(Part 2) Reddit mentions: The best calculus books
We found 592 Reddit comments discussing the best calculus books. We ran sentiment analysis on each of these comments to determine how redditors feel about different products. We found 205 products and ranked them based on the amount of positive reactions they received. Here are the products ranked 21-40. You can also go back to the previous section.
21. Thomas' Calculus (13th Edition)
- Loose leaf in a binder.
Features:
Specs:
Height | 11.25 Inches |
Length | 8.9 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Weight | 5.3792791928 Pounds |
Width | 1.95 Inches |
22. Methods of Mathematics Applied to Calculus, Probability, and Statistics (Dover Books on Mathematics)
- Used Book in Good Condition
Features:
Specs:
Height | 9.2 Inches |
Length | 6.52 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Release date | November 2004 |
Weight | 2.59 Pounds |
Width | 1.65 Inches |
23. Calculus Made Easy
- Used Book in Good Condition
Features:
Specs:
Height | 9.02 Inches |
Length | 5.98 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Weight | 0.83 Pounds |
Width | 0.58 Inches |
24. Advanced Calculus, Revised Edition
Specs:
Height | 10 Inches |
Length | 7 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Weight | 0.00220462262 Pounds |
Width | 1.25 Inches |
25. Forgotten Calculus
- Imported plastic high end master model (HMM) kit
- Body size: total length: about 330mm
- Assembly, painting is required plastic model.
- Necessary tools, like paints and others are sold separate.
- (C) TOMY (C) ShoPro ZOIDS is a trademark of TOMY Company
Features:
Specs:
Height | 10.875 Inches |
Length | 7.75 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Release date | December 2001 |
Weight | 1.58512366378 Pounds |
Width | 0.9 Inches |
26. Thomas' Calculus (12th Edition)
Specs:
Height | 11.2 Inches |
Length | 8.9 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Weight | 5.5997414548 Pounds |
Width | 1.8 Inches |
27. The Hitchhiker's Guide to Calculus
Used Book in Good Condition
Specs:
Height | 8.5 inches |
Length | 5.75 inches |
Weight | 0.4 Pounds |
Width | 0.25 inches |
28. Vector Calculus, Linear Algebra, and Differential Forms: A Unified Approach, 4th Edition
- Lightweight, ultra-soft fabric designed to keep you cool and dry for everyday use, working out, and sports
- Climalite technology helps keep you cool and dry
- Matches to adidas apparel colors
- Stitch color may vary
- 5" Inseam
Features:
29. Understanding Mathematics: From Counting to Calculus
Specs:
Number of items | 1 |
Weight | 2.1 Pounds |
30. Mathematics for Physics with Calculus
Specs:
Height | 9.9 Inches |
Length | 8 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Weight | 1.322773572 Pounds |
Width | 0.9 Inches |
31. Mathematics: A Discrete Introduction
- Used Book in Good Condition
Features:
Specs:
Height | 9.5 Inches |
Length | 1 Inches |
Number of items | 2 |
Weight | 2.0502990366 Pounds |
Width | 7.5 Inches |
32. Multivariable Mathematics: Linear Algebra, Multivariable Calculus, and Manifolds
- Great product!
Features:
Specs:
Height | 9.299194 Inches |
Length | 7.59841 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Weight | 2.2707612986 Pounds |
Width | 1.401572 Inches |
33. Essential Calculus with Applications (Dover Books on Mathematics)
Math, numbers
Specs:
Height | 9.19 Inches |
Length | 6.13 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Release date | August 1989 |
Weight | 0.91712300992 Pounds |
Width | 0.63 Inches |
34. Complex Variables (Dover Books on Mathematics)
Specs:
Height | 8.45 Inches |
Length | 5.41 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Release date | September 2010 |
Weight | 0.86862131228 Pounds |
Width | 0.73 Inches |
35. Mathematics for Physicists
Used Book in Good Condition
Specs:
Height | 9.25 Inches |
Length | 6.5 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Weight | 2.12525620568 Pounds |
Width | 1 Inches |
36. Calculus for the Practical Man
Specs:
Height | 8.5 Inches |
Length | 5.5 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Weight | 1.00971715996 Pounds |
Width | 0.8 Inches |
37. Physics for Scientists and Engineers with Modern, Chapters 1-46
- BROOKS COLE
Features:
Specs:
Height | 10.75 Inches |
Length | 8.5 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Weight | 7.5 Pounds |
Width | 2 Inches |
38. Calculus: An Intuitive and Physical Approach (Second Edition) (Dover Books on Mathematics)
Specs:
Release date | April 2013 |
39. Calculus of Variations: with Applications to Physics and Engineering
Specs:
Height | 8.49 Inches |
Length | 5.42 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Release date | June 1974 |
Weight | 0.71870697412 Pounds |
Width | 0.69 Inches |
40. Mathematical Analysis and Proof
Specs:
Height | 9.21 Inches |
Length | 6.14 Inches |
Number of items | 1 |
Release date | April 2009 |
Weight | 0.881849048 Pounds |
Width | 0.6 Inches |
🎓 Reddit experts on calculus books
The comments and opinions expressed on this page are written exclusively by redditors. To provide you with the most relevant data, we sourced opinions from the most knowledgeable Reddit users based the total number of upvotes and downvotes received across comments on subreddits where calculus books are discussed. For your reference and for the sake of transparency, here are the specialists whose opinions mattered the most in our ranking.
I'd like to give you my two cents as well on how to proceed here. If nothing else, this will be a second opinion. If I could redo my physics education, this is how I'd want it done.
If you are truly wanting to learn these fields in depth I cannot stress how important it is to actually work problems out of these books, not just read them. There is a certain understanding that comes from struggling with problems that you just can't get by reading the material. On that note, I would recommend getting the Schaum's outline to whatever subject you are studying if you can find one. They are great books with hundreds of solved problems and sample problems for you to try with the answers in the back. When you get to the point you can't find Schaums anymore, I would recommend getting as many solutions manuals as possible. The problems will get very tough, and it's nice to verify that you did the problem correctly or are on the right track, or even just look over solutions to problems you decide not to try.
