0054 Syllabus

MATHEMATICS 0054 (Analytical Dynamics)
YEAR 2019–2020, TERM 2
Professor Alan Sokal

Office: Maths Dept (UCL Union), Room 800 (tel 7679-2844)
E-mail: [email protected]
Course website: http://www.ucl.ac.uk/~ ucahad0/
Lectures: Mondays 12–1 and 4–5, and Wednesdays 10–11, all in Room 707
Office hours: To be negotiated with you later this week
Recommended Texts: One excellent text for the topics of this course is
Gregory, Classical Mechanics

You may wish to purchase it. Other good reference books are
Taylor, Classical Mechanics

Marion [or Marion–Thornton], Classical Dynamics of Particles and Systems
Goldstein [or Goldstein–Poole–Safko], Classical Mechanics
Two excellent references for some background topics are

Kleppner and Kolenkow, An Introduction to Mechanics
Morin, Introduction to Classical Mechanics
I will also hand out my own notes when I feel (modestly) that I can explain a topic better
than any of the existing texts.
Prerequisites: You are assumed to have a good background in Newtonian mechanics at

the level of MATH 0009 (formerly MATH 1302). We will devote the first week to reviewing
some of the needed material from a unified perspective.
Approximate Outline:
1. Review of the fundamental principles of Newtonian mechanics; Galileo’s principle of

relativity. Review of solvable cases of one-dimensional motion.
2. Systems of particles and conservation laws: linear momentum, angular momentum,

energy (internal and external potentials). Review of central-force motion.
3. Systems of coupled linear oscillators: normal modes. Introduction to waves.
4. Introduction to perturbation theory for anharmonic oscillators.
5. Motion with fixed or moving constraints: Newtonian approach.
1
6. Lagrangian dynamics: generalised coordinates, variational principles, conservation
laws, Noether’s theorem.
7. Hamiltonian dynamics: phase space and canonical coordinates, Poisson brackets.
8. Kinematics and dynamics in noninertial reference frames: centrifugal and Coriolis

pseudo-forces.
9. Rigid bodies: Eulerian angles, inertia matrices, Euler’s equations of motion, force-free
motion, tops.
Problem Sets: One cannot learn mathematics solely by watching someone else do mathe-
matics (even if that “someone” is a UCL professor). To learn mathematics, you must solve
mathematics problems — lots of them — by yourself . Therefore, I will assign problem sets
every week; they are to be handed in at the following week’s problem class. These problem
sets are the most important part of the course.
It is essential that you do the problem sets faithfully each week; if you put them off,
even a little bit, you will have an extremely hard time catching up. Give yourself lots of
time — mathematics is not a speed race — and do not expect to do a whole problem set in
one sitting. If you get completely stuck on a problem, go on to another problem, and come
back to the first one on a later day — your unconscious mind will be working on it in the
meantime! I suggest therefore that you start on the problem set early in the week.
I do not expect you to get everything right on the problem sets the first time around.
(Indeed, if you do get everything right, then you should complain to me that the problem
sets are not challenging enough!) Rather, the purpose of the problem sets is to give you
an opportunity to struggle with the ideas discussed in class by applying them to concrete
physical and mathematical problems, and in this way to solidify your understanding of those
ideas. Only by such an intellectual struggle can you learn mathematics (or anything else of
value, for that matter).
In writing up the problem sets, therefore, you must attempt to explain, as clearly and
precisely as you can, the logic behind what you are trying to do: what is the physical or
mathematical situation, what are the givens, what are the unknowns, what are the princi-
ples to be applied, how you intend to apply those principles, etc. (Please use full English
sentences, and large clearly-labelled drawings.) This explanation is especially important if
you are not able to complete the problem: you should try to pinpoint, as clearly as possible,
at what point you got stuck and why — this will serve as the basis for the class discussion.
The coursework grade will be based on the logic and clarity of your explanation.
Grading formula:
Coursework 10%
Final exam 90%

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MATHEMATICS 0054 (Analytical Dynamics)

YEAR 2019–2020, TERM 2

Professor Alan Sokal

Gregory, Classical Mechanics

Taylor, Classical Mechanics

Two excellent references for some background topics are

Prerequisites: You are assumed to have a good background in Newtonian mechanics at

1. Review of the fundamental principles of Newtonian mechanics; Galileo’s principle of

2. Systems of particles and conservation laws: linear momentum, angular momentum,

3. Systems of coupled linear oscillators: normal modes. Introduction to waves.

4. Introduction to perturbation theory for anharmonic oscillators.

5. Motion with fixed or moving constraints: Newtonian approach.

7. Hamiltonian dynamics: phase space and canonical coordinates, Poisson brackets.

8. Kinematics and dynamics in noninertial reference frames: centrifugal and Coriolis

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