particle tracks  
 

Essentials of Modern Physics

An introduction for high school students 

(and beyond)


Bob Dorsett

Particle collision at Fermilab.  See further information below under link to The Picture.

Last update:  02/17/2025




Here you will find links to chapters in a text on the essentials of modern physics.  High school instruction in physics misses a lot of the important stuff.  Our standards-based curriculum focuses on physics prior to 1900.  A lot has happened since then, like relativity, quantum mechanics, and our modern understanding of cosmology.  Most students will never take another physics class, and they -- and the rest of us -- deserve the opportunity to learn more.  I hope this online resource helps.

Contents with links follow, and further down the page you will find links to other resources as well.  No doubt I have made some errors; if you see any, please let me know.  

I hope you enjoy exploring these ideas as much as I have.  


Contents

ChapterTitle

Introduction
1Newton's Universe

Ch.1 Exercises and Experiments
2Cracks in the Mortar

Ch.2 Exercises and Experiments
3Special Relativity

Ch.3 Exercises and Experiments
4General Relativity:  Principle of Equivalence
5General Relativity:  Measuring Spacetime Curvature

General Relativity:  Questions and Experiments
6Monsters in the Sky
7Quantum Mechanics
8Particles
9Forces
10The Standard Model

Unification

Unification Questions and Experiments
11Cosmology
12Inflation
13The Multiverse
14Beyond the Standard Model

15

Quantum Information and Quantum Computing

16

Quantum Gravity

Appendix

Bibliography

Glossary


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Links to other resources in modern physics: Return to Table of Contents



ThePicture:

The image shows the particles generated in a high energy collision at Fermilab.  Charged particles curl in the magnetic field in the detector.  The patterns and trajectories help physicists identify the types of particles and their interactions.  

 



BrainTeasers:

Make the following equation in Roman numerals using matchsticks:

    | + || + ||| + |||| =

Move one matchstick to a new location in the equation so that the sum equals 4.

Car Talk Puzzlers

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Contact:

dorsett.bob@gmail.com



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