Basics
I second Stewart's Calculus cover to cover (except the final chapter on differential equations) and Halliday, Resnick and Walker's Fundamentals of Physics. Not all sections from HRW are necessary, but be sure you have the fundamentals of mechanics, electromagnetism, optics, and thermal physics down at the level of HRW.
Once you're done with this move on to studying differential equations. Many physics theorems are stated in terms of differential equations so really getting the hang of these is key to moving on. Differential equations are often taught as two separate classes, one covering ordinary differential equations and one covering partial differential equations. In my opinion, a good introductory textbook to ODEs is one by Morris Tenenbaum and Harry Pollard. That said, there is another book by V. I. Arnold that I would recommend you get as well. The Arnold book may be a bit more mathematical than you are looking for, but it was written as an introductory text to ODEs and you will have a deeper understanding of ODEs after reading it than your typical introductory textbook. This deeper understanding will be useful if you delve into the nitty-gritty parts of classical mechanics. For partial differential equations I recommend the book by Haberman. It will give you a good understanding of different methods you can use to solve PDEs, and is very much geared towards problem-solving.
From there, I would get a decent book on Linear Algebra. I used the one by Leon. I can't guarantee that it's the best book out there, but I think it will get the job done.
This should cover most of the mathematical training you need to move onto the intermediate level physics textbooks. There will be some things that are missing, but those are usually covered explicitly in the intermediate texts that use them (i.e. the Delta function). Still, if you're looking for a good mathematical reference, my recommendation is Lua. It may be a good idea to go over some basic complex analysis from this book, though it is not necessary to move on.
Intermediate
At this stage you need to do intermediate level classical mechanics, electromagnetism, quantum mechanics, and thermal physics at the very least. For electromagnetism, Griffiths hands down. In my opinion, the best pedagogical book for intermediate classical mechanics is Fowles and Cassidy. Once you've read these two books you will have a much deeper understanding of the stuff you learned in HRW. When you're going through the mechanics book pay particular attention to generalized coordinates and Lagrangians. Those become pretty central later on. There is also a very old book by Robert Becker that I think is great. It's problems are tough, and it goes into concepts that aren't typically covered much in depth in other intermediate mechanics books such as statics. I don't think you'll find a torrent for this, but it is 5 bucks on Amazon. That said, I don't think Becker is necessary. For quantum, I cannot recommend Zettili highly enough. Get this book. Tons of worked out examples. In my opinion, Zettili is the best quantum book out there at this level. Finally for thermal physics I would use Mandl. This book is merely sufficient, but I don't know of a book that I liked better.
This is the bare minimum. However, if you find a particular subject interesting, delve into it at this point. If you want to learn Solid State physics there's Kittel. Want to do more Optics? How about Hecht. General relativity? Even that should be accessible with Schutz. Play around here before moving on. A lot of very fascinating things should be accessible to you, at least to a degree, at this point.
Advanced
Before moving on to physics, it is once again time to take up the mathematics. Pick up Arfken and Weber. It covers a great many topics. However, at times it is not the best pedagogical book so you may need some supplemental material on whatever it is you are studying. I would at least read the sections on coordinate transformations, vector analysis, tensors, complex analysis, Green's functions, and the various special functions. Some of this may be a bit of a review, but there are some things Arfken and Weber go into that I didn't see during my undergraduate education even with the topics that I was reviewing. Hell, it may be a good idea to go through the differential equations material in there as well. Again, you may need some supplemental material while doing this. For special functions, a great little book to go along with this is Lebedev.
Beyond this, I think every physicist at the bare minimum needs to take graduate level quantum mechanics, classical mechanics, electromagnetism, and statistical mechanics. For quantum, I recommend Cohen-Tannoudji. This is a great book. It's easy to understand, has many supplemental sections to help further your understanding, is pretty comprehensive, and has more worked examples than a vast majority of graduate text-books. That said, the problems in this book are LONG. Not horrendously hard, mind you, but they do take a long time.
Unfortunately, Cohen-Tannoudji is the only great graduate-level text I can think of. The textbooks in other subjects just don't measure up in my opinion. When you take Classical mechanics I would get Goldstein as a reference but a better book in my opinion is Jose/Saletan as it takes a geometrical approach to the subject from the very beginning. At some point I also think it's worth going through Arnold's treatise on Classical. It's very mathematical and very difficult, but I think once you make it through you will have as deep an understanding as you could hope for in the subject.
There would have been a time that I would have suggested getting a curriculum
text book and going through that, but if you're doing this for independent work
I wouldn't really suggest that as the odds are you're not going to be using a
very good source.
Going on the typical
Arithmetic > Algebra > Calculus
****
Arithmetic
Arithmetic refresher. Lots of stuff in here - not easy.
I think you'd be set after this really. It's a pretty terse text in general.
*****
Algebra
Algebra by Chrystal Part I
Algebra by Chrystal Part II
You can get both of these algebra texts online easily and freely from the search
chrystal algebra part I filetype:pdf
chrystal algebra part II filetype:pdf
I think that you could get the first (arithmetic) text as well, personally I
prefer having actual books for working. They're also valuable for future
reference. This
filetype:pdf
search should be remembered and used liberallyfor finding things such as worksheets etc (eg
trigonometry worksheet<br /> filetype:pdf
for a search...).Algebra by Gelfland
No where near as comprehensive as chrystals algebra, but interesting and well
written questions (search for 'correspondence series' by Gelfand).
Calculus
Calculus made easy - Thompson
This text is really good imo, there's little rigor in it but for getting a
handle on things and bashing through a few practical problems it's pretty
decent. It's all single variable. If you've done the algebra and stuff before
this then this book would be easy.
