Download IJPAP 49(10) (Book review)

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Book Review
Electricity and Magnetism, Berkeley Physics
Course, Vol. 2 by Edward M Purcell, Tata
McGraw Hill Education Pvt Ltd, New Delhi 2011,
pp. 483.
Berkley Physics Course series are in five volumes:
(1) Mechanics, (2) Electricity and Magnetism, (3)
Waves and Oscillations, (4) Quantum Physics, (5)
Statistical Physics. The book ‘Electricity and
Magnetism’ authored by Professor Emeritus Edward
M Purcell from Gerhard Gade University, Harvard
University is the revised Volume 2 of Berkeley
Physics Course. It covers the elementary physics
course for students studying in science and
engineering field. Apart from total Eleven Chapters in
the book, it also comprises Appendix (A-E) on
various topics. The book covers mainly the topics on
Electrostatics; Charges and Fields, Electric Potential,
Electric Fields around –Conductors, Electric Currents,
Fields of Moving Charges, Magnetic Fields,
Electromagnetic
Induction,
Alternating-current
Circuits, Maxwell’s Equations and Electromagnetic
Waves, Electric Fields in Matter and Magnetic Fields
in Matter. Appendix (A-E ) covers a Short Review of
Special Relativity, Radiation by an Accelerated
Charge, Superconductivity, Magnetic Resonance,
Exact Relations among SI and CGS Units. The SI
units-ampere, coulomb, volt, ohm and tesla are
introduced in the text and used in all the problems.
The book is illustrative with ample practical
examples and solutions. At the end of each chapter
plenty of Problems are given for students to solve and
understand the physics phenomenon in depth. In the
competitive world, if the solved objective type
questions and answers would have been added at the
end of each chapter, it would have further enhanced
the value of the Volume 2. The production of book as
far as style and presentation is concerned, is of high
quality. The need to produce such books arises due to
rapid advancement in science and engineering field
and the burning desire among the college students to
learn the foundation of physics at the grass root level.
This Volume 2 will be useful for students learning
physics in colleges and for researchers. This will also
be a valuable addition in the University libraries.
Poonam Bhatt