To quote http://textboard.org/prog/77
SICP - Stream Entry
SICM - Once-Returning
Functional Differential Geometry - Non-Returning
Software Design for Flexibility - Arhantship
What are your plans for this summer? Anyone wants to read SICM?
http://groups.csail.mit.edu/mac/users/gjs/6946/sicm-html/book.html
http://groups.csail.mit.edu/mac/users/gjs/6946/installation.html
Let's make it self-paced, beginner-friendly and not a dick swinging contest. Who's in?
I want to, but I will need some maths and physics first. Last time I attempted reading SICM, I couldn't even do the very first exercise.
>>2
This, it takes pages of Lagrange'ian equations until the first Scheme is presented, and without a formal education in physics, I don't know how to get that. Even Wikipedia says (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Structure_and_Interpretation_of_Classical_Mechanics):
The book is used at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to teach a class in advanced classical mechanics, starting with Lagrange's equations and proceeding through canonical perturbation theory.
I'll be waiting for Software Design for Flexibility.
>>1
Normally I would love to, but to my everlasting shame I'm still working through SICP. Shhhh.
>>3
"Advanced" here is a bit vague. Best to check out the actual course website:
https://groups.csail.mit.edu/mac/users/gjs/6946/index.html
This subject awards G-LEVEL Graduate Credit, however the subject is appropriate for undergraduates who have taken the prerequisites. Undergraduates are welcome.
Prerequisites: 8.01, 18.03, programming experience
8.01 is introductory classical mechanics, i.e. the Newtonian mechanics that everyone has to take, and 18.03 is differential equations. I don't know how it is in the CS world, but in my real engineering major it was a basic requirement. So it is a graduate course, but with some relatively fundamental prerequisites. That said, I just took a look at the first few pages and I agree that it's dense. In that respect it looks like the second edition is a bit more gentle than the first edition that OP linked to:
https://mitpress.mit.edu/sites/default/files/titles/content/sicm_edition_2/book.html
I can't vouch for it personally, but for an introduction to the subject it might be worth checking out The Variational Principles of Mechanics by Cornelius Lanczos, which Sussman recommends at http://aurellem.org/thoughts/html/sussman-reading-list.html and which seems to be highly regarded.
>>3-5
There's really no hurry, threads are not pruned and we can start with introductory material.
8.01 is available with lectures videos at MIT OCW
https://ocw.mit.edu/courses/physics/8-01sc-classical-mechanics-fall-2016/
and EDX (archived, you must log in)
https://courses.edx.org//courses/course-v1:MITx+8.01.1x+3T2019/course/
https://courses.edx.org//courses/course-v1:MITx+8.01.2x+3T2019a/course/
https://courses.edx.org//courses/course-v1:MITx+8.01.3x+3T2019a/course/
For a calculus refresher:
https://www.coursera.org/learn/discrete-calculus
https://ocw.mit.edu/courses/mathematics/18-01sc-single-variable-calculus-fall-2010/
https://ocw.mit.edu/courses/mathematics/18-02sc-multivariable-calculus-fall-2010/
And then 18.03
https://ocw.mit.edu/courses/mathematics/18-03sc-differential-equations-fall-2011/
No deadline.
Found this comment from a few months ago on The Website That Must Not Be Named. I'm not sure whether to call it bizarre or admirable:
I am working on something like this myself. I started by reading the Structure and Interpretation of Classical Mechanics, which uses Scheme to teach Hamiltonian and Lagrangian mechanics. And it's much more effective than an ordinary math/physics book. Normal math is a kind of code, except that the VM that executes it is your brain. You (or I, anyway) can only progress if you understand absolutely everything down to the last detail. Programming is much easier. If you don't understand something you can put together a little simulation to poke at the edge cases.
So I finished SICM and I thought, "wouldn't it be cool if I could keep learning physics like this?" And so now I've gotten in touch with some physics postdocs (who are paid shockingly little). I pay them to learn Scheme and encode quantum mechanics, general relativity, statistical mechanics as scheme programs. I work on this about 10 hours a week. In a year or two I'll have knowledge equivalent to an ABD physics grad student, plus information that can take other people from modest beginnings to the same level.