Pauls Online Notes (Calculus)
These are just a solid set of Calculus notes, there're lots of examples to work
through which is good. These go through calc I, II, III... So a bit further than
you've asked (I'm not sure why you state up to calc II but ok).
Spivak - Calculus
If you've gone through Chrystals algebra then you'll be used to a formal
approach. This text is only single variable calculus (so that might be calc I
and II in most places I think, ? ) but it's extremely well written and often
touted as one of the best Calculus books written. It's very pure, where as
something like Stewart has a more applied emphasis.
**
Geometry
I've got given any geometry sources, I'm not too sure of the best source for
this or (to be honest) if you really need it for the above. If someone has
good geometry then they're certainly better off, many proofs are given
gemetrically as well and having an intuition for these things is only going to
be good. But I think you can get through without a formal course on it.... I'm
not confident suggesting things on it though, so I'll leave it to others. Just
thought I'd mention it.
****
i have three categories of suggestions.
advanced calculus
these are essentially precursors to smooth manifold theory. you mention you have had calculus 3, but this is likely the modern multivariate calculus course.
out of these, if you were to choose one, i think the callahan book is probably your best bet to pull from. it is the most modern, in both approach and notation. it is a perfect setup for smooth manifolds (however, all of these books fit that bill). hubbard's book is very similar, but i don't particularly like its notation. however, it has some unique features and does attempt to unify the concepts, which is a nice approach. edwards book is just fantastic, albeit a bit nonstandard. at a minimum, i recommend reading the first three chapters and then the latter chapters and appendices, in particular chapter 8 on applications. the first three chapters cover the core material, where chapters 4-6 then go on to solidify the concepts presented in the first three chapters a bit more rigorously.
smooth manifolds
out of these books, i only have explicit experience with the first two. i learned the material in graduate school from john m. lee's book, which i later solidifed by reading tu's book. tu's book actually covers the same core material as lee's book, but what makes it more approachable is that it doesn't emphasize, and thus doesn't require a lot of background in, the topological aspects of manifolds. it also does a better job of showing examples and techniques, and is better written in general than john m. lee's book. although, john m. lee's book is rather good.
so out of these, i would no doubt choose tu's book. i mention the latter two only to mention them because i know about them. i don't have any experience with them.
conceptual books
these books should be helpful as side notes to this material.
i highly recommend all of these because they're all rather short and easy reads. the first two get at the visual concepts and intuition behind vectors, covectors, etc. they are actually the only two out of all of these books (if i remember right) that even talk about and mention twisted forms.
there are also a ton of books for physicists, applied differential geometry by william burke, gauge fields, knots and gravity by john baez and javier muniain (despite its title, it's very approachable), variational principles of mechanics by cornelius lanczos, etc. that would all help with understanding the intuition and applications of this material.
conclusion
if you're really wanting to get right to the smooth manifolds material, i would start with tu's book and then supplement as needed from the callahan and hubbard books to pick up things like the implicit and inverse function theorems. i highly recommend reading edwards' book regardless. if you're long-gaming it, then i'd probably start with callahan's book, then move to tu's book, all the while reading edwards' book. :)
i have been out of graduate school for a few years now, leaving before finishing my ph.d. i am actually going back through callahan's book (didn't know about it at the time and/or it wasn't released) for fun and its solid expositions and approach. edwards' book remains one of my favorite books (not just math) to just pick up and read.
http://www.amazon.com/Calculus-4th-Michael-Spivak/dp/0914098918/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1342068971&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=spivak%27s+calculus
This book starts with basic properties of numbers (associativity, commutativity, etc), then moves onto some proof concepts followed by a very good foundation (functions, vectors, polar coordinate). Be forewarned that the content is VERY challenging in this book, and will definitely require a determined effort, but it will certainly be good if you can get through it.
A more gentle introduction to Calculus is http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Calculus-12th-George-B/dp/0321587995/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1342069166&amp;sr=1-1&amp;keywords=thomas%27+calculus and it is a much easier book, but you don't prove much in this one. Both of these can likely be found online for free. Also, if you want to get a decent understanding I recommend, http://www.amazon.com/How-Prove-Structured-Daniel-Velleman/dp/0521675995/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1342069253&amp;sr=1-1&amp;keywords=how+to+prove+it or http://www.people.vcu.edu/~rhammack/BookOfProof/index.html the latter is definitely free.
You may also need a more introductory text for trig and functions. I can't find the book my school used for precalc, hopefully someone else can offer a good recommendation.
Also, getting a dummies book to read alongside was pretty helpful for me, and Paul's online notes(website) is very nice.
/u/another_user_name posted this list a while back. Actual aerospace textbooks are towards the bottom but you'll need a working knowledge of the prereqs first.
Non-core/Pre-reqs:
Mathematics:
Calculus.
1-4) Calculus, Stewart -- This is a very common book and I felt it was ok, but there's mixed opinions about it. Try to get a cheap, used copy.
1-4) Calculus, A New Horizon, Anton -- This is highly valued by many people, but I haven't read it.
1-4) Essential Calculus With Applications, Silverman -- Dover book.
More discussion in this reddit thread.
Linear Algebra
3) Linear Algebra and Its Applications,Lay -- I had this one in school. I think it was decent.
3) Linear Algebra, Shilov -- Dover book.
Differential Equations
4) An Introduction to Ordinary Differential Equations, Coddington -- Dover book, highly reviewed on Amazon.
G) Partial Differential Equations, Evans
G) Partial Differential Equations For Scientists and Engineers, Farlow
More discussion here.
Numerical Analysis
5) Numerical Analysis, Burden and Faires
Chemistry:
Physics:
2-4) Physics, Cutnel -- This was highly recommended, but I've not read it.
Programming:
Introductory Programming
Programming is becoming unavoidable as an engineering skill. I think Python is a strong introductory language that's got a lot of uses in industry.
