I am a homeschool mom to an 11 yr old boy. He took this course and really enjoyed it. The demonstrations of physics at work made the information very intersting and accessible to him.

Great introduction to Physics. I use the concepts taught in this course frequently in everyday life. Professor Bloomfield explains concepts very clearly without getting overly mathematical.

Love the course. Energetic and brilliant instructor! Easy to understand, even for me, someone who learned Eng as the third language, someone who currently has a 15mo, and someone who had never paid attention in Physics classes growing up. (Hmm, musician, just typical!) I, however, do have two suggestions, if I may:

I would suggest to unlock the quiz. I know that it's a paid content. But, isn't Coursera a place that encourages learning instead of learning for a certificate? Those who want the certificate could pay for it after they are done with the class.

Forgive me if someone else has already mentioned this: In the early class, there was a video showing Lou running up stairs and stops. I think it would be fair, if we also considered the very beginning moment(still) to start running. (I think the options started from "already" moving instead of from no movement to movement)

I certainly hope to take more classes by Louis from now on. (Yes, feel free to quote me in the petition!)

The course was utilized as a template for teaching physics in an after school program. I enjoyed taking the class and obtained some creative ideas for teaching basic physics principles.

it so boring

Thank you very much Mr. Bloomfield ... !!!

Great presentation, excellent demonstrations, indoor and outdoors and very assuring oratory skills. Appreciate all your efforts and looking forward to yet another opportunity to meet you virtually.

One small area of disagreement though ... I refer to your video "Week 3, Falling Balls I" (time frame 5:12) (How Things Work) topic on "Weight and Mass" of an object where you point out two items from the grocery store, namely the Chocolate Bar and the bag of Cookies.

Following information from US FDA regarding Food Labeling Guide, Net quantity of Contents Statement.

>>>>>>>

3. Should the net quantity of contents be stated in both grams and ounces?

Answer: Food labels printed must show the net contents in both metric (grams, kilograms, milliliters, liters) and U.S. Customary System (ounces, pounds, fluid ounces) terms. The metric statement may be placed either before or after the U.S. Customary statement, or above or below it. Each of the following examples is correct (additional examples appear in the regulations):

Net wt 1 lb 8 oz (680g)

Net wt 1 lb 8 oz 680 g

500 ml (1 pt 0.9 fl oz)

Net contents 1 gal (3.79 L)

<<<<<<<<<<

For additional info, please refer to the following link for detailed info on what US FDA agrees to : http://www.fda.gov/Food/GuidanceRegulation/GuidanceDocumentsRegulatoryInformation/LabelingNutrition/ucm064877.htm#included

View above, I presume that the value of the grocery contents shown in Metric system is its Net Weight (not mass) and makes it easier to understand for people from countries that follow Metric system.

Let me know if I am wrong.

Warm Regards,

Ravi Sudame.

This course is brilliant, because it has the potential to reach the masses of individuals that would otherwise be left out of the world of physics. I'm talking about students that think they are too busy, too slow, too old, not smart enough, etc. This is an 'at your own pace' class, which I really appreciated for learning concepts in physics. The way this course accomplishes this amazing feat is by presenting everyday physical actions like dropped balls out of three story windows, or manned wheeled carts gliding across the floor, or bumper car physics explained with air hockey games, and then explaining the laws of physics that are behind the 'actions'. Knowing the physics behind what we see everyday is so enriching, and my eyes are much wider now. This course, taught by Dr. Louis Bloomfield, is also amusing and entertaining, as Dr. Bloomfield races up and down the steps of the empty University of Virginia Physics building for the dropped ball gravity experiments, or crashes himself (standing on a wheeled cart) into the wall to illustrate energy and momentum transfer. (he has really good balance and stamina!) I really hope there is a 'How MORE Things Work' soon! My appetite is whetted.

I enrolled me in these course after having bought the book "How thing work". I found this course great, because all the example made during the course make the concepts easy to be understood, and my insight about mechanics has enhanced a lot. It has been not only interesting but even funny to watch the videos. I have a degree in Physics and I teach Physics in a high school in Italy. After having followed these course I will use in the classroom many of the suggestion, the course gave me, to make the concepts more affordable for young people that have many difficulties with physics and math.

How thing work make Physics simple and interesting for everybody! I hope that these course will have other section about thermodynamics, electromagnetism and so on, because for me is a source of inspiration for my job and a wonderful method to revise all the topics, discovering always new insight. Dear Louis thank a lot for your work!!

It has been many years since I've had a physics course. I've got a doctorate in another field. I've been looking into bio-mechanical interfaces and felt that I needed to review some basic physics without all the hassle of a formal course and with the option of skipping around if I felt the material was too basic. The lecture series allowed me to quickly and easily review some basic concepts without a formal structure.

