This book addresses a fascinating set of questions in theoretical physics which will both entertain and enlighten all students, teachers and researchers and other physics aficionados. These range from Newtonian mechanics to quantum field theory and cover several puzzling issues that do not appear in standard textbooks. Some topics cover conceptual conundrums, the solutions to which lead to surprising insights; some correct popular misconceptions in the textbook discussion of certain topics; others illustrate deep connections between apparently unconnected domains of theoretical physics; and a few provide remarkably simple derivations of results which are not often appreciated. The connoisseur of theoretical physics will enjoy a feast of pleasant surprises skilfully prepared by an internationally acclaimed theoretical physicist. Each topic is introduced with proper background discussion and special effort is taken to make the discussion self-contained, clear and comprehensible to anyonewith an undergraduate education in physics.

A book that will delight all physics aficionados An informative and insightful volume by a master theorist Brings together a broad range of topics while helping to display the unity of physics Includes supplementary material: sn.pub/extras

Autorentext

Professor Padmanabhan, theoretical physicist and cosmologist, is currently a Distinguished Professor at IUCAA, Pune, India. A gifted researcher and teacher, he has published nearly 250 technical papers and authored ten books which have made significant impact. His research has won prizes six times in recent years from the Gravity Research Foundation, USA including the First Award in 2008. He is currently (2011-14) the Chairman of the IUPAP Astrophysics Commission and was the President of the IAU Cosmology Commission (2009-12). He has received numerous national and international awards including Padma Shri, the presidential medal of honor in India.

Inhalt

The Grand Cube of Theoretical Physics.- The Emergence of Classical Physics.- Orbits of Planets are Circles!.- The Importance of being Inverse-square.- Potential surprises in Newtonian Gravity.- Lagrange and his Points.- Getting the most of it!.- Surprises in Fluid Flows.- Isochronous Curiosities: Classical and Quantum .- Logarithms of Nature . - Curved Spacetime for pedestrians.- Black hole is a Hot Topic.- Thomas and his Precession .- When Thomas met Foucault.- The One-body Problem.- The Straight and Narrow Path ofWaves.- If Quantum Mechanics is the Paraxial Optics, then .....- Make it Complex to Simplify.- Nothing matters a lot.- Radiation: Caterpillar becomes Butterfly.- Photon:Wave and/or Particle.- Angular Momentum without Rotation.-Ubiquitous RandomWalk.- More on Random Walks: Circuits and a Tired Drunkard .- Gravitational Instability of the Isothermal Sphere.- Gravity bends electric field lines.-
References .- Index