One thing this project has taught me is that students have shockingly little power in their relationships with teachers. I am a major source of income for my postdocs. Some of them may be prioritizing me over some of their other duties. And it really shows. I'm a good self-learner, but there is no substitute for having someone work really hard to anticipate all your questions.
>>5
I'm surprised they don't use "An Introduction to Mechanics" in 8.01, it seems to be a particular popular introductory text of MIT origin.
>>6
Pretty bizarre for sure.
>>6
Sounds cool, tbh. Would have liked something like that when I was in school.
The Website That Must Not Be Named
Why do you call it that?
>>9
Harry Potter fandom https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lord_Voldemort
>>9,10
I'm not actually sure what site is not being named here? This isn't a story with one arch nemisis -- there are thousands of sites I'd rather they not be named.
>>11 Any quote of more than just a few words is like a fingerprint that can be quote-searched to find the original.
>>9
Because it's not very good, yet we've all come across it.
It was pretty good before the microsoft shills and chinese cancerbots moved in.
It was bad but money was the camel that broke the straw.
>>5
What would be the most sensible way to learn the prereq? It's a lot of material, even students who study full time need 2-3 years to cover it and I only have time on the weekends and maybe after work if it has not exhausted me completely.
>>17
I may be misunderstanding, but it might be useful to revive: http://textboard.org/prog/82 Something worth noting on this topic is that ego depletion does not exist but temporal motivation theory seems true. A good place to start is with interesting, meaningful, well-defined, and repeatable goals. Just to be clear I'm not in a position to be studying this topic currently just want to wish you the best.
https://clojureverse.org/t/scicloj-study-group-sicmutils/7118
>>19
I don't get it, why Clojure? If you get to use Scheme, I'd certainly choose it over a knock-off.
>>20
Many programmers seem to believe that there is very little, if any, transfer of knowledge between languages. Probably because they only know one or two languages.
>>20
Languages form communities of people who are fans of that language, people stick to resources that use their favorite language. If a scheme version of Let Over Lambda or AMOP were to show up (the latter exists iirc), schemers would like that. If pySICP were a thing, python fans would love it (I wonder if such a thing is possible.)
Clojure fans appropiated a piece of work, as far as I know Clojure has some ardent fans.
>>22
There are SICPs in Python:
https://composingprograms.com/
https://wizardforcel.gitbooks.io/sicp-in-python/content/
>>23
Pig disgusting.
>>22
Of course they appreciate it, but they are wrong, at least if you ask me.
>>24
Second this.
>>24-25
Don't care, didn't ask plus you are a Lisp weeny.
>>26
You're saying that like some kind of an insult.
>>28
Don't care, didn't ask plus you're jewish.
https://groups.csail.mit.edu/mac/users/gjs/6946/Video/
How do I access the videos? They used to work but they are private now.
Lisp was made by a Jew tho >>29
>>31
So you are a lisp weeny.
How is everyone's reading going? Is anyone here qualified to leave a review?
bump
>>33
Not very good. I thought I would start with filling some holes in my knowledge of mathematics, as a test run to see how hard it would be to learn it on my own. Turns out it is a lot harder than I imagined, so I did not even start with the real prerequisites yet.
>>35
Ah, that's too bad.
https://www.infoq.com/presentations/Expression-of-Ideas/
Gerald Sussman explains how programming can help understand Analytical Mechanics and Differential Geometry, and make some concepts of General Relativity come alive. Indeed, a well-crafted program is an expression of an idea, and it may be a work of art.
Thanks for bumping this thread! I have more books to check out now.
Although a year and a half late, you could now consider me in :)
Everytime I see this book mentioned I get an itch to read it. But I'm stil far behind on my physics education to be able to understand it. Hopefully some time in the future. I hope it's working out for you OP.