Teaching myself physics, is this a futile attempt?

[liam]

So I've recently discovered the wonderful world of physics and was wondering if the more seasoned physicists among you all would recommend this or, conversely, discourage it? I'm intelligent enough and good enough at basic calculus to do the basic stuff but is the amount of effort necessary to complete such an enterprise too great to undertake without guidance?

Thank you all

[frankiej]

Physics is a great thing to learn, even if it is the basics. Once you understand how things work in the world around you everything becomes that little bit better.

[downbeatplumb]

Physics covers a lot of ground. Quantum physics is a field all its own.

If you understand quantum physics can you come back and explain it to me.

[Anomalocaris]

I think a great deal depends on how much formal educational background you've already had in physics, and what you plan to do with what you learn.

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If you understand quantum physics can you come back and explain it to me.

If you understand quantum physics, you are probably wrong, arrogant and insane.

[Tobie]

There's a wonderful site, http://www.brightstorm.com , that has loads of physics videos and teach it well. It's completely free as well. It's not advanced stuff, but it will teach you most of what a normal physics student would be expected to know before undergraduate level.

Anything beyond this level, I would recommend looking at various university websites and see what textbooks they recommend for their courses ( for example http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/sci/physic...h/physics/ )

[liam]

There's a wonderful site, http://www.brightstorm.com , that has loads of physics videos and teach it well. It's completely free as well. It's not advanced stuff, but it will teach you most of what a normal physics student would be expected to know before undergraduate level.

Anything beyond this level, I would recommend looking at various university websites and see what textbooks they recommend for their courses ( for example http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/sci/physic...h/physics/ )

Ah thank you kindly for the link, at present I'm at a considerably lower level than undergrad, I'm working my way through an AS workbook then I shall move on to A2, however, that should be a fantastic supplement the whole while. Thank you kindly

If you understand quantum physics, you are probably wrong, arrogant and insane.

That is because quantum physics is completely batshit crazy. I don't think I'll ever attempt really advanced physics, even if I live to see 100

[frankiej]

In quantum physics there are little things I understand, but it is just too mad to be fully understood by someone like me.

Apparently babies can though... http://www.lifeslittlemysteries.com/2531...anics.html

[Angrboda]

Once upon a time, I thought about teaching myself physics. And while I had some memory of calculus and numerical analysis, I realized I would need to educate myself on the math, before learning physics, especially differential equations, which I never completed, and there are plenty of math specialties that figure into things like quantum mechanics, too (like, I believe they call it linear algebra now, but it was just determinants and matrices in my time). (I recently read a paper that attempted to explain Kripke's theory of truth by analogizing it to a Kleene closure; needless to say, that didn't help.)

Part of why that never happened is because my love of foreign languages re-ignited, and picking up languages is very time intensive, especially the harder ones.

However, having lost my fingers, I've abandoned my language studies. (Though I still get occasional twinges. I look at a Chinese character, and I feel in my bones the order and movement that I would make to write the character.)

Now, I've got a full life, reading books and discussing things with atheists, skeptics, humanists and philosophers in my community. That takes up all my time. But even if I weren't doing that, I still wouldn't turn to learning math and physics. Not because I wouldn't love to learn about them, but I realize that my time is short, and even prioritizing to spend time on my areas of specialization, there would never be enough hours in the day to learn all that I want to about them. I think, an adult, learns to prioritize, and focus on a few things, rather than spread themselves too thin. So I guess the question is, are you really willing to take the time away from other things to do this? And exactly what kind of understanding are you looking for? Superficial grasp of base concepts and beginner to intermediate physics? Or advanced understanding of one or more specialization in physics? And why do you want it?

[KichigaiNeko]

Go for it!!

Learning...no matter what is a good thing

[Tempus]

Not because I wouldn't love to learn about them, but I realize that my time is short, and even prioritizing to spend time on my areas of specialization, there would never be enough hours in the day to learn all that I want to about them. I think, an adult, learns to prioritize, and focus on a few things, rather than spread themselves too thin.

It took me a long time to learn that. I spent most of my high school and college years trying to do everything, all the while accomplishing nothing. Now that I've accepted I can only do so much I'm less stressed out. I still have many of the possessions that tell the tale of a fool who thought he could master everything; they're reminders, I guess.

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On an unrelated note, how do you find typing?