Hey nerds, I’m planning on going back to school in a few years and want to smash the math proficiency test so I don’t have to spend years relearning things that will probably only take me a few months at most. What books do you all recommend to get me from college algebra to Calc II or III?

Bonus points for stats and physics recs, as well.

  • quarrk [he/him]@hexbear.netEnglish
    3·
    11 天前

    Griffiths QM is kinda meh. It’s the one I used in my courses, but later while trying to relearn, I found Shankar’s Principles of Quantum Mechanics to be pedagogically superior. From the intro,

    “Since the math introduced has to be taught sooner or later, I prefer sooner to later, for this way the students, when they get to it, can give quantum theory their fullest attention without having to battle with the mathematical theorems at the same time. Also, by segregating the mathematical theorems from the physical postulates, any possible confusion as to which is which is nipped in the bud.”

    Shankar’s lectures are on YouTube as well.

    A QM book is probably beyond the immediate need of the OP, but this might be useful to someone.

    • radio_free_asgarthr [he/him, comrade/them]@hexbear.netEnglish
      1·
      11 天前

      It is better, but because of going more fully into the mathematics immediately, it is a bit more advanced. My undergrad university used Griffiths for upper division QM and Shankar for Graduate level. Which is why I recommended it earlier for self training. But there is value in just immediately diving into the full mathematical framework right away.