Core Curriculum:
Introduction:
Aerodynamics:
Thermodynamics, Heat transfer and Propulsion:
Flight Mechanics, Stability and Control
5+) Flight Stability and Automatic Control, Nelson
5+)[Performance, Stability, Dynamics, and Control of Airplanes, Second Edition](http://www.amazon.com/Performance-Stability-Dynamics-Airplanes-Education/dp/1563475839/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1315534435&amp;sr=8-1, Pamadi) -- I gather this is better than Nelson
Engineering Mechanics and Structures:
3-4) Engineering Mechanics: Statics and Dynamics, Hibbeler
6-8) Analysis and Design of Flight Vehicle Structures, Bruhn -- A good reference, never really used it as a text.
G) Introduction to the Mechanics of a Continuous Medium, Malvern
G) Fracture Mechanics, Anderson
G) Mechanics of Composite Materials, Jones
Electrical Engineering
Design and Optimization
Space Systems
Maybe a bit off topic, but I think that if you have a "math phobia" as you say, then maybe you need to find a way to become interested in the math for math's sake. I don't think you'll be motivated to study unless you can find it exciting.
For me, The Universal History of Numbers was a great book to get me interested in math. It's a vast history book that recounts the development of numbers and number systems all over the world. Maybe by studying numbers in their cultural context you'll find more motivation to study, say, the real number system (leading to analysis and so on). That's just an example and there are other popular math books you could try for motivation (Fermat's Enigma is good).
Edit: Also, there are numerous basic math books that are aimed at educated adults. Understanding Mathematics is one which I have read at one point and wasn't bad as far as I can remember. I am sure there are more modern, and actually for sale on Amazon, books on this topic though.
There are essentially "two types" of math: that for mathematicians and everyone else. When you see the sequence Calculus(1, 2, 3) -> Linear Algebra -> DiffEq (in that order) thrown around, you can be sure they are talking about non-rigorous, non-proof based kind that's good for nothing, imo of course. Calculus in this sequence is Analysis with all its important bits chopped off, so that everyone not into math can get that outta way quick and concentrate on where their passion lies. The same goes for Linear Algebra. LA in the sequence above is absolutely butchered so that non-math majors can pass and move on. Besides, you don't take LA or Calculus or other math subjects just once as a math major and move on: you take a rigorous/proof-based intro as an undergrad, then more advanced kind as a grad student etc.
To illustrate my point:
Linear Algebra:
Linear Algebra Through Geometry by Banchoff and Wermer
3. Here's more rigorous/abstract Linear Algebra for undergrads:
Linear Algebra Done Right by Axler
4. Here's more advanced grad level Linear Algebra:
Advanced Linear Algebra by Steven Roman
-----------------------------------------------------------
Calculus:
Calulus by Spivak
3. Full-blown undergrad level Analysis(proof-based):
Analysis by Rudin
4. More advanced Calculus for advance undergrads and grad students:
Advanced Calculus by Sternberg and Loomis
The same holds true for just about any subject in math. Btw, I am not saying you should study these books. The point and truth is you can start learning math right now, right this moment instead of reading lame and useless books designed to extract money out of students. Besides, there are so many more math subjects that are so much more interesting than the tired old Calculus: combinatorics, number theory, probability etc. Each of those have intros you can get started with right this moment.
Here's how you start studying real math NOW:
Learning to Reason: An Introduction to Logic, Sets, and Relations by Rodgers. Essentially, this book is about the language that you need to be able to understand mathematicians, read and write proofs. It's not terribly comprehensive, but the amount of info it packs beats the usual first two years of math undergrad 1000x over. Books like this should be taught in high school. For alternatives, look into
Discrete Math by Susanna Epp
How To prove It by Velleman
Intro To Category Theory by Lawvere and Schnauel
There are TONS great, quality books out there, you just need to get yourself a liitle familiar with what real math looks like, so that you can explore further on your own instead of reading garbage and never getting even one step closer to mathematics.
If you want to consolidate your knowledge you get from books like those of Rodgers and Velleman and take it many, many steps further:
Basic Language of Math by Schaffer. It's a much more advanced book than those listed above, but contains all the basic tools of math you'll need.
I'd like to say soooooooooo much more, but I am sue you're bored by now, so I'll stop here.
Good Luck, buddyroo.
Sorry, my post wasn’t very clear. Those were actually specific titles.
Practical Algebra:
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/practical-algebra-peter-h-selby/1114284979
Geometry and Trigonometry for Calculus:
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/p/geometry-and-trigonometry-for-calculus-peter-h-selby/1114965492/2676067143387
Those are both very good. My calculus recommendation is a little unconventional, so maybe it’s not for you, but I’d get Calculus: An Intuitive and Physical approach.
https://www.amazon.com/Calculus-Intuitive-Physical-Approach-Mathematics-ebook/dp/B00CB2MK6C
That book is far more wordy than your average calculus text, but I think that makes it great for self teaching. If you pick up something like 3000 Solved Calculus problems to go along with it you should be in great shape.
I know that’s not exactly cheap, but you should be able to pick up all of those for less than $100. Good luck!
Edit: all of the statistics texts in the last paragraph of my original post are available freely (legally, I believe) online.
Have you had a rigorous course on Analytical Mechanics? You will learn all about Noether's theorem there. How does Noether's theorem relate to charge conservation? For ANY continuous symmetry of the Lagrangian, we observe an associate Noether current made up of Noether charge. A continuous symmetry of the lagrangian is a symmetry that is generated by that lagrangian's Lie group. For example, the Lie group associated with electricity and magnetism is U(1). U(1) is the unitary group in 1 dimension and represents complex rotations in 1D. This is equivalent to SO(2), the 2 dimensional rotations in real space. If you apply this symmetry to the electromagnetic lagrangian using the proper covariant derivatives, you will obtain an associated four-current density that contains terms relating standard electrical current density. As for your question about special relativity and local gauge invariance. Strictly speaking, special relativity only has a continuous global symmetry, the poincare group, which is made up of the lorentz group (spacetime boosts, spacetime rotations) with the addition of spacetime translations. Jumping back to electricity and magnetism, enforcing local gauge invariance requires that the photon is massless. This is a definitely important for special relativity because the photon is assumed to be as such; only massless particles can keep pace with light. Neat info: because of the link to this gauge symmetry, you can actually experimentally verify charge conservation by measuring a zero mass photon. If the photon were massive, then the gauge symmetry is destroyed and you lose your conserved current. This is why you must have local charge conservation. No local charge conservation => massive photon => speed of light is not an invariant quantity.
