Physics for scientists and engineers

This train, which travels on the French network, exhibits all of the features you might want from a good transport system: speed, comfort, safety, reliability, and convenience. However, we can also describe the features of this using the language of physics. In fact, the physical principles and applications that are involved cover virtually all of the material you will learn in this book. Newtonian mechanics describes the train’s acceleration and movement as it rolls over the tracks; the ideas of electricity and magnetism describe the energy that passes to the train through its overhead wires, the powerful motors that drive it, and the extensive communications that control both the train and the system on which it runs. And the electronics of the train depend on the principles of quantum physics that have transformed our society in the twentieth century. Throughout this book, you will explore the physical principles that explain many aspects of your everyday life.