Text for Introductory College Parallel Physics

This is text/work book is for Algebra-Based Mechanics as part of our comprehensive parallel pedagogy curriculum, which are open source, and free for you to use, download, and distribute as you find best supports your classes.  You may also be interested in the Text for the Calculus Based Mechanics, or the Conceptual Textbook. This textbook by Pete Schwartz is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
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These chapters develop and support the parallel pedagogy curriculum, as described in a May, 2017 The Physics Teacher publication. They are very short and simple with the intention that students will actually read them. Simple examples illustrate the concepts introduced, but the reader has access to many more examples and solutions via problem sets, exams and videos accessible from the class website from winter 2018. Please contact me if you find mistakes, have ideas for improvements, or want to contribute.

Chapter 1

  • 1.0 introduction to lenses
  • 1.1 Momentum
  • 1.2 Energy
  • 1.3 Dynamics (Forces)
  • 1.4 Kinematics (speed)
  • 1.5 Kinematics (acceleration)
  • 1.6 Energy: Kinetic, and Gravitational Potential
  • 1.7 Forces affect Momentum and Energy
  • 1.8 Lens, Motivation, Application
  • 1.9 Scaling: What changes as things get larger?

Chapter 2

  • 2.0 Work
  • 2.1 Power
  • 2.2 Units
  • 2.3 Graphical Analysis of Kinematics
  • 2.4 Vectors and Direction
  • 2.5 Dynamics Protocol and More Directions
  • 2.6 Springs: Force and Stored Energy
  • 2.7 Potential Energy Diagrams
  • 2.8 Update and Summary on Lens Method

3 Important One-Dimensional Applications

  • 3.0 Changing Reference Frames
  • 3.1 Elastic Collisions in 1D, making reference to collisions (from OpenStax)
  • 3.2 Friction

4 Introduction to Rotation

  • 4.0 Intro to Rotation (4 lenses)
  • 4.1 Direction of Rotation
  • 4.2 Rotation and Tangential Motion
  • 4.3 Torque, Work, Power
  • 4.4 Moment of Inertia
  • 4.5 Moments of Inertia of Solid Bodies
  • 4.6 Intro to Statics
  • 4.7 Angular Momentum Conservation

5 Central Forces, Central Acceleration

  • 5.0 Centripetal Acceleration
  • 5.1 Ubiquitous Inverse Square Law
  • 5.2 Universal Gravity
  • 5.3 Loop the Loop: circular motion in the vertical plane
  • 5.4 Astro Gravitational Potential Energy and Escape Speed

6 Systems of Bodies

  • 6.0 Intro to Linear System of Masses
  • 6.1 Rotational Systems
  • 6.2 Center of Mass
  • 6.3 Parallel Axis Theorem

Chapter 7 components, angles, and two dimensions

  • 7.0 Introduction to Components
  • 7.1 Components, Work, Torque, Statics, Momentum
  • 7.2 Inclined Plane
  • 7.3 Conical Pendulum
  • 7.4 Angular Momentum of a Point Mass
  • 7.5 Angular Momentum, Stability, Precession
  • 7.6 Trigonometry and two Derived Equations

This textbook is constantly being modified. If for some reason, you are looking for an older version, here you can find the 2018 text.