Hello. Coming out of high school with little practice in physics and science, what would be a good book to bridge the high school - university gap? Preferably with little to no color, drawings etc as I would like to print it out and read places that are not at my computer.
Depends on the extent to which you want to pursue physics. In general I would recommend practically any pop-sci book, for example those from the likes of Michio Kaku, Brian Greene, Richard Feynman to name a few. At your level these will serve the purpose of easing you into more abstract concepts; namely quantum/relativistic physics. Hell, even Einstein's popularization "Relativity: The Special And General Theory", almost a pamphlet, will give you a bit of grounding in the area.
Most of all I think Feynman, being basically the father of quantum electrodynamics, is a good starting point. So try his "Six Easy Pieces" first. If you like his style, look for his collection of lectures on physics. These are renowned for their clarity, breadth and insight. It's meant for college freshmen, progressing quickly from mechanics to thermodynamics, electromagnetism. I couldn't really give a better description, however, because I haven't actually read any of it.
>Michio Kaku NO
>Brian Greene NO
These two are speculative at best, and Kaku hits the bong. Seriously.
>Richard Feynman VERY YES,
Get the Lectures On Physics from the second hand book store, because you will be putting notes in the margin. Some things may be dated [especially his insistence on the mystery of QM as there isn't any such thing; it's just probability calculus with complex numbers]
And I found this online, how wonderful is that:
>>3
Even if speculative, the foundation for their investigations is solid knowledge (up to QCD and the color charge, at least). And he'll be getting to that stuff anyway, so it would be prudent to at least begin thinking about the subatomic universe.
Start with this: Mechanics by L D Landau and E.M. Lifshitz.
If you can't manage it,, then there is no hope for you.
I saw a book "Manga Guide to Physics" on Amazon the other day. I was kind of curious how it is, but I was reluctant to buy it.
Surely important to make sure Bridge from gravity to quantum mechanics.
and from Atomic orbitals to Periodic table of the elements.
is that the one where they explain stuff from manga and anime like how the pokeball works or goku's commie-ha-ha from dragonball?