Q&A: Beginner Math and Physics Books
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Beginner Math and Physics Books
Question
Hello! Could you please recommend books on physics and mathematics? I finished high school a few years ago and I’m about to decide what to study at university, and I’d like to check whether I still connect to those subjects the way I did in high school. Thank you very much!!
Answer
Hello. I don’t think the right approach is to read mathematics and physics books. If you liked it, there’s no reason to assume that now you don’t. True, high school is different from university in both content and style of learning, but even so, you can still understand your inclinations from that. In my opinion, you won’t learn much from currently reading this or that material.
A love of mathematics and physics in high school is an initial indication that you’ll also like these subjects at the post-high-school level. Still, that is definitely far enough from certainty to justify at least taking a look at academic textbooks.
I don’t know of good physics books in Hebrew, and the ones I know in English usually assume fairly broad mathematical knowledge. I’ll focus on mathematics books, and hope someone else can recommend good physics books.
The Open University has excellent books, in my opinion, on differential and integral calculus and linear algebra. The names of the books are:
– Infinitesimal Calculus 1
– Infinitesimal Calculus 2
– Linear Algebra 1
– Linear Algebra 2
Usually, these books are sold in volumes divided by “study units.” They are sometimes available in non-academic libraries, so I recommend checking your local library, because they aren’t cheap.
A free way to get a glimpse of these subjects is the Technion’s recorded course on differential and integral calculus and linear algebra. There are several versions that differ from one another in the level of mathematical depth the course goes into, depending on the target audience for which the course was intended. Search for “Calculus Technion” or “Linear Algebra Technion” on YouTube, and maybe add the name of the lecturer who taught some of them (at least the calculus courses), “Tzanzur.” That should help you find the different courses. I’ve never watched them myself, but my friends always recommended them.
Beyond those two subjects, calculus and linear algebra, you might be drawn to topics like combinatorics and graph theory. Unfortunately, I don’t know of any books in Hebrew on them, and I haven’t heard from friends about any recommended YouTube lectures. I’m mentioning the subject so that you’ll know this is a central mathematical field that will come up again and again in undergraduate mathematics studies (and maybe also in physics? I have no idea; the field is definitely relevant in biology). It would be worth trying to take a look at that too, to see whether you connect to it. Judicious use of Google will help.
Good luck with whatever you choose.