JS: I would never have written this book without the inspiration from my AP Physics C classmates—Justin Kreindel, Zack Menegakis, Adam Ohren, Jason Sheikh, and Joe Thistle—fellow physics enthusiasts who are also some of my closest friends. They were the ones who convinced me that learning physics could be a process filled not just with problem sets and formulas, but also with light-hearted antics and belly-aching laughter. If this book is fun to read, it is because of their influence.
We also extend our thanks to Grace Freedson, who was the driving force behind this book’s publication, and especially to Don Reis, who was not only a superb editor but also an unwavering source of support.
GJ: Josh has already mentioned Don, Grace, and our 1999–2000 Physics C gang. I appreciate them, too. I also appreciate Ruth Mills’ awesome work on the second edition and Bev Weiler and Clara Wente’s careful and thorough editing of the questions and example problems for the third edition.
Thank-you to Chat Hull and Jessica Broaddus, veterans of my 2002 Physics B class, who provided the idea for two free-response questions.
My 2004 classes at Woodberry Forest School were extremely helpful in the development of this book. It was they who served as guinea pigs, reading chapters for clarity and correctness, making suggestions, and finding mistakes. They are Andrew Burns, Jordan Crittenden, David Fulton, Henry Holderness, Michael Ledwith, Johnny Phillips, Rob Sellers, and Chris Straka from Physics C; Wes Abcouwer, Wyatt Bone, Matt Brown, David Goodson, Bret Holbrook, Mike Johnson, Rich Lane, Jake Miller, Jake Reeder, Charles Shackelford, Beau Thomas, David Badham, Marks Brewbaker, Charlton deSaussure, Palmer Heenan, Wilson Kieffer, Brian McCormick, Eli Montague, Christian Rizzuti, Pierre Rodriguez, and Frazier Stowers from Physics B; and Andy Juc, Jamie Taliaferro, Nathan Toms, Matt Laughridge, Jamie Gardiner, Graham Gardiner, Robbie Battle, William Crosscup, Jonas Park, Billy Butler, Bryan May, Fletcher Fortune, and Stuart Coleman from the general physics class. Although Josh and I bear responsibility for all errors in the text, the folks mentioned above deserve credit for minimizing our mistakes.
The idea for the 4-minute drill came originally from Keen Johnson Babbage, my seventh-grade social studies teacher. I’ve borrowed the idea from him for 14 years of teaching AP. Thank you!
The faculty and administration at Woodberry, in particular Jim Reid, the science department chairman, deserve mention. They have been so supportive of me professionally.
Additional thanks go to members of my 2009 AP physics classes who helped edit the practice tests: Min SuKim, Cannon Allen, Collins MacDonald, Luke Garrison, Chris Cirenza, and Landon Biggs.
Most important, I’d like to thank Shari and Milo Cebu for putting up with me during all of my writing projects.