Newtonian Mechanics for Particles and Rigid Body

Course Description:

I teach this course, Mechanics II: Dynamics (Newtonian Dynamics of Particles and Rigid Bodies), at the University of California, San Diego, as part of the undergraduate curriculum in the Structural Engineering Department. This course follows Mechanics 1: Statics and introduces students to the dynamics of particles and rigid bodies. It serves as a crucial steppingstone in understanding how structures and systems behave when subjected to motion and time-varying forces.

The course covers both kinematics and kinetics of particles and rigid bodies in two and three dimensions. Topics include Newton’s laws, orbital mechanics, non-inertial reference frames, Euler angles, work-energy principles, conservative forces, impulse-momentum relations, and impact. Emphasis is placed on drawing correct free body diagrams, identifying kinematic constraints such as rolling or sliding, and applying appropriate conservation laws to solve dynamic problems. I’ve broken down the lectures in this course into 14 manageable chapters.

Please note that these lecture notes are a work in progress. You may (and likely will) encounter typos or minor (or major) errors. I do my best to update and correct them as I discover them—usually when I teach. I hope you find these notes useful.

Statics

Course Description:

I occasionally teach this course, Mechanics 1: Statics, at the University of California, San Diego, as part of the undergraduate curriculum in the Structural Engineering Department. This course serves as the first exposure to mechanics for structural engineering students. I consider it a basic, yet crucial and foundational, course for civil engineers. At present, the notes do not include content on centroids and moments of inertia. I’ve broken down the lectures in this course into 26 manageable chapters.