Edit: Here is a link that has some information about the lorentz group. I wanted to mention the the four connected subgroups in my original post but didn't want to drone on. From them, you can derive the CPT symmetries and so forth.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lorentz_group
Edit 2: Here is my favorite book on the topic of calculus of variations. This theoretical machinery is the foundation for mechanics, and really, your most important tool in theoretical physics. With it, you derive all of the fun contained in Noether's theorem. It is my opinion that no physics student should be without a copy of Weinstock's book.
http://www.amazon.com/Calculus-Variations-Applications-Physics-Engineering/dp/0486630692
Edit 3: Last one, I promise haha. Here is my other favorite, if you are interested in cutting your teeth in a more mathematically rigorous way. Also an excellent book on the topic, it contains a lot the the other book is missing. I want to say that Weinstock doesn't cover the calculation of the second variation(and beyond), which you use to prove that your extremized functional is a minimum or maximum.
http://www.amazon.com/Calculus-Variations-Dover-Books-Mathematics/dp/0486414485/ref=pd_bxgy_b_img_y
You need some grounding in foundational topics like Propositional Logic, Proofs, Sets and Functions for higher math. If you've seen some of that in your Discrete Math class, you can jump straight into Abstract Algebra, Rigorous Linear Algebra (if you know some LA) and even Real Analysis. If thats not the case, the most expository and clearly written book on the above topics I have ever seen is Learning to Reason: An Introduction to Logic, Sets, and Relations by Nancy Rodgers.
Some user friendly books on Real Analysis:
Some user friendly books on Linear/Abstract Algebra:
Topology(even high school students can manage the first two titles):
Some transitional books:
Plus many more- just scour your local library and the internet.
Good Luck, Dude/Dudette.
There's really no easy way to do it without getting yourself "in the shit", in my opinion. Take a course on multivariate calculus/analysis, or else teach yourself. Work through the proofs in the exercises.
For a somewhat grounded and practical introduction I recommend Multivariable Mathematics: Linear Algebra, Calculus and Manifolds by Theo Shifrin. It's a great reference as well. If you want to dig in to the theoretical beauty, James Munkres' Analysis on Manifolds is a bit of an easier read than the classic Spivak text. Munkres also wrote a book on topology which is full of elegant stuff; topology is one of my favourite subjects in mathematics,
By the way, I also came to mathematics through the study of things like neural networks and probabilistic models. I finally took an advanced calculus course in my last two semesters of undergrad and realized what I'd been missing; I doubt I'd have been intellectually mature enough to tackle it much earlier, though.
>My first goal is to understand the beauty that is calculus.
There are two "types" of Calculus. The one for engineers - the plug-and-chug type and the theory of Calculus called Real Analysis. If you want to see the actual beauty of the subject you might want to settle for the latter. It's rigorous and proof-based.
There are some great intros for RA:
Numbers and Functions: Steps to Analysis by Burn
A First Course in Mathematical Analysis by Brannan
Inside Calculus by Exner
Mathematical Analysis and Proof by Stirling
Yet Another Introduction to Analysis by Bryant
Mathematical Analysis: A Straightforward Approach by Binmore
Introduction to Calculus and Classical Analysis by Hijab
Analysis I by Tao
Real Analysis: A Constructive Approach by Bridger
Understanding Analysis by Abbot.
Seriously, there are just too many more of these great intros
But you need a good foundation. You need to learn the basics of math like logic, sets, relations, proofs etc.:
Learning to Reason: An Introduction to Logic, Sets, and Relations by Rodgers
Discrete Mathematics with Applications by Epp
Mathematics: A Discrete Introduction by Scheinerman
> no advanced math...
I had to take business calculus and statistics, so there is math. I was terrified of it at first, but wound up buying a copy of Forgotten Calculus and, man, that is one of the greatest math books out there. No shortcuts, but it takes you by the hand and explains everything. I was cranking out differential equations after that.
Further, I brought the book to class and my calculus professor went nuts over it. I gave him the book after the final and he's now using examples from it to teach. It is that good. If you're afraid of the math, buy this book. You have to put in the time and work the problems, but it will get you through and everything will make sense.
> Accounting is learning the principles/regulations/laws of accounting and applying them.
Very true. I had a somewhat unfair advantage since I went back for another degree in accounting after I became a lawyer. There's a lot of overlap between the two professions and all the rules and regulations were easy. Of course, I hit my head against the wall over that stuff my first year of law school. You can understand it, but you have to be immersed in it for awhile. Then you'll pick it up and it's not too bad.
Also, I strongly recommend accounting over finance. Far more versatile, practical and useful. Finance means you work in finance. Accounting means you can work a variety of positions in any business.
This is a coincidence! I too have recently rediscovered my long lost love for maths and been studying on my own (from high school to graduate level). My approach is to buy a lot of USED books from amazon.com (you can get them for a few bucks) and from the used book stores in my neighbourhood. I love the Dover books on mathematics and science. They are cheap and often succinct. They maybe slightly dated but unless you are at the leading edge they are sufficient.
My main motivation is to understand maths. Corollary to that is to understand Physics. In school and college all i did was symbol manipulation to solve just enough problems to get through the exams without understanding what i did. Also math topics were taught as isolated islands rather than an integrated archipelago. I now want an integrated view of maths and science in general.
