Principles of Physics

Citation

Serway, R. A., & Jewett, J. W., Jr. (2013). Principles of Physics: A Calculus-Based Text (5th ed.). Cengage Learning.

Chapter Summary

The fifth edition has 31 chapters, an opening "Invitation to Physics", appendices and nine "Contexts" that thread real-world case studies through the chapters. Each Context has an opening section and a conclusion that ties the physics of its chapters back to the theme. The edition has about 1,200 pages.

An Invitation to Physics; Chapter 1: Introduction and Vectors

A short orientation to the subject, followed by units, dimensional analysis, coordinate systems and vectors. Chapter 1 also introduces the General Problem-Solving Strategy that the worked examples use throughout.

Context 1 and Chapters 2–7: Alternative-Fuel Vehicles

Motion in One Dimension; Motion in Two Dimensions; The Laws of Motion; More Applications of Newton's Laws; Energy of a System; Conservation of Energy. The mechanics core runs from kinematics and Newton's laws to work, kinetic and potential energy and conservation of energy, under the Context of alternative-fuel vehicles. The Context's conclusion is titled "Present and Future Possibilities".

Context 2 and Chapters 8–11: Mission to Mars

Momentum and Collisions; Relativity; Rotational Motion; Gravity, Planetary Orbits, and the Hydrogen Atom. Special relativity is placed in the middle of mechanics, an early introduction to modern physics. Rotation and gravitation follow, with the hydrogen atom linked to planetary orbits. The conclusion is "A Successful Mission Plan".

Context 3 and Chapters 12–14: Earthquakes

Oscillatory Motion; Mechanical Waves; Superposition and Standing Waves. Oscillations, wave propagation and interference. The conclusion is "Minimizing the Risk".

Context 4 and Chapter 15: Heart Attacks

Fluid Mechanics, which carries a Context of its own that is new in this edition. The conclusion is titled "Heart Attacks".

Context 5 and Chapters 16–18: Global Warming

Temperature and the Kinetic Theory of Gases; Energy in Thermal Processes: The First Law of Thermodynamics; Heat Engines, Entropy, and the Second Law of Thermodynamics. The conclusion is "Predicting the Earth's Surface Temperature".

Context 6 and Chapters 19–21: Lightning

Electric Forces and Electric Fields; Electric Potential and Capacitance; Current and Direct Current Circuits. The conclusion is "Determining the Number of Lightning Strikes".

Context 7 and Chapters 22–23: Magnetism in Medicine

Magnetic Forces and Magnetic Fields; Faraday's Law and Inductance. This Context is new in the fifth edition and ends with "Nuclear Magnetic Resonance and Magnetic Resonance Imaging".

Context 8 and Chapters 24–27: Lasers

Electromagnetic Waves; Reflection and Refraction of Light; Image Formation by Mirrors and Lenses; Wave Optics. The conclusion is "Using Lasers to Record and Read Digital Information".

Context 9 and Chapters 28–31: The Cosmic Connection

Quantum Physics; Atomic Physics; Nuclear Physics; Particle Physics. The final Context concludes with "Problems and Perspectives".

Appendices

A. Tables; B. Mathematics Review; C. Periodic Table of the Elements; D. SI Units; answers to Quick Quizzes and odd-numbered problems.

Key Concepts

Chapters 1–11: Mechanics

• General Problem-Solving Strategy: a fixed sequence of steps introduced in Chapter 1 and used in worked examples.
• Energy of a system and conservation of energy: the focus of Chapters 6–7.
• Momentum and collisions: conservation applied before rotation and gravity.
• Special relativity: a modern-physics topic taught inside the mechanics sequence.

Chapters 12–18: Waves, Fluids and Thermodynamics

• Oscillation and superposition: simple oscillators leading to wave interference and standing waves.
• Kinetic theory and entropy: the microscopic picture of temperature and the second law.

Chapters 19–27: Electricity, Magnetism and Optics

• Electric field and potential: Chapters 19–20, with capacitance.
• Faraday's law and inductance: Chapter 23.
• Reflection, refraction and wave optics: Chapters 25–27.

Chapters 28–31: Modern Physics

• Quantum physics and atomic structure: Chapters 28–29.
• Nuclear and particle physics: Chapters 30–31.

Critical Analysis

Strengths

• A concise calculus-based course. Cengage describes the book as taking a concise approach to traditional topics, with an early introduction to modern physics and contemporary topics throughout. Its 31 chapters cover mechanics to particle physics in fewer chapters than the largest textbooks in this list.
• Physics in Context. The nine Contexts give the sequence motivating themes, from vehicles and earthquakes to lasers and cosmology; two (heart attacks, magnetism in medicine) were added in this edition, with additional life-science applications in problems and worked examples.
• Worked examples with a method. The examples were recast in a two-column format that puts conceptual explanation beside the mathematics, solve problems symbolically as far as possible, follow the General Problem-Solving Strategy, and about one-third include a "What If?" extension.
• Problem sets with structure. The book has about 2,000 problems in three marked difficulty levels, two-thirds keyed to sections and the rest labelled "Additional Problems". Answers to odd-numbered problems are at the back, and Quick Quizzes give immediate checks within chapters.

Limitations

• Concise means selective. Compared with the large, encyclopedic textbooks in the list, topics receive a leaner treatment, and the modern physics chapters (28–31) are one chapter each for quantum, atomic, nuclear and particle physics.
• Dated content. The 2013 edition's updates, such as the status of Large Hadron Collider experiments and the March 2011 Japanese nuclear disaster, reflect their time and will not cover later developments.
• Heavier use of online resources. Cengage's problem-solving tutorials ("Master It"), solution videos ("Watch It") and graded homework come through Enhanced WebAssign, which is separate from the printed book.

Where It Fits in the Course

Principles of Physics is one of several calculus-based general physics textbooks in this list, alongside Fundamentals of Physics, Physics for Scientists and Engineers and University Physics. It is the more concise of these and a reasonable choice for a course that wants the standard topics in fewer pages, with a modern-physics flavour from early relativity and a context-driven presentation. The other three have 41 to 44 chapters against this book's 31.

For a gentler first pass, Hewitt's Conceptual Physics gives the ideas with very little mathematics and OpenStax's College Physics is a free algebra-based course. For more depth in mechanics, Kleppner and Kolenkow's An Introduction to Mechanics is a demanding calculus-based treatment; 200 Puzzling Physics Problems is a collection of problems with hints and full solutions; and The Feynman Lectures on Physics offers a concept-driven alternative account of many of the same topics.

How to Use This Book

The book is for science and engineering students taking a one-year calculus-based general physics course, and for life-science students who benefit from its medical and biological examples. It assumes algebra, trigonometry and calculus; Appendix B reviews the mathematics.

A practical plan:

• Core: Chapters 1–8 and 10–11 (mechanics), Chapters 12–15 (oscillations, waves and fluids), the thermodynamics sequence of Chapters 16–18, Chapters 19–23 (electricity and magnetism) and Chapters 24–27 (electromagnetic waves and optics).
• Modern physics: Chapter 9 (relativity) can be taken with mechanics or deferred to the end; Chapters 28–31 complete the sequence.
• Contexts: read the Context introductions and conclusions as a theme, or skip them if the course follows its own order.

Start each chapter with the Quick Quizzes, apply the General Problem-Solving Strategy to the worked examples, and try the "What If?" variations yourself. Use the three problem levels to build up from straightforward to challenging, and check against the odd-numbered answers.