Foundations of Classical Mechanics

The following sections are included:

• The Equivalence of Static Coordinate Systems

  • REFERENCE FRAMES

  • THE EUCLIDEAN GROUP

• The Relativity of Velocity

  • FORCE AND THE LAW OF INERTIA

  • GALILEAN INVARIANCE

  • INERTIAL FRAMES OF REFERENCE

  • LORENTZ INVARIANCE

• The Principle of Equivalence

  • THREE KINDS OF MASS

  • FREE FALL

  • FICTITIOUS FORCES AND APPARENT GRAVITATIONAL FIELDS

  • EINSTEIN'S PRINCIPLE OF EQUIVALENCE

  • EXPERIMENTAL CONFIRMATION

• The Relativity of Acceleration

  • LOCAL INERTIAL FRAMES

  • GRAVITATIONAL FORCES AND SPACE CURVATURE

  • MACH'S PRINCIPLE

• The Basic Problem of Classical Dynamics

  • CAUSALITY

  • THE INITIAL-VALUE PROBLEM FOR NEWTONIAN INTERACTIONS

  • CONSERVATION LAWS