I am an eighth grader...

Angel Kaldanis said:
So, as the title says, I am an eighth grader from Greece, and I am interested in physics. I feel like what I am learning in school (we are currently on y=ax+b in algebra, circles in geometry and pressure in physics) is way too easy and I want to learn more. I am willing to study hard. What should I do?
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I'm not familiar with the way science/math is taught in Greece, compared with the U.S. It seems odd to me that you are being taught algebra concurrently with physics. I regard algebra as being a prerequisite to physics. Also, it's very important to learn Newtonian physics well, before trying to learn special relativity.
 
Angel Kaldanis said:
It has been a while and i dont know if the people who helped me by answering this thread will be notified but i am now a 12 grader.
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however physics is still what i want to study in uni and have been studying it in conjuction with the math i have been learning. Any more tips advice you would like to offer me?
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I just read your post as a 12th grader.
Once you feel you understand Newtonian physics well, I recommend that you read Einstein's popularization of his special relativity theory:

"Relativity, The Special and General Theory".

When I bought it, it was by Crown Publishers, but I don't see that on Amazon any more. They do show the same title by Dover, though, and I think the content is the same. They are both the translation from the Germain by Robert W. Lawson.

One other personal piece of advice: The way Einstein's special relativity is presented has changed a lot over the years. I remember seeing a statement by Einstein saying something like "I hardly recognize my own theory when I hear it being described." It is now being taught in a much more abstract way than the way Einstein thought about it. For example, many modern authors recommend, when teaching special relativity, staying away from the concept of simultaneity-at-a-distance. I completely disagree. Feynman once said "Einstein's head was in the clouds, but his feet were firmly planted on the ground. Those of us who are not that tall must choose."
 
DaveC426913 said:
This is not the best place to learn physics. This board encourages discussion of non-mainstream subjects - something that you would do well to avoid until you have a stronger foundation in mainstream science, and are adept at discerning the difference.

Here's a better place
(link to Physics Forums)
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There have been some "non-mainstream" posts on Physics Forums also. For example, I remember one of their moderators (Dale, called "DaleSpam" then) was a BIG proponent of Dolby and Gull's simultaneity method (even though that method is non-causal). I don't know if he still is.

And more generally, it is important to understand that there is no such thing as "standard special relativity". Even though it is widely regarded as a finished, closed theory, there is actually quite a bit of variation in how different physicists describe it. The biggest area of disagreement has to do with the question of whether the (fairly startling) formal results of simultaneity-at-a-distance (such as the negative ageing of a distant person, according to an observer who suddenly changes his velocity in the direction AWAY from the distant person) are actually "real" and "meaningful". Another (retired) moderator on Physics Forums (Orodruin) has actually recommended that teachers of special relativity avoid talking about simultaneity-at-a-distance at all.
 
Mike_Fontenot said:
And more generally, it is important to understand that there is no such thing as "standard special relativity". Even though it is widely regarded as a finished, closed theory, there is actually quite a bit of variation in how different physicists describe it.
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That's kind of overstated.

"The standard model" and "variations in interpretation" are not mutually exclusive. The standard model is an area of active research and development.
 
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