I want to learn Theoretical Physics by my self....some help??

[Manasik]

hi,

I am 19 years old engineering student but have a huge interest in theoretical physics. Can you suggest any reference where I can do this?

[EdEarl]

Engineering will give you a good background in math, which is essential.

 

Youtube has many videos about physics, some that require no math and some in which math helps. You may get quite a bit of physics as part of your undergraduate degree. I know electronic engineering students get a lot of physics.

 

Leonard Susskind of Stanford has recorded some of the ones that require a little math. I know other universities have videos on youtube, but I have listened to only a few and don't know much about them. After you watch the no math and little math videos you should find studying physics with full math a little easier. Here is short video.

 

Edited May 20, 2013 by EdEarl

[ajb]

I am 19 years old engineering student but have a huge interest in theoretical physics.

Theoretical physics is a broad term, are there things you particularly would like to study?

[Manasik]

im particularly interested in string theory and GUT

[timo]

The answer to your original question of course it "at university". But that doesn't seem to be what you had in mind. I recommend to focus on your interest in engineering, instead.

[ajb]

Timo is probabily right, University is the place to learn about strings. I can give you references to introductions to string theory, but really these are aimed at graduate students in theoretical physics.

[timothyd]

Anyone that says man has limited biological potential for change, if not completely wrong, is certainly not current in biology/epigenetics. In very brief, what the organism does, eats, breathes, etc. can result in either methylation or acetylation of genes, histones, and mRNA. The methylation restricts or prevents the expression of the impacted gene/histone/mRNA. Acetylation increases the expression of genes. Methylation can take the form of either one epigene, two, and recently three have been very recently observed. Methylation of histones is more reversible than that of genes. Science is just discovering, much to its amazement, that epigenetics can be inherited, for many generations. To put it succinctly, in part, Lamarck was correct!

[imatfaal]

!

Moderator Note

Timothyd - that is completely off-topic. If you or others wish to discuss your message do so in its own thread.

[Manasik]

ajb- it would be nice if you give references to introduction to string theory

Timothyd- I think u accidently posted in wrong thred

[timothyd]

I would concur with both you and the moderator, except, I was responding to the Alvin Toffler quotation above dealing with the asserted biological limitations of mankind. I was encouraged to give that reply, by the number of physicists that write on biology topics. I just finished Warner R Loewenstein's Physics in Mind: a Quantum View of the Brain, as a recent example.

[elfmotat]

ajb- it would be nice if you give references to introduction to string theory

 

How's this: http://math.berkeley.edu/~kwray/papers/string_theory.pdf

 

It's the easiest to follow I've seen for free on the internet. I've heard that Zwiebach's textbook is suitable for undergrads, and that it doesn't even require too much experience with GR or QFT. I can't confirm this myself because I don't own it.

 

Anyway, if you really want to understand ST you're going to have a long road ahead of you. I would proceed roughly as follows:

 

Newtonian Mech. --> Lagrangian/Hamiltonian Mech. --> EM --> SR --> QM --> GR --> QFT --> ST

 

There are a few other things you should learn as well, such as Statistical Mechanics and Thermodynamics, when you see fit. Each new field will require a lot of new math as well. Newtonian Mechanics involves only basic calculus for the most part. Lagrangian/Hamiltonian Mechanics introduces calculus of variations, EM requires familiarity will vector calculus theorems, QM requires a good feel for linear algebra, GR requires differential geometry, and QFT requires group theory and a few other things.

 

I'm not sure what new math ST requires because I haven't studied it yet.

[ajb]

I'm not sure what new math ST requires because I haven't studied it yet.

It depends on your tastes and what you want to do. A basic knowldge of classical mechanics (Lagrangians, Euler-Lagrange equations, Noether's theorems etc), quantum mechanics (operators and states etc) and differential geometry (coordinates, embeddings, metrics etc) should for the most part be enough. Knowing some quantum field theory and general relativity would also be useful.

 

As for references I suggest, as starting places

 

B. Zwiebach, A First Course in String Theory, Cambridge University Press; 2nd edition (January 26, 2009. It requres only knowledge of classical, quantum mechanics and a little classical field theory really, things that a typical 3rd or 4th year undergrad would know.

 

R. Szabo, An Introduction to String Theory and D-Brane Dynamics, World Scientific Publishing Company (July 12, 2004). There is a newer vesrsion avaliable with solutions to the problems.

 

J.Polchinski, String Theory Vol.1 & Vol.2, Cambridge University Press (June 20, 2005).

 

All 4 books I have used to get a basic understanding of string theory. Zwiebach is the most basic, but quite long. Szabo is much quicker, but it is aimed at grad students who have some exposure to QFT and supersymmetry. Polchinski is somewhere in between the two and is clearly written with physics in mind. If you want a more mathematical treatment then look elesewhere; but this will depend on your interests.