Introduction to CLASSICAL MECHANICS

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-ix

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2. Space, time and motion

   • A. P. French, M. G. Ebison

   Pages 1-24

3. Forces

   • A. P. French, M. G. Ebison

   Pages 25-43

4. Using Newton’s laws

   • A. P. French, M. G. Ebison

   Pages 44-69

5. Universal gravitation

   • A. P. French, M. G. Ebison

   Pages 70-94

6. Collisions and conservation laws

   • A. P. French, M. G. Ebison

   Pages 95-123

7. Energy conservation in dynamics; vibrational motions

   • A. P. French, M. G. Ebison

   Pages 124-151

8. Conservative forces and motion in space

   • A. P. French, M. G. Ebison

   Pages 152-192

9. Inertial forces and non-inertial frames

   • A. P. French, M. G. Ebison

   Pages 193-222

10. Motion under central forces

    • A. P. French, M. G. Ebison

    Pages 223-254

11. Extended systems and rotational dynamics

    • A. P. French, M. G. Ebison

    Pages 255-299

12. Back Matter

    Pages 300-310

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This book is, in essence, an updated and revised version of an earlier textbook, Newtonian Mechanics, written about fifteen years ago by one of us (APF) and published in 1971. The book has been significantly changed in emphasis as well as length. Our aim has been to produce a mechanics text, suitable for use at beginning university level, for students who have a background typified by the British sixth-form level in physics and mathematics. We hope, however, that the book will also be found useful in the teaching of mechanics at the upper levels of the secondary schools themselves. Calculus is freely used from the outset. In making the present revision we have drastically cut down on the amount of historical and more discursive material. Nevertheless, our goal has been to present classical mechanics as physics, not as applied mathematics. Although we begin at the beginning, we have aimed at developing the basic principles and their applications as rapidly as seemed reasonable, so thatby the end of the book students will be able to feel that they have achieved a good working knowledge of the subject and can tackle fairly sophisticated problems. To help with this process, each chapter is followed by a good number of exercises, some of them fairly challenging. We shall be very grateful to receive comments and corrections from those who use this book.

• Newtonian mechanics
• classical mechanics
• dynamics
• mechanics
• oscillation
• units
• vibration

• Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA

  A. P. French

• The Institute of Physics, London, UK

  M. G. Ebison

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