So here is my advice;
Do not get into any competition with anybody. Build your intrinsic motivation rather than extrinsic ones. Take your own time since you are starting from basics. Just set aside at least an hour a day to study maths. Build the discipline and persistence. The initial hurdle (at least in higher maths) is symbol phobia rather than maths itself. Stick with it. Remember you are not trying to prove anything to the world. You are just trying to prove to yourself that you can "grok" it. Confidence will fallout from that and will bleed into your everyday thinking.
Here are some of my books (i have a whole lot more).
I'm 2 years into a part time physics degree, I'm in my 40s, dropped out of schooling earlier in life.
As I'm doing this for fun whilst I also have a full time job, I thought I would list what I'm did to supplement my study preparation.
I started working through these videos - Essence of Calculus as a start over the summer study whilst I had some down time. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLZHQObOWTQDMsr9K-rj53DwVRMYO3t5Yr
Ive bought the following books in preparation for my journey and to start working through some of these during the summer prior to start
Elements of Style - A nice small cheap reference to improve my writing skills
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/020530902X/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&amp;psc=1
The Humongous Book of Trigonometry Problems https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1615641823/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&amp;psc=1
Calculus: An Intuitive and Physical Approach
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0486404536/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&amp;psc=1
Trigonometry Essentials Practice Workbook
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1477497781/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&amp;psc=1
Systems of Equations: Substitution, Simultaneous, Cramer's Rule
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1941691048/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&amp;psc=1
Feynman's Tips on Physics
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0465027970/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&amp;psc=1
Exercises for the Feynman Lectures on Physics
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0465060714/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&amp;psc=1
Calculus for the Practical Man
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1406756725/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&amp;psc=1
The Feynman Lectures on Physics (all volumes)
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0465024939/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&amp;psc=1
I found PatrickJMT helpful, more so than Khan academy, not saying is better, just that you have to find the person and resource that best suits the way your brain works.
Now I'm deep in calculus and quantum mechanics, I would say the important things are:
Algebra - practice practice practice, get good, make it smooth.
Trig - again, practice practice practice.
Try not to learn by rote, try understand the why, play with things, draw triangles and get to know the unit circle well.
Good luck, it's going to cause frustrating moments, times of doubt, long nights and early mornings, confusion, sweat and tears, but power through, keep on trucking, and you will start to see that calculus and trig are some of the most beautiful things in the world.
The time would be better spent going through Spivak’s book after his introductory course rather than before. And especially better if he has some buddies to do it with, or ideally another course.
In the mean time he’d be better off using the time to solve more interesting algebra problems, finding interesting recreational math topics to fiddle with, or the like. Working through single-variable calculus in greater rigor is not going to help him that much with the standard-curriculum course.
Self-studying Spivak’s book with no teacher, no support structure, and no feedback on your work, when you’ve never done any serious math before, is also likely to be a confusing slog. Some of the problems in there are pretty challenging.
Arguably this is a weird goal:
> I want to learn calculus before I enter calc 1.
He might get some use out of Spivak’s other Calculus book though: https://amzn.com/0883858126
I strongly suggest you take your time learning calculus, because anything you don't grasp completely will come back to haunt you.
But the good news is that there are lots of great resources you can use. MIT OCW has a full course with lectures, notes, and exams. Here are three free online books. If you're looking to buy a textbook, some good choices are Thomas, Stewart, and Spivak. (You can find dirt-cheap copies of older editions at abebooks.com.)
If you want more guidance, another great place to find it is at /r/learnmath.
Hey!
So, the topics you listed are all covered in a Calculus I class. There are some texts that are specific to calc I, but most (in my experience) have the whole shebang, up through Calc III and maybe into some basic diff. eqns.
Larson's Calculus of a Single Variable is availible for $13 as an E-book, if you're okay with that. This version only goes through Calc I, but it's a bit cheaper than the full book. I personally don't love this book, but a lot of people swear by it. It gives lots of application examples, but I don't think they do a great job showing how they work through solutions. This is best as a supplement to a class that uses problems from that book.
My personal favourite is Dover's Calculus: An Intuitive and Physical Approach. This book is much more theorem-oriented and I think it stands better alone than Larson's calculus. I taught myself from this book.
Finding a good maths book is harder than I thought. My favorite is a classic, Hamming's 'Methods of Mathematics Applied to Calculus, Probability, and Statistics'
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0486439453/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;amp;qid=1499896403&amp;amp;sr=8-1&amp;amp;pi=SL75_QL70&amp;amp;keywords=hamming+mathematics+book
It is the introductory part that I found the most exciting as it teaches mathematical thinking.
The most well known quote from Hamming is:
'The purpose of computation is insight, not numbers.'
This applies particularly well to bioinformatics.
Calculus is split up into two parts, differentiation and integration.
Differentiation is finding the slope of a curved line by finding the tangent line (intuitively, a line that just grazes the point) to any point. Since a line needs at minimum two points to be a line, the second point is placed arbitrarily close to the first point. If you were to zoom in really close to a curve with a microscope, you'd see a straight line.
A straight line formula is y=mx+b where m is the slope. The slope here is constant.
However, in an equation like y=x^2 the slope is continuously changing. The derivative of the function gives you 2x. This tells you at any point x the slope is 2 times x. This is found by a similar process to finding the slope of a straight line: rise over run. The first point is (x,f(x)) and the second point is (x+h,f(x+h)) where h is a number arbitrarily very close to (but not) zero.
So let's find the derivative of f(x)=x^2. First start off the same way you'd start off finding the slope of a straight line, change in y over change in x.
(f(x+h)-f(x))/(x+h-h)
Simplifying...
((x+h)^2 - x^2 ) / h
( x^2 + 2xh + h^2 - x^2 ) / h
( 2xh + h^2 ) / h
(h (2x + h) ) / h *Factor out the h
2x + h
Since h is practically zero we say that the derivative of f(x)=x^2 is f^' (x)=2x. The ^' stands for f prime, which is the same (just different notation) as dy/dx, the derivative of y with respect to x.
Every other function is basically done in a similar way, but we have rules and tricks to separate complicated functions into simpler pieces that allows us to easily find the derivative.
