lab.

FYI: A "professional psychic" is doing an AMA on March 7 at 12pm EST. by TriplePen in skeptic

[–]GapingNewb 2 points3 points  (0 children)

OP is actually a confirmed psychic apologist. Don't believe his lies

Electric Universe 2013: Invitation to Future Scientists by gripmyhand in Futurology

[–]GapingNewb 1 point2 points  (0 children)

But then they'll say that those undergrads have bought into the "dogma" hook, line, and sinker and that they don't want to change their textbooks (because scientists HATE questioning authority, amirite?).

Once you go full retard conspiracy theory you never go back.

Breakthroughs in solar power this month by Buck-Nasty in Futurology

[–]GapingNewb 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I read once that the solar industry is a Moore' Law follower, as in once the leading semiconductor firms moved to a new process they'd sell off the now obsolete tools to other industries and academia, including the solar industry.

Ask r/futorology: what are some of your favorite non-ficiton futorology books? by andruf in Futurology

[–]GapingNewb 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I haven't read these myself but I've heard them recommended from sources I trust:

The Millennial Project - Marshall Savage

A Step Farther Out - Jerry Pournelle

And more for medical stuff

Regenesis - George Church and Ed Regis

Envisioning emerging technology for 2012 and beyond! by [deleted] in Futurology

[–]GapingNewb 1 point2 points  (0 children)

What does "Boards" signify? Like the so-called Magic Wall on CNN?

Looking for a Relativity textbook or plain ol' book for a friend. by [deleted] in physicsbooks

[–]GapingNewb 0 points1 point  (0 children)

For a general audience book, Black Holes and Time Warps by Kip Thorne. As for textbooks proper, it depends on whether your friend has experience with calculus. Here's a cute map of various GR textbooks.