Classical Mechanics

An Overview of a Clockwork Universe

What you'll learn

The conceptual foundations of classical mechancis.

Aspects of classical physics without falling into oversimplifications and yet conceived for an audience of non-physicists.

A course that fills the gap between a too simplistic version of classical mechanics and too high level university courses.

An overview of classical mechanics, from Galileo's and Newton's first laws of motion to modern chaos theories.

Requirements

Not needed: College math (e.g. no calculus, linear algebra.)

Needed: High school math (scalar, vector notation, vector addition, square root, powers, 10^+-7, notion of a function, derivatives expression (only conceptually), quadratic equation, sine/cosine function in radians and/or degrees, scalar and cross product, find the common denominator (1/2 + 1/5 = 7/10), units: m, cm, km, kg, g, mg, µg,… Unit prefixes: Mega, giga, tera, milli, micro; average , weighted average, make simple algebraic calculations, know cross-multiplication rule, simple geometry such as the radius, the circumference of a circle, area, etc.)

Description

Note: Take a look at the free lectures! Scroll down to the curriculum and click on 'Basics I'. The 'preview' lectures are free. That might help you to get a better feeling of what's about.Why this course? Classical mechanics is the bedrock of all physics. One can’t understand almost any chapter of physics without the foundations of classical mechanics. However, most textbooks introduce it starting from a higher-level calculus rigor over hundreds of pages, while in the popular media, it is mostly skipped entirely. This course takes a middle way with an intermediate-level and compact approach. It furnishes the basics in a conceptually rigorous way by keeping the math limited and without going too much into the details. It could be an ideal first-impact training, preparing you for the next level of a full-fledged university course.What is it about? A course on the conceptual foundations of classical mechanics starting from the first notions introduced by Galileo, Newton, and Descartes until modern non-linear deterministic chaos theory. It starts with an introduction to the birth of classical mechanics, which is one of the most essential events determining the birth of modern science. The following topics are discussed: The first laws of motion, the concept of work and energy, power and conservation laws, the collision process and the notion of the center of mass, the inclined plane, the physics of rotational motion (angular velocity, angular acceleration and angular momentum, centripetal and centrifugal forces, torque, the moment of inertia, rotational kinetic energies, etc.), the harmonic oscillator and the simple pendulum, a short intro to waves, Newton's universal law of gravitation, and some conclusive lectures about non-linear dynamics, with a philosophical appendix on the notion of determinism and chaos.Who is it for? It is directed at all those students who struggle in making the transition from the middle- and high-school intuitive approach in physical sciences, to the more formal and conceptual rigor of a professional development course. It is neither the former nor the latter, but something that tries to build the bridge in between. A course that could facilitate entrance into undergraduate and graduate studies not only in physics but also for engineers, biologists, chemists, or all those applying to faculties that require mandatory physics tests. Others who could profit from this first introduction to classical mechanics are philosophers or autodidacts who are interested in the philosophy of science but had no formal instruction in this domain and would like to give their technical basis a firm foundation. This course could also be a good introduction for those who intend to subscribe to my other Udemy course on quantum physics, entitled “Quantum physics: an overview of a weird world.”Who is it not for? If you are looking for a full-fledged course covering all the topics with a rigorous approach and a mathematical deep dive into classical and analytical mechanics preparing you for a college examination, this course is not sufficient. As stated above, it is an intermediate-level approach that furnishes a general overview of the subject but does not go far enough for professional training.

Overview

Section 1: Introduction

Lecture 1 Introduction

Section 2: The Birth of Modern Science

Lecture 2 The Pre-Scientific Era

Lecture 3 The Foundations of Classical Mechanics

Lecture 4 A World of Coordinates

Section 3: The Laws of Motion

Lecture 5 The First Equations of Motion

Lecture 6 The Laws of the Falling Bodies

Lecture 7 The Galilean Transformations

Lecture 8 Newton's Three Laws of Motion

Section 4: Work, Energy, Power and Conservation Laws

Lecture 9 Work

Lecture 10 Energy and the Weight Force

Lecture 11 Conservation Laws and Power

Section 5: Collision processes and the Center of Mass

Lecture 12 Collision processes

Lecture 13 The Center of Mass

Section 6: The inclined Plane

Lecture 14 The Inclined Plane

Section 7: The Physics of Rotational Motion

Lecture 15 Angular Velocity and Frequency

Lecture 16 The Centripetal Force

Lecture 17 The Coriolis Effect

Lecture 18 Angular Momentum of a Point Particle

Lecture 19 The Torque

Lecture 20 The Moment of Inertia

Lecture 21 The Angular Acceleration

Lecture 22 Rotational Kinetic Energy

Lecture 23 Conservation of angular momentum

Section 8: Degrees of Freedom, Staics and Dynamics

Lecture 24 Degrees of Freedom; Statics and Dynamics

Section 9: The Harmonic Oscillator

Lecture 25 The Simple Harmonic Oscillator - Part I

Lecture 26 The Simple Harmonic Oscillator - Part II

Lecture 27 The Simple Pendulum

Section 10: Waves

Lecture 28 The Wave Equation

Lecture 29 Superposition and Interference

Lecture 30 Superposition and Interference: The 1D Standing Wave

Lecture 31 Transverse and Longitudinal Wave

Lecture 32 2D and 3D Standing Waves

Section 11: Newton's Universal Law of Gravitation

Lecture 33 Kepler's three laws of planetary motion

Lecture 34 Newton's universal law of gravitation

Lecture 35 The gravitational potential

Lecture 36 Escape and circular orbital velocity

Section 12: From Determinism to Chaos

Lecture 37 The two-body ODE

Lecture 38 Laplace's Determinism

Lecture 39 Deterministic Chaos

Who is it for? To all those students who struggle in making the transition from the middle- and high-school intuitive approach in physical sciences, to the more formal and conceptual rigor of a professional development course. Please read the course description!,Who is it not for? If you are looking for a full-fledged course covering all the topics with a rigorous approach and a mathematical deep dive into classical and analytical mechanics preparing you for a college examination. As stated above, it is an intermediate-level approach that furnishes a general overview of the subject but does not go far enough for professional training. Please read the course description!