Book picks similar to
Quantum Probability Quantum Logic by Itamar Pitowsky
physics
mathematics
philosophy-of-physics
prio-current
Cosmic Numbers: The Numbers That Define Our Universe
James D. Stein - 2011
We start counting our fingers and toes and end up balancing checkbooks and calculating risk. So powerful is the appeal of numbers that many people ascribe to them a mystical significance. Other numbers go beyond the supernatural, working to explain our universe and how it behaves. In Cosmic Numbers, mathematics professor James D. Stein traces the discovery, evolution, and interrelationships of the numbers that define our world. Everyone knows about the speed of light and absolute zero, but numbers like Boltzmann’s constant and the Chandrasekhar limit are not as well known, and they do far more than one might imagine: They tell us how this world began and what the future holds. Much more than a gee-whiz collection of facts and figures, Cosmic Numbers illuminates why particular numbers are so importantboth to the scientist and to the rest of us.
Chance: The science and secrets of luck, randomness and probability (New Scientist)
Michael Brooks - 2015
So it's not surprising that we persist in thinking that we're in with a chance, whether we're playing the lottery or working out the likelihood of extra-terrestrial life. In Chance, a (not entirely) random selection of the New Scientist's sharpest minds provide fascinating insights into luck, randomness, risk and probability. From the secrets of coincidence to placing the perfect bet, the science of random number generation to the surprisingly haphazard decisions of criminal juries, it will explore these, and many other, tantalising questions.Following on from the bestselling Nothing and Question Everything, this book will open your eyes to the weird and wonderful world of chance - and help you see when some things, in fact, aren't random at all.
Godel: A Life Of Logic, The Mind, And Mathematics
John L. Casti - 2000
His Incompleteness Theorem turned not only mathematics but also the whole world of science and philosophy on its head. Equally legendary were Gö's eccentricities, his close friendship with Albert Einstein, and his paranoid fear of germs that eventually led to his death from self-starvation. Now, in the first popular biography of this strange and brilliant thinker, John Casti and Werner DePauli bring the legend to life. After describing his childhood in the Moravian capital of Brno, the authors trace the arc of Gö's remarkable career, from the famed Vienna Circle, where philosophers and scientists debated notions of truth, to the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey, where he lived and worked until his death in 1978. In the process, they shed light on Gö's contributions to mathematics, philosophy, computer science, artificial intelligence -- even cosmology -- in an entertaining and accessible way.
Quantum Mechanics
Claude Cohen-Tannoudji - 1977
Nobel-Prize-winner Claude Cohen-Tannoudji and his colleagues have written this book to eliminate precisely these difficulties. Fourteen chapters provide a clarity of organization, careful attention to pedagogical details, and a wealth of topics and examples which make this work a textbook as well as a timeless reference, allowing to tailor courses to meet students' specific needs. Each chapter starts with a clear exposition of the problem which is then treated, and logically develops the physical and mathematical concept. These chapters emphasize the underlying principles of the material, undiluted by extensive references to applications and practical examples which are put into complementary sections. The book begins with a qualitative introduction to quantum mechanical ideas using simple optical analogies and continues with a systematic and thorough presentation of the mathematical tools and postulates of quantum mechanics as well as a discussion of their physical content. Applications follow, starting with the simplest ones like e.g. the harmonic oscillator, and becoming gradually more complicated (the hydrogen atom, approximation methods, etc.). The complementary sections each expand this basic knowledge, supplying a wide range of applications and related topics as well as detailed expositions of a large number of special problems and more advanced topics, integrated as an essential portion of the text.
Vector Mechanics for Engineers: Statics and Dynamics
Ferdinand P. Beer - 1972
Over the years their textbooks have introduced significant theoretical and pedagogical innovations in statics, dynamics, and mechanics of materials education. At the same time, their careful presentation of content, unmatched levels of accuracy, and attention to detail have made their texts the standard for excellence. The new Seventh Edition of Vector Mechanics for Engineers: Statics and Dynamics continues this tradition. The seventh edition is complemented by a media and supplement package that is targeted to address core course needs for both the student and the instructor.
Fluid Mechanics
Pijush K. Kundu - 1990
New to this third edition are expanded coverage of such important topics as surface boundary interfaces, improved discussions of such physical and mathematical laws as the Law of Biot and Savart and the Euler Momentum Integral. A very important new section on Computational Fluid Dynamics has been added for the very first time to this edition. Expanded and improved end-of-chapter problems will facilitate the teaching experience for students and instrutors alike. This book remains one of the most comprehensive and useful texts on fluid mechanics available today, with applications going from engineering to geophysics, and beyond to biology and general science. * Ample, useful end-of-chapter problems.* Excellent Coverage of Computational Fluid Dynamics.* Coverage of Turbulent Flows.* Solutions Manual available.
The Magic Square - Tricking Your Way to Mental Superpowers (Faking Smart Book 3)
Lewis Smile - 2012
Perform this genius seemingly-mathematical feat on any napkin, any receipt, or even on your friend's arm.You can learn the famous Magic Square, and you can learn it in under 10 minutes.You will have a magician's Grand Finale, in your hands at any moment. This gets audible gasps, and you can wow people with this for the rest of your life...**************************THE PERFORMANCE:**************************Your friend will name a random number. You then speedily write 16 different numbers into a 4x4 grid. With a smug flourish, you then reveal that all combinations and directions within the grid add up to their chosen number. It is simply mind-blowing.Effortlessly perform a trick that it seems only a computer could perform, and learn how in 10 minutes from right now.
On Gravity: A Brief Tour of a Weighty Subject
Anthony Zee - 2018
From the months each of us spent suspended in the womb anticipating birth to the moments when we wait for sleep to transport us to other realities, we are always aware of gravity. In On Gravity, physicist A. Zee combines profound depth with incisive accessibility to take us on an original and compelling tour of Einstein's general theory of relativity.Inspired by Einstein's audacious suggestion that spacetime could ripple, Zee begins with the stunning discovery of gravity waves. He goes on to explain how gravity can be understood in comparison to other classical field theories, presents the idea of curved spacetime and the action principle, and explores cutting-edge topics, including black holes and Hawking radiation. Zee travels as far as the theory reaches, leaving us with tantalizing hints of the utterly unknown, from the intransigence of quantum gravity to the mysteries of dark matter and energy.Concise and precise, and infused with Zee's signature warmth and freshness of style, On Gravity opens a unique pathway to comprehending relativity and gaining deep insight into gravity, spacetime, and the workings of the universe.
Electronics Fundamentals: Circuits, Devices and Applications (Floyd Electronics Fundamentals Series)
Thomas L. Floyd - 1983
Written in a clear and accessible narrative, the 7th Edition focuses on fundamental principles and their applications to solving real circuit analysis problems, and devotes six chapters to examining electronic devices. With an eye-catching visual program and practical exercises, this book provides readers with the problem-solving experience they need in a style that makes complex material thoroughly understandable. For professionals with a career in electronics, engineering, technical sales, field service, industrial manufacturing, service shop repair, and/or technical writing.
Field and Wave Electromagnetics
David K. Cheng - 1982
These include applications drawn from important new areas of technology such as optical fibers, radome design, satellite communication, and microstrip lines. There is also added coverage of several new topics, including Hall effect, radar equation and scattering cross section, transients in transmission lines, waveguides and circular cavity resonators, wave propagation in the ionosphere, and helical antennas. New exercises, new problems, and many worked-out examples make this complex material more accessible to students.