Integration is just finding out the area under a curve. Through the fundamental theorem of calculus we find that this process is very closely related to differentiation.
Multi-variable calculus is just doing this all in three or more dimensions instead of two.
I recommend this book. It explains calculus in a simple, visual manner.
I second Horowitz and Hill, its one of those rare books that is almost universally suggested. The third edition just came out so second editions are a bit easier to find cheap.
The book does a good job of pointing out which mathematical areas can be skipped, but anyone wanting to design filters will need their calculus up to scratch. Thomas is the best intro text that I know of.
I don't think this is a pop math book, but I really like this book as an introduction to math for aspiring physicists:
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https://www.amazon.com/Mathematics-Physics-Calculus-Biman-Das/dp/0131913360
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Not stupid expensive like a textbook, costs 10-20 bucks and has good examples from actual physics scenarios for each math point. Goes through basic units, geometry, vectors, and calculus.
My physics teacher was an amazingly great personality, and I can still say that after earning some not stellar grades in his classes. We used Serway/Jewett Physics for Scientists and Engineers. That book has very good example problems in each chapter.
Some helpful resources might be:
I personally found this $7.83 book to be a lifesaver during my complex analysis course. Furthermore, I enjoyed the prose quite a bit.
For multivariable calc and linear algebra, maybe this one:
http://www.amazon.com/Vector-Calculus-Linear-Algebra-Differential/dp/B008VRPQV2/ref=pd_sim_14_1?ie=UTF8&amp;dpID=31PLLAqcnhL&amp;dpSrc=sims&amp;preST=_AC_UL160_SR160%2C160_&amp;refRID=1FH9KJ7N0PQ9EM0BJMWA
For probability and stats, I like Wasserman's All of Statistics
and for Optimization, Boyd's Convex Optimization.
For starters you can read Asimovs Understanding Physics. It's a concept-describing TEXT book. There's almost no pictures, no math and no pop-culture-references. It's the opposite of Serways classic physics book which I used back in the day. Asimov is a good writer and tells about physics in an understandable way. I bought the book used for one dollar :) Best quality/price book I own.
Haha, studying for the GRE, I know that now, but I was never aware of how important it was. The most topology I dealt with was in my complex analysis class and in my multivariable class where we used this book. That class initiated my masochistic addiction to math.
I say masochistic because I also studied biology to some depth. I was always rushing to catch up with one major or the other. So point-set topology probably got lost in crossfire of a laundry list of other classes I had to take. But I don't regret bio: I want to do applied math focusing on biological problems, i.e. dynamical systems, high dimensional networks, and other problems motivated by bioinformatics, computational biology, and biophysics. Ideally, I can get into Duke or UCLA's biomath programs; they seem pretty well established from the research I've done. However, they're definitely "reach" schools. Not putting all of my eggs in those baskets.
Be wary when looking for books on algebra. They can often be confused as abstract algebra/modern algebra and just be titled algebra. At your level, you do not want abstract algebra (group, field, ring theory, etc)
I recommend, by nothing more than looking at their table of contents:
Algebra:
http://www.amazon.com/Fundamental-Concepts-Algebra-Dover-Mathematics/dp/0486614700/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1418411228&amp;sr=8-4&amp;keywords=Intermediate+algebra+dover
Trig:
http://www.amazon.com/Trigonometry-Refresher-Dover-Books-Mathematics/dp/0486442276/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1418411383&amp;sr=8-2&amp;keywords=Trigonometry+dover
Geometry: This book may go a bit too advanced, but it is cheap and seems decent
http://www.amazon.com/Geometry-Comprehensive-Course-Dover-Mathematics/dp/0486658120/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1418404358&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=geometry+dover
Calculus: This is by no means comprehensive(it seems to lack p tests for divergence among some other topics in cal 3), but it is enough to get you ready for advanced topics in it.
http://www.amazon.com/Essential-Calculus-Applications-Dover-Mathematics/dp/0486660974/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1418404423&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=Calculus+dover
If you are interested in linear algebra, check out Shilov's linear algebra textbook. Don't bother with abstract, it really isn't that useful in engineering(computer science... yes)
I am pretty sure the book was Calculus for the Practical Man, and the technique differentiating under the integral sign.
Mathematics: A Discrete Introduction is really good. Very clear, good progression, assumes nothing, and has very good problem sets. Note that there is a new edition, but you can still order used copies of the older edition (the one I'm familiar with) very inexpensively.
In my undergrad we used Mathematics for Physicists by Susan M Lea. Here is an amazon link.
http://www.amazon.com/Mathematics-Physicists-Susan-Lea/dp/0534379974/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1377411965&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=susan+m+lea
I thought it was pretty great. It was mostly applied, but with enough of the math stuff for you to mostly understand the principles, but without deriving everything from scratch.
Forgotten Algebra and Forgotten Calculus have good reviews on Amazon. I've been meaning to get them myself.
https://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Calculus-13th-George-Jr/dp/0321878965
is that it? if it is, it is super expansive for me...
I looked it up, and considering its three dollars on amazon then why not. Here is a link to the book i used for calc 1, 2 and 3 in college.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0321878965/ref=pd_aw_sbs_14_2?ie=UTF8&amp;psc=1&amp;refRID=0HC5R5JDCF2Q1GTVJ2P9
I would look and see if you can figure out what class you'll be taking next semester, and what book they use. The guide that guy posted above looked really good too.
I was looking for the classic Calculus Refresher by A. Albert Klaf, when I found this brief refresher for statistics majors and this longer one for a course; I also found a similar book called Forgotten Calculus.
It also seems like certain computer science classes send out refreshers on linear algebra, including this one that focuses on matrix operations; I also found this lovely set of slides for an actual refresher course intended for people who took Linear Algebra a while ago.
You can easily simplify the URL - it works just as well.
The best way to learn math is to read math text books.
