--- product_id: 54245625 title: "Modern Classical Physics: Optics, Fluids, Plasmas, Elasticity, Relativity, and Statistical Physics" price: "755 zł" currency: PLN in_stock: true reviews_count: 13 url: https://www.desertcart.pl/products/54245625-modern-classical-physics-optics-fluids-plasmas-elasticity-relativity-and-statistical store_origin: PL region: Poland --- # Modern Classical Physics: Optics, Fluids, Plasmas, Elasticity, Relativity, and Statistical Physics **Price:** 755 zł **Availability:** ✅ In Stock ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** Modern Classical Physics: Optics, Fluids, Plasmas, Elasticity, Relativity, and Statistical Physics - **How much does it cost?** 755 zł with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.pl](https://www.desertcart.pl/products/54245625-modern-classical-physics-optics-fluids-plasmas-elasticity-relativity-and-statistical) ## Best For - Customers looking for quality international products ## Why This Product - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Description A groundbreaking text and reference book on twenty-first-century classical physics and its applications This first-year graduate-level text and reference book covers the fundamental concepts and twenty-first-century applications of six major areas of classical physics that every masters- or PhD-level physicist should be exposed to, but often isn't: statistical physics, optics (waves of all sorts), elastodynamics, fluid mechanics, plasma physics, and special and general relativity and cosmology. Growing out of a full-year course that the eminent researchers Kip Thorne and Roger Blandford taught at Caltech for almost three decades, this book is designed to broaden the training of physicists. Its six main topical sections are also designed so they can be used in separate courses, and the book provides an invaluable reference for researchers. Presents all the major fields of classical physics except three prerequisites: classical mechanics, electromagnetism, and elementary thermodynamics Elucidates the interconnections between diverse fields and explains their shared concepts and tools Focuses on fundamental concepts and modern, real-world applications Takes applications from fundamental, experimental, and applied physics; astrophysics and cosmology; geophysics, oceanography, and meteorology; biophysics and chemical physics; engineering and optical science and technology; and information science and technology Emphasizes the quantum roots of classical physics and how to use quantum techniques to elucidate classical concepts or simplify classical calculations Features hundreds of color figures, some five hundred exercises, extensive cross-references, and a detailed index An online illustration package is available Review: a breath of fresh air - Having recently acquired this text, I can add little to the extant reviews, except to say: Study the book ! For more, read the Princeton University Press Blog, including an interview with 2017 Nobel Prize winner Kip Thorne and Roger Blandford. Regarding this book, read: "LIGO’s gravitational wave detectors rely on an amazingly wide range of classical physics concepts and tools, so time and again we draw on LIGO for illustrations. The theory of random processes, spectral densities, the fluctuation-dissipation theorem, the Fokker-Planck equation; shot noise, thermal noise, thermoelastic noise, optimal filters for extracting weak signals from noise; paraxial optics, Gaussian beams, the theory of coherence, squeezed light, interferometry, laser physics; the interaction of gravitational waves with light and with matter; the subtle issue of the conservation or non conservation of energy in general relativity— all these and more are illustrated by LIGO in our book." (10/12/2017, Kip Thorne, Princeton University Press Interview). Addendum (August 2019): An engineering student lamented about his academic performance in a recent course of fluid dynamics. Happily, Thorne and Blandford can be recommended as an excellent guide on this topic. Having read Feynman (volume two, chapters 38 through 41) and having viewed videos relevant to the topic (referenced here pages 731 and 790; films from the Committee for Fluid Mechanics, now available Youtube), you are prepared to tackle Thorne and Blandford, their chapter 12, 13 and 14. These chapters are replete with insight. I enjoyed, and highlight: “analysis of fluid flow based on some general ideas that ought to be familiar from other areas of physics.” (pages 750-752). The analysis is a crash-course in “how to think like a physicist." Review: The Geometrization of Physics - I would like to emphasize an aspect of this book that none of the other reviewers have mentioned. The very first paragraph on page 1 offers what I consider the central vision of this ambitious text: "In this book, a central theme will be a Geometric Principle: The laws of physics must all be expressible as geometric (coordinate-independent and reference-frame independent) relationships between geometric objects (scalars, vectors, tensors,...) that represent physical entities." Kip Thorne, Charles Misner, and John Archibald Wheeler attempted to fulfill this same geometric vision for General Relativity in the early 1970s with the publication of the 1279-page landmark work, Gravitation. One can therefore see this recent book by Blandford and Thorne as the extension of the geometric program to many areas of classical physics. For those of us who are "true believers" in the geometric program, this book is a welcome addition to the literature. One remark on the physical quality of the book under review. Despite having 1511 pages, the book is hardbound and sturdy enough to hold up under years of study. The paper quality is first-rate, and there are even color graphics scattered throughout. Princeton University Press is to be commended for producing a first-class textbook at a reasonable price. Their recent hardbound republication of the classic book Gravitation is also extremely well done, and for an amazingly low price. ## Technical Specifications | Specification | Value | |---------------|-------| | Best Sellers Rank | #932,261 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #175 in Optics for Physics #253 in Relativity Physics (Books) #301 in Scientific Reference | | Customer Reviews | 4.8 out of 5 stars 168 Reviews | ## Images ![Modern Classical Physics: Optics, Fluids, Plasmas, Elasticity, Relativity, and Statistical Physics - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/91Hxt4rT0LL.jpg) ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ a breath of fresh air *by G***Y on October 16, 2017* Having recently acquired this text, I can add little to the extant reviews, except to say: Study the book ! For more, read the Princeton University Press Blog, including an interview with 2017 Nobel Prize winner Kip Thorne and Roger Blandford. Regarding this book, read: "LIGO’s gravitational wave detectors rely on an amazingly wide range of classical physics concepts and tools, so time and again we draw on LIGO for illustrations. The theory of random processes, spectral densities, the fluctuation-dissipation theorem, the Fokker-Planck equation; shot noise, thermal noise, thermoelastic noise, optimal filters for extracting weak signals from noise; paraxial optics, Gaussian beams, the theory of coherence, squeezed light, interferometry, laser physics; the interaction of gravitational waves with light and with matter; the subtle issue of the conservation or non conservation of energy in general relativity— all these and more are illustrated by LIGO in our book." (10/12/2017, Kip Thorne, Princeton University Press Interview). Addendum (August 2019): An engineering student lamented about his academic performance in a recent course of fluid dynamics. Happily, Thorne and Blandford can be recommended as an excellent guide on this topic. Having read Feynman (volume two, chapters 38 through 41) and having viewed videos relevant to the topic (referenced here pages 731 and 790; films from the Committee for Fluid Mechanics, now available Youtube), you are prepared to tackle Thorne and Blandford, their chapter 12, 13 and 14. These chapters are replete with insight. I enjoyed, and highlight: “analysis of fluid flow based on some general ideas that ought to be familiar from other areas of physics.” (pages 750-752). The analysis is a crash-course in “how to think like a physicist." ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ The Geometrization of Physics *by A***R on February 24, 2018* I would like to emphasize an aspect of this book that none of the other reviewers have mentioned. The very first paragraph on page 1 offers what I consider the central vision of this ambitious text: "In this book, a central theme will be a Geometric Principle: The laws of physics must all be expressible as geometric (coordinate-independent and reference-frame independent) relationships between geometric objects (scalars, vectors, tensors,...) that represent physical entities." Kip Thorne, Charles Misner, and John Archibald Wheeler attempted to fulfill this same geometric vision for General Relativity in the early 1970s with the publication of the 1279-page landmark work, Gravitation. One can therefore see this recent book by Blandford and Thorne as the extension of the geometric program to many areas of classical physics. For those of us who are "true believers" in the geometric program, this book is a welcome addition to the literature. One remark on the physical quality of the book under review. Despite having 1511 pages, the book is hardbound and sturdy enough to hold up under years of study. The paper quality is first-rate, and there are even color graphics scattered throughout. Princeton University Press is to be commended for producing a first-class textbook at a reasonable price. Their recent hardbound republication of the classic book Gravitation is also extremely well done, and for an amazingly low price. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Phenomenal Throughout *by M***X on November 18, 2019* Modern Classical Physics will undoubtedly become a classic learning material and reference text for many years to come. The overall presentation of the text exceeds the standard-- free of clutter and aided with timely and accurate visual representations of diagrams and/or images of real phenomena. The mathematical operations used in the book are pretty much standard as far as undergraduate mathematical physics with the exception of some new (at least new for me) notations which are introduced in hopes of supplementing the book's "geometric approach" to physics. An important note to make is that the physics isn't changed in this process, but rather just the viewpoint in which it is observed. Thorne and Blandford clearly show that this is the case early on,in spite of some differences in the mathematical language as compared with many other modern texts. These differences are quite minor once you get a grip on them, and I myself have been able to substitute their notation with my own with little effort (though there is no difference computationally). Most of the topics covered (if not all) will be supplemented with real life applications demonstrated in examples and exercise. Do note that many of these are quite sophisticated and that the authors encourage the readers to use external references if needed. If you are familiar with Special Relativity, I recommend skipping the first chapter on it until GR is introduced, and then returning to it for some guidance on notation. Otherwise, the entire chapter is pretty standard in terms of key concepts and computations. It isn't used much by itself throughout the book and when it is, a pretty simple translation from nonrelativistic--> relativistic laws is normally offered. The book is dense and powerful, but does not lack mathematical sophistication. Be prepared for the maths! Thank you Thorne and Blandford and everyone else who worked on this masterpiece... I know I will probably use this as a reference for decades to come. ## Frequently Bought Together - Modern Classical Physics: Optics, Fluids, Plasmas, Elasticity, Relativity, and Statistical Physics - Gravitation - Spacetime and Geometry: An Introduction to General Relativity --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.pl/products/54245625-modern-classical-physics-optics-fluids-plasmas-elasticity-relativity-and-statistical](https://www.desertcart.pl/products/54245625-modern-classical-physics-optics-fluids-plasmas-elasticity-relativity-and-statistical) --- *Product available on Desertcart Poland* *Store origin: PL* *Last updated: 2026-05-19*