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Physics 325
Introduction to Mathematical Physics
Philosophy is written in this grand book, the universe which stands continually open to our gaze. But the book cannot be understood unless one first learns to comprehend the language and read the letters in which it is composed. It is written in the language of mathematics, and its characters are triangles, circles, and other geometric figures. Without a knowledge of them, it is humanly impossible to understand a single word of it.
Galileo Galilei, 1622
Preface: The goals of this course are for you to become more adept at applying mathematical tools to physics problems and to be better prepared for other upper division courses and the real world. One of the tools we will spend some time on is powerful software that can solve practically any math problem provided you can express it correctly (it can be quite demanding) and interpret the results (they are not always obvious).
Prerequisites: Physics 214 Introduction to Physics II and Mathematics 261 Multivariable Calculus are the prerequisites for this course.
Text: This year I am trying a new text: Mathematical Tools for Physics, by James Nearing. The author has made it available free online. You can download the whole 423-page book or individual chapters any time and read them on your screen. You may well find it worthwhile to download the complete text formatted for two-sided bound printing (or have your favorite copy shop do so) and print it out.
Other useful books: It is often helpful to get additional viewpoints from other books. In recent years Mathematical Methods for Physics and Engineering, 3rd ed., by K.F. Riley, M.P. Hobson, & S.J. Bence (Cambridge University Press, 2006) has been used as the text for this course. The most widely-used text is probably Mathematical Methods in the Physical Sciences, 3rd ed., by Mary L. Boas (Wiley, 2006). If you would like to buy a text I suggest this one, although it is rather expensive. Another free book online that you may find helpful for certain parts of the course is Further Mathematical Methods by Niels Walet. Paul’s Online Math Notes, posted by a math professor at Lamar Unversity, contain much useful information. Numerous other books are available in the library.
Course Outline
Assignments and Grading: Two midterm exams will each determine 20% of your grade, the final exam will be 30%, and homework will count 30%. Check your current standing.
Other lectures: Each Monday at 4:00 p.m., from Sept 8 through Dec 1, the Department of Physics and Astronomy will present a free public lecture in its renowned "What Physicists Do" series. You will find these lectures a valuable supplement to your course work, as they will help you to know what is currently happening in physics and related fields. The lectures will become increasingly easy to understand as you progress in your studies.
Office hours: My office is Darwin 300I, phone 664-2594. I am there on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Official office hours are Mondays 10:00 - 10:50 and Wednesdays 1:00 - 1:50, but you can make an appointment for another time by e-mail or in class. E-mail to joe.tenn@sonoma.edu is an excellent way to contact me any time. If you have any problems which affect your performance in this course, please contact me. Do not stop attending classes.
University Policies: University policies, such as the add/drop policy, cheating and plagiarism policy, grade appeal procedures, accommodations for students with disabilities, and the diversity vision statement may be found at http://www.sonoma.edu/uaffairs/policies/studentinfo.shtml.
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