Applications of Classical Physics
42 comments
·May 11, 2025srean
hyperjeff
I watched that series multiple times when i was in high school and early college. Really inspiring and the visualizations still live in my head. Unusually good production for an educational show. Set a new standard.
octed
For those who would like a print version, this manuscript eventually got published as Modern Classical Physics https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691159027/mo...
mhh__
I was weighing up (...) buying a copy of this the other day, in a physical bookshop. The thing was so big I couldn't actually buy it.
kurthr
There has always been commentary that the size (over 1300 pages) of the General Rel book Gravitation by Meisner Thorne and Wheeler was done for demonstration purposes. Apparently, modern versions are only 2.5" thick which leads me to believe they must be on incredibly thin paper. I remember it being about 4-5".
https://www.amazon.com/Gravitation-Charles-W-Misner/dp/06911...
Maybe tome size a Kip thing?
mhh__
The thing with MTW is that it's so big that it's quite hard to really mull over it (for me at least).
it's a book that I can imagine reading a lot in a very quiet world (i.e. basically a dorm or library before phones or computers) but it's very hard to actually get my teeth into it without that.
cshimmin
Interesting that they changed the author order to put Kip Thorne first... marketing?
momoschili
I just looked through the diffraction chapter and some chapters I'm much less familiar with. This is an incredible ~graduate level text for these subjects. I've been looking for something like this for a while! Thanks!
reader9274
Skimmed through chapter 1. That sounds like the way I was taught this subject in high school, nothing revolutionary. Not sure why they're talking so much about its brilliance
dawnofdusk
You learned about stress tensors and PDEs in high school?
zokier
Interesting that relativity is included here; to me it's one of the main things separating modern physics from classical.
dawnofdusk
Typically non-relativistic and non-quantum is called "Newtonian". Classical is just for anything which is not quantized, and so far no one knows how to quantize general relativity.
dreamcompiler
Classical means "not quantum." It doesn't mean "not relativity." Relativity is a classical discipline.
matheist
I think in modern physics "classical" often means "not quantum", rather than "pre-modern".
xqcgrek2
For an idea of how far the average US physics education has been dumbed-down in the past three decades, I doubt a 3rd year US-educated physics graduate student could pass a test on any of the chapters.
TimorousBestie
I don’t think this is very accurate. Classical fluid dynamics is a dying art, yes, but classical mechanics and electromagnetics are still a huge part of the curriculum.
momoschili
The vast majority of US grad students already pass tests on chapters 1-9 (the ones that are taught) before they even begin their "true" graduate career (aka their "masters"). Most graduate E&M (Jackson) and Thermo/Stat (Landau) mech classes cover their individual topics to an even greater level of detail than these materials.
As for the uncovered subjects, it turns out quantum mechanics occupies a large space of the "new physics" that graduate students are trained to do.
There are definitely an incredible amount of utility and knowledge to be gained from the classical field theories, and obviously many outstanding and new problems that I think need more attention as well. At the same time let's not understate the utility of quantum mechanics that most grad students are specializing in.
You are speaking out of turn.
xqcgrek2
sounds like you haven't visited a top-ranked physics department in a while
kurthr
With or without a LLM "partner"?
dawnofdusk
Not really dumbed down, just that it prioritizes quantum physics instead of classical. One can debate whether this is a good set of priorities but it's flippant to say a curriculum focused on quantum mechanics is dumber than one focused on fluids and elasticity/continuum mechanics.
AIPedant
A lot of modern research in classical mechanics is typically covered by applied math and/or mechanical engineering departments, sometimes also applied physics or engineering science. Magnetohydrodynamics is relevant for a lot of proper academic physicists, but by no means all of them. Just a consequence of how academia specialized, for better or worse.
slyfox125
We are victims of our success.
dave333
[flagged]
macintux
Well, that sounds legit.
> Many so-called mainstream physicists who believe in quantum theory dismiss your theory as pseudoscience. What is Mills Grand Unified Theory of Classical Physics (GUTCP) underlying the SunCell® that harnesses the new, pollution-free primary power source based on forming Hydrinos®?
martinpw
Classic scam to separate gullible wealthy investors from their money - delivering a revolutionary product real soon now - for the past 35 years:
omneity
For me it’s the double question marks that showed me how serious they are:
> Q: What is the founding principle of Mills GUT-CP??
dave333
On page 15 of the Introduction in
https://brilliantlightpower.com/GUT/GUT_Volume_1/
there's a list of 19 (counted em) shortcomings of Quantum Theory based on Schrodinger math.
macintux
That doesn’t change the fact that using “so-called” is a red flag. The physicists are mainstream.
That doesn’t make them right, but using derogatory language like that is not helping make the case against them.
nathan_compton
This purely classical model doesn't make any fucking sense.
dave333
[flagged]
nathan_compton
Oh I don't know, the one that predicts the numbers correctly in a simple, transparent way everyone can apply, especially when compared to the ramblings of a weirdo trying to sell something?
If you can find the place on this website where he demonstrates the calculation that gives the energy levels of the hydrogen atom or the band gap of a metal, please show me.
mhh__
There is no spooky action at a distance as per se
bomba_tom
This (brilliant light power) is generally believed to be fraud and/or pseudo science. And the founder (Randall Mills) has been around for over 30 years, collecting money, never producing anything meaningful. So be cautious.
dave333
It's amazing how most people use Wikipedia as the ultimate authority. Try reading the book there's a lot of excellent content that doesn't require following the math in detail, although the math is there in detail to support the theory.
I will probably date myself with this comment, but in my highschool days there used to be this TV series called the Mechanical Universe produced by Caltech. It was so fantastically good, perhaps peak pedagogy for its time.
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8_xPU5epJddRABXqJ5h5G0dk...