Summary

Stong pedagogy, a descriptive focus, a knock-out art program, biological/medical appplications, and help with the MCAT are some of the reasons you'll want to look at the groundbreaking text by Eugene Hecht. Hecht's passion and enthusiasm for the subject matter is apparent on every page. As he states in his Preface, "If this work, while insightfully teaching basic physics, transmits a sense of grandeur, unity, and vitality of the subject, it will have met my primary objectives." While the text covers the standard range of material from kinematics to quantum physics, Hecht has carefully limited the math required to basic calculus and very basic vector analysis. He omits obscure, high-level topics, while focusing on helping students understand the fundamental concepts of modern-day physics. Calculus and vector analysis are both painstakingly developed as tools, and then used only insofar as they illuminate the physics. Hecht deliberately goes slowly, justifies where each topic is going, stops to take stock of where the students have been, and points out the marvelous unity of the discourse. Informed by a 20th century perspective and a commitment to providing a conceptual overview of the discipline, this book is a return to basics.