I also have to say Dr. B. did a terrific job of translating some potentially daunting concepts into enjoyable yet serious teaching metaphors. A seriously fantastic job. Obviously, as noted the gradient lecture series has some personal interest and I think that you might consider some introduction to matter.

I wouldnt want it any other way. Im in week 2 so far, and while I have some questions wrong occaisonally, thats mostly because I get confused with the words since im not a native english speaker (and a guy that thinks in weird, complicated ways) .

The Professor takes his time, gives many, thought out and easygoing examples and seems to really enjoy what hes doing. He wants you to learn, he wants you to know, he even wants you to have fun and hes does everything in his power to make you really get a feel for physics and its basic concepts.

This is learning of the future right here, online, for everyone.

Thank you so much for putting this up!

This course is glorious. I never thought my mind could understand physics because throughout school, it was just esoteric. I had MANY questions about theories and their application, but felt like my questions were stupid and clearly I just wasn't cut out for the subject. But now to have those misunderstandings cleared up, to have my eyes opened to physics in my daily world, to get to grips with physics sans formulae - it's almost magical. A very, very masterful crafted course as well - thought-provoking questions, structuring the modules themselves around key, practical questions, the physical illustrations - it's great. Thank you!

Really enjoyed this course! I'm in my 50s and just started exploring courses in my spare time for fun. Physics in my high school was poorly taught, so when I saw this course's reviews, including several thumbs up from other grateful physics teachers, I gave it a go - and promptly got hooked. Bloomfield is wonderfully animated and clear, his demonstrations are illuminating and frequently humorous (how often do you find THAT in a course!), and his lessons explain the mechanics of things we observe every day without going into overly advanced, technical discussions. Highly recommend!

This course is a great introduction to the laws of motion, particularly for individuals without much math background or with rusty math skills. The content is well structured, and Dr. Bloomfield's use of relatable, real world examples facilitates learning of the concepts, which one starts to notice and think about in every day life. Further, Dr. Bloomfield's delivery is engaging and personable, making the videos enjoyable to watch. I would love to see the rest of How Things Work turned into online courses, and would definitely enroll in them.

I thoroughly enjoyed taking this course. As a hands-on, technical trades type learner, this class was like spending some time wandering around the hardware store of science. I don't know how to use all of the tools yet, but I feel that this class was a perfect, accessible way of learning about what tools are out there! It has definitely inspired me to continue pursuing knowledge in physics, and I would love to see How Things Work: Part 2. Thank you Lou Bloomfield, for the work you put into this class. It was a pleasure!

What a wonderful class! The instructor, Louis Bloomfield, made so many concepts of physics understandable. His continual use of visual aids and moving objects was extremely helpful. The class was both fun and challenging. The quizzes are not simple; you really have to think about what you were taught and apply the concepts to new situations, but they were fair and achievable. I had never taken a physic class before and am so glad that I chose this one! I highly recommend it.

This course was an amazing learning experience. It was definitely easy for me as I already am pursuing my undergrad in Physics. I did this since my syllabus lacked mechanics. The course is highly practical and visual, so you perfectly understand concepts, and you'll never forget them.

Regardless of what you study in college or use at work, I'd recommend anyone to take this up because not only was it fun, but it is important that we know How Things Work around us!

The course was pretty cool. The professor is quite funny, I have to say, this series of study has been one of my most interesting experience, this course turned what seems to be mysterious physicist's word and concept in to our everyday experience, and these wonderful experience plus a little computer edit then give you a complete new feeling of study that you can't have from ordinary schools. Thank you, Louis, it's a lovely course..

It is superb. I really enjoy classes which are explaining fundamentals of physics in interesting, entertaining, stimulating way. And these are such classes. This course gives us opportunity to understand physics by examining everyday situations, and that's why it is more comprehensible than classes at school or university.

Mr Bloomfield is doing a great, great job indeed! Many thanks for him, and all the best! Keep it up :)

Very well put together by Lou, who has an approach of child-like humour and an approachable method of teaching through the camera. There are many great examples with simple, consistent explanations that stick. If you heard the example of the figure skater spinning faster by pulling in his/her arms a million times in popular science shows but never really knew WHY that happened, this course is perfect for you.

To be honest, it took me some "years" to finish this course. I did enjoy it, then left it, forgot it, then came back with lack of passion and eager, the suddenly the "Seesaw" pull me back to to track. Finally, something has been started and completed. Thank you, professor, your passion and inspiring videos are the sweetest of this course. Some moments in your videos made me crazily laugh. :v

'How Things Work' is undoubtedly the best introductory physics course I have ever taken. Professor Bloomfield makes physics so much fun to study and motivates students with his empathy. As