I think this book prepared me well to explore math on my own:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/0534356389/ref=lp_g_1/103-3484664-0761418
Of course, it won't teach you any vector calculus. It's expensive, but supposedly, you can buy it used for 10 cents. (!?)
Calculus of Variations by Weinstock is my favorite book. It's a Dover classic, only $10, and very concise. I used this when I took Classical Mechanics and it really helped a lot.
What do you mean by advanced Calculus? Multivariate Calculus without proofs?
Anyway,
Mathematical Analysis and Proof by Stirling
A First Course in Mathematical Analysis by Brannan
Yet Another Introduction to Analysis by Bryant
Complex Variables by Francis J. Flanigan is a good book.
This book (available on Amazon as well http://www.amazon.com/Calculus-Made-Silvanus-Phillips-Thompson/dp/1456531980) helped me understand a lot of the whys of calculus http://www.gutenberg.org/files/33283/33283-pdf.pdf
One of my favorites is a Dover text by Flanigan.
Gilbert Strang wrote one of the standard textbook in linear algebra and teaches out of it in his class on MIT OpenCourseware.
I preferred Shifrin's Multivariable Mathematics and there also videos of him teaching the class. But the books have different sensibilities and I thought one worked well as a back up and different perspective to the other.
Plus, in Shifrin's text, multivariable calculus and linear algebra are treated at the same time, which made a lot of sense at the time. It makes a lot about the two subjects make more sense.
Richard Hamming's calculus text has a focus on probability and statistics.
Might be worth checking out.
Calculus Made Easy by Silvanus Thompson.
Its Prologue
Considering how many fools can calculate, it is surprising that it
should be thought either a difficult or a tedious task for any other fool
to learn how to master the same tricks.
Some calculus-tricks are quite easy. Some are enormously difficult.
The fools who write the textbooks of advanced mathematics—and they
are mostly clever fools—seldom take the trouble to show you how easy
the easy calculations are. On the contrary, they seem to desire to
impress you with their tremendous cleverness by going about it in the
most difficult way.
Being myself a remarkably stupid fellow, I have had to unteach
myself the difficulties, and now beg to present to my fellow fools the
parts that are not hard. Master these thoroughly, and the rest will
follow. What one fool can do, another can.
And a link to a physical copy
http://www.amazon.com/Forgotten-Calculus-Barbara-Bleau-Ph-D/dp/0764119982
UK Amazon
US Amazon
books that have helped me( i keep them as reference)
https://www.amazon.com/Forgotten-Algebra-Barbara-Lee-Bleau/dp/0764120085/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1500377758&amp;sr=8-2&amp;keywords=forgotten+algebra
https://www.amazon.com/Forgotten-Calculus-Barbara-Bleau-Ph-D/dp/0764119982/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1500379330&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=forgotten+calculus
https://www.amazon.com/Pre-calculus-Demystified-Second-Rhonda-Huettenmueller/dp/0071778497/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1500379354&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=precalculus+demystified
https://www.amazon.com/Calculus-Intuitive-Physical-Approach-Mathematics-ebook/dp/B00CB2MK6C/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1500379374&amp;sr=8-3&amp;keywords=calculus
https://www.amazon.com/Calculus-Idiots-Guides-Michael-Kelley-ebook/dp/B01E6H5C5A/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1500379523&amp;sr=8-2&amp;keywords=calculus+idiots+guide
[Calculus Made Easy] ( http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1456531980/ref=redir_mdp_mobile?pc_redir=T1) for calculus. This book should be the standard textbook.
http://www.amazon.com/No-bullshit-guide-math-physics/dp/0992001005
http://www.amazon.com/Calculus-Intuitive-Physical-Approach-Mathematics-ebook/dp/B00CB2MK6C
I just took Calc 3 this past quarter, and the new textbook is Thomas' Calculus 12th Edition.
Linear Algebra (preferably proof based, theoretical) Introduction to Proofs (usually a perquisite for Linear Algebra) and Multivariable Calculus
Here’s a pdf of the textbook: http://alpha.math.uga.edu/~shifrin/ShifrinDiffGeo.pdf
Note that this pdf does not cover differential forms but continue to read if you want to know more about the topic!
Now, if you want to learn more about differential forms, read chapter 8 of this textbook: https://www.amazon.com/Multivariable-Mathematics-Algebra-Calculus-Manifolds/dp/047152638X
A more economical way to learning differential form is to watch MATH 3510 videos on YouTube, particularly on differential forms. MATH 3500-3510 is a rigorous year sequence that covers many topics including differential geometry. These lectures go by the book I listed above. The prerequisite for this course is Calculus II but as a caveat, this course is not easy to self-study.
Forgotten Algebra https://www.amazon.com/dp/1438001509/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_SjJBCb4Z0CC0T
Forgotten Calculus https://www.amazon.com/dp/0764119982/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_ClJBCbXZE0CYS
I never used these books but they are designed for people who already taken these classes and need a refresher.
Reviewing old material from previous math course is part of the struggle when learning higher levels of math. Reviewing them is part of the course. Also, use the calculator as much as you can. It may cut down on mistakes when doing the simplier math. Everyone have this issue. Its not the calculus per say that will mess you up but the simplier math especially when doing multistep problems. for example, there is a polynominal equation function and num solver on my ti 36x pro. I used to do it by hand or type it out the slow way in the calculator using parenthesis and division. It only hurt me in the long run. My calculator also have a fraction button which is something I use more often this semester. its faster, less accident prone, and It will show what I typed in without having to scroll. Become a calculator guru. Find out what calculator that the higher classes allow and read the manual and learn how to make the most out of it. At my college, it is the ti 36x pro.
I am have taken calc 1 to 3 and i am currently taking differential equations. I always have to go baxk and review my trig identites and integral and derivatives of trig functions. Algebra in calculus is something all student will have a hard time remember. So review will be essential. As bad as algebra maybe, Trig is far more easily and more common to forget that I find in myself and my classmates.
Find the zeroes mean where (points) does the line (function) go through the x and y axis.