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Summary: thank god for kenn amdahl.....
Review: .....for without him i would still be wandering around in the dark, and probably hurt myself with my ignorance. I just finished reading this book (in the course of less than a day, I might add) and felt a desperate need to log on and tell the world what I've discovered. Here it is; are you Ready? there is an absolute genius named Kenn Amdahl who wrote this book that any sixth grader could understand with ease (heck, most fourth graders will probably get it too) but is chock full of info that very few people (of any age) will ever know. For Anyone who wants to know how electricity works and what all those little random bits of plastic inside your walkman are and how they preform their mysterious tricks, you have to have this book. I have never ever enjoyed learning something so much in my life. I couldn't put this book down! (I finally couldn't keep my eyes open anymore and had to get up in six hours for work; nothing else could stop me!) truly useful knowledge was never this much fun! you could read this book just for kicks even if you didn't care about electronics. If teachers learned how to communicate like this, kids would be Begging to go to school and not come home until six or seven at night. and while you're throughly enjoying yourself you will all of a sudden realize that you know, understand, and can even apply all that nonsense that you've been trying to grind out of hundred dollar textbooks. You have no idea at all what a deal this is! ) for anyone who wants to learn how it all works, or already knows but still doesn't get it, this book is hope. Amdahl coaxes the genie out of the bottle, ties him to a table makes him tell you how all the magic actually happens. I don't trust reviews any more than you do, and it usually take seeing five or six of them that all sound about the same, and all sound reasonably sane (to some degreee at least) before i'll start to believe the opinion of people i don't know. I hope this review is number five or six for you, because this book deserves to have songs written about it. Please, Please take the risk and get the book. I Promise you won't be dissapointed. (you'll be too busy laughing at silly metaphors and understanding complex and abstract concepts)
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Summary: Electron Theory: Not Revealed Truth
Review: As engineers know and physicists need to know, electron theory is a convenient fiction known as a "model". Kenn Amdahl humorously points out some of the glaring discrepancies between electron theory and the real world.
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Summary: Electron Theory: Not Revealed Truth
Review: As engineers know and physicists need to know, electron theory is a convenient fiction known as a "model". Kenn Amdahl humorously points out some of the glaring discrepancies between electron theory and the real world.
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Summary: Seeing electricity from the perspective of the electrons
Review: Computers, in 2003, have combined many features of low-level electronics, radio, basic electricity, and electromagnetism. Understanding what's inside the box, and even many of the system components that come with a new computer, depends on having some sort of knowledge of things like transistors and capacitors. What's the difference between SRAM and SDRAM, DDR-SDRAM, and RDRAM? Until recently, I thought electricity "flowed" from positive to negative. When I learned it was the opposite, I wondered about everything else I'd learned. This book is one of the few outside of histories of Nikla Tesla that really speaks to the foundation of our knowledge of electricity. Using an ongoing model where electrons are "greenies," Amdahl creates a combination of science-fiction, and swords and sorcery to lead us into the microcosmic world of particle physics, magnetism, and how the two intertwine. I thought it was a great book, easy to read, and filled with humor. Sometimes the humor had so many twists and turns it became fairly insane; but how often does a science textbook ever really capture our imagination as "just a plain book to read?" There are lots of highly complicated books about electricity, but few of them define the fundamental concepts in such a way as to make them memorable. Amdahl's book reminds me of the "For Dummies" series of computer books, particularly the early ones. Many times he mentions technical jargon or certain formulas, but then goes on to tell us not to worry about learning them. Oddly enough, by the end of the book, you've learned them anyway.
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Summary: Hi everyone.
Review: Delighted to find myself here! Always enjoy hearing from friends, readers, and philanthropists
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Summary: This is the book you've been looking for.
Review: I found myself wanting to learn about electricity so I bought a couple of books on basic electricity and electronics and somehow managed to stay awake long enough to read them. If you had then asked me a question about basic electricity I probably could have answered it correctly but I would have been bluffing; I wouldn't have_really_understood my own answer. Then I read THERE ARE NO ELECTRONS. Just try asking me now! Kenn Amdahl is a genius. Buy the book and you'll agree.
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Summary: FANTASTIC TEACHING ABILITY!!!!!!!!!!!!
