Learn Physics with Functional Programming A Hands-on Guide to Exploring Physics with Haskell

by Walck, Scott N.

• ISBN13: 9781718501669
• ISBN10: 1718501668
• eBook ISBN(s): 9781718501676
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2023-01-31
• Publisher: No Starch Press
• More Book Details
• Purchase Benefits

Summary

Deepen your understanding of physics by learning to use the Haskell functional programming language.

Learn Physics with Functional Programming is your key to unlocking the mysteries of theoretical physics by coding the underlying math in Haskell.

You’ll use Haskell’s type system to check that your code makes sense as you deepen your understanding of Newtonian mechanics and electromagnetic theory, including how to describe and calculate electric and magnetic fields.

As you work your way through the book’s numerous examples and exercises, you’ll learn how to:

• Encode vectors, derivatives, integrals, scalar fields, vector fields, and differential equations
• Express fundamental physical principles using the logic of Haskell’s type system to clarify Newton’s second law, Coulomb’s law, the Biot-Savart law, and the Maxwell equations
• Use higher-order functions to express numerical integration and approximation methods, such as the Euler method and the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method
• Create graphs, models, and animations of physical scenarios like colliding billiard balls, waves in a guitar string, and a proton in a magnetic field

Whether you’re using this book as a core textbook for a computational physics course or for self-study, Learn Physics with Functional Programming will teach you how to use the power of functional programming to explore the beautiful ideas of theoretical physics.

Author Biography

Scott Walck has a PhD in Physics from Lehigh University and has been a professor of physics, including computational physics, to undergraduates for over 20 years at Lebanon Valley College. He has also written academic articles and given talks on the use of functional programming in teaching physics.

 
 

Table of Contents

Introduction
Part I: The Haskell Language
Chapter 1: Haskell as a Calculator
Chapter 2: Functions
Chapter 3: Types
Chapter 4: Describing Motion
Chapter 5: Lists
Chapter 6: Higher-order Functions
Chapter 7: Quick Plotting
Chapter 8: Type Classes
Chapter 9: Tuples and Type Constructors
Chapter 10: Motion in Three Dimensions
Chapter 11: Presentation Plotting
Chapter 12: Animation
Part II: Newtonian Mechanics
Chapter 13: Newton’s Second Law
Chapter 14: Mechanics in One Dimension
Chapter 15: The Theory of Mechanics in Three Dimensions
Chapter 16: Examples of Mechanics in Three Dimensions
Chapter 17: A Very Short Primer on Relativity
Chapter 18: The Theory of Interacting Particles
Chapter 19: Examples of Interacting Particles
Part III: Electromagnetic Theory
Chapter 20: Electricity
Chapter 21: Coordinate Systems and Fields
Chapter 22: Curves, Surfaces, and Volumes
Chapter 23: Electric Charge
Chapter 24: Electric Field
Chapter 25: Electric Current
Chapter 26: Magnetic Field
Chapter 27: Fields Apply Force to Charge
Chapter 28: Maxwell’s Equations
Appendix A: Installing Haskell