Tom W.B. Kibble, Frank H. Berkshire. Classical mechanics. 2004.

Preface

This bo ok, based on courses given to physics and applied mathematics students at Imperial College, deals with the mechanics of particles and rigid bodies. It is designed for students with some previous acquaintance with the elementary concepts of mechanics, but the book starts from first principles, and little detailed knowledge is assumed. An essential prerequisite is a reasonable familiarity with differential and integral calculus, including partial differentiation. However, no prior knowledge of differential equations should be needed. Vectors are used from the start in the text itself; the necessary definitions and mathematical results are collected in an appendix. Classical mechanics is a very old subject. Its basic principles have been known since the time of Newton, when they were formulated in the Principia, and the mathematical structure reached its mature form with the works of Lagrange in the late eighteenth century and Hamilton in the nineteenth. Remarkably enough, within the last few decades the subject has once again become the focus of very active fundamental research. Some of the most modern mathematical to ols have been brought to bear on the problem of understanding the qualitative features of dynamics, in particular the transition between regular and turbulent or chaotic behaviour. The fourth edition of the book was extended to include new chapters providing a brief introduction to this exciting work. In this fifth edition, the material is somewhat expanded, in particular to contrast continuous and discrete be haviours. We have also taken the opportunity to revise the earlier chapters, giving more emphasis to specific examples worked out in more detail.
Many of the most fascinating recent discoveries about the nature of the Earth and its surroundings — particularly since the launching of artificial satellites — are direct applications of classical mechanics. Several of these are discussed in the following chapters, or in problems.