Review: I just recently finished reading this book. The motivation for reading this book was, ofcourse, to learn electronics, both analog and digital, and to ultimately be able to build out ideas that I have floating in my head for the last several years. The cover of this book caught my eye, and flipping through the pages, I could tell the book was definitely not dry. But was it good? I looked up some of the reviews and all of them were positive from some more reputable sources: National Public Radio/ Car Audio and Electronics / Science News / Radio Electronics Magazine. So I decided to purchase the book. This book introduces basic concepts of eletronics by use of analogies; imagery of little green men, chickens, and magicians to get his points across. Amdahl was impressed that his children could comprehend the entire Star Wars universe after watching the movie for 2 hours, and he figures he could do the same with electronics. Usually the format goes, introduce a theory with the usual electron jargon, translate the jargon into a story about Greenies who want to party. Repeat a few times, then review the last few sections with a story about Greenies and electron jargon. The concepts learned are pretty basic. It doesn't get into much detail, or formulas except for the two basic ones where a component is in series versus in parallel. Semi-conductors are covered. The stories themselves are somewhat entertaining. And they help you *some what* remember the concepts you learned. Amdahl has borrowed a concept used by mnemonics. However, the stories can be quite long. Some sections have five pages worth of stories to go through, and none of it has to do with electronics, or analogies. Just pure entertainment. I'd rather he just make analogies, and keep the narrative to the minimal. Remember, the more unusual, the better remembered, and to have a long narrative in a story helps make the bizarre imagery rational, thus losing it unusualness. The stories themselves with the electronics makes this book -for me- worth 3 stars. What makes this book worth five stars is the following. The book got me over my 'procrastination' hump and into learning electronics. I also liked the analogies and at times Amdahl pretty much comes out and says there are no really good analogies to electronics and everyday life. You'd be foolish to think that the dry textbooks know it all, and he gives some examples of how explanations in textbooks don't really make sense. That's a big thing, because having forgotten the electronics I learned in highschool, I do remember knowing the rules and how to apply them, but feeling quite anxious about not understanding. which I felt hindered my remembering the subject. Remember, whatever the textbooks or physicists come up with, it is only a model of reality, a mental construct, which just so happens to be the best at the time, but can change. I also liked the homemade gadgetry he introduces to people which I see lacking in many textbooks on the subject. The repetitive nature of the concepts introduced along with regular 'review stories' helped to remember important concepts. Finally, and most important of all, I like the inventive spirit the book seems to have. Kenn Amdahl manages to cultivate your imagination, definitely not something you'd find in other textbooks. So the negatives of the book. I mentioned one. The stories could be too long at times. The imagery is not 'continuous' first it was green men, then chickens and ducks. The other major problem is that there is no index at the end of the book. There were a few times I wanted to look up a term, but couldn't remember where in the book I read it first. For those that are impatient and need to learn electron theory fast, I don't recommend this book. It's not detailed enough and the jargon and concepts are not introduced fast enough. But if you are not in this category, this is a great book to start. (Right now, I am reading as my second book 'electricity: a self teaching guide by Ralph Morrison. It's a good book so far.)
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Summary: Amdahl deserves a teaching award.
Review: I just recently finished reading this book. The motivation for reading this book was, ofcourse, to learn electronics, both analog and digital, and to ultimately be able to build out ideas that I have floating in my head for the last several years. The cover of this book caught my eye, and flipping through the pages, I could tell the book was definitely not dry. But was it good? I looked up some of the reviews and all of them were positive from some more reputable sources: National Public Radio/ Car Audio and Electronics / Science News / Radio Electronics Magazine. So I decided to purchase the book. This book introduces basic concepts of eletronics by use of analogies; imagery of little green men, chickens, and magicians to get his points across. Amdahl was impressed that his children could comprehend the entire Star Wars universe after watching the movie for 2 hours, and he figures he could do the same with electronics. Usually the format goes, introduce a theory with the usual electron jargon, translate the jargon into a story about Greenies who want to party. Repeat a few times, then review the last few sections with a story about Greenies and electron jargon. The concepts learned are pretty basic. It doesn't get into much detail, or formulas except for the two basic ones where a component is in series versus in parallel. Semi-conductors are covered. The stories themselves are somewhat entertaining. And they help you *some what* remember the concepts you learned. Amdahl has borrowed a concept used by mnemonics. However, the stories can be quite long. Some sections have five pages worth of stories to go through, and none of it has to do with electronics, or analogies. Just pure entertainment. I'd rather he just make analogies, and keep the narrative to the minimal. Remember, the more unusual, the better remembered, and to have a long narrative in a story helps make the bizarre imagery rational, thus losing it unusualness. The stories themselves with the electronics makes this book -for me- worth 3 stars. What makes this book worth five stars is the following. The book got me over my 'procrastination' hump and into learning electronics. I also liked the analogies and at times Amdahl pretty much comes out and says there are no really good analogies to electronics and everyday life. You'd be foolish to think that the dry textbooks know it all, and he gives some examples of how explanations in textbooks don't really make sense. That's a big thing, because having forgotten the electronics I learned in highschool, I do remember knowing the rules and how to apply them, but feeling quite anxious about not understanding. which I felt hindered my remembering the subject. Remember, whatever the textbooks or physicists come up with, it is only a model of reality, a mental construct, which just so happens to be the best at the time, but can change. I also liked the homemade gadgetry he introduces to people which I see lacking in many textbooks on the subject. The repetitive nature of the concepts introduced along with regular 'review stories' helped to remember important concepts. Finally, and most important of all, I like the inventive spirit the book seems to have. Kenn Amdahl manages to cultivate your imagination, definitely not something you'd find in other textbooks. So the negatives of the book. I mentioned one. The stories could be too long at times. The imagery is not 'continuous' first it was green men, then chickens and ducks. The other major problem is that there is no index at the end of the book. There were a few times I wanted to look up a term, but couldn't remember where in the book I read it first. For those that are impatient and need to learn electron theory fast, I don't recommend this book. It's not detailed enough and the jargon and concepts are not introduced fast enough. But if you are not in this category, this is a great book to start. (Right now, I am reading as my second book 'electricity: a self teaching guide by Ralph Morrison. It's a good book so far.)
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Summary: Scarce useful information drowning in annoying fiction
Review: I like the approach the author takes to introduce a complex subject to the masses. However, the fiction is childish and verbose. The science is overwhelmed. It's true that analogies used to explain scientific theories fail in accuracy and completeness. Do you honestly think analogies using these fictional "greenies" come closer to the truth? This book is nicely marketed as a panacea, which I was sad to discover is not. The truth is this: the study of most scientific subjects demands a lot of time and energy on the part of the student. I'd only recommend this book to those who know nothing of electricity or who enjoy meaningless banter about fictional bugs. I just hope Dave Barry extinguishes any further desire to endorse technical literature.
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Summary: Dump your college text and read this first
Review: I read this book after struggling through my first semester of Electricity and Magnetism as a college freshman. It provies an excellent conceptual primer that leaves the reader with an intuitive feel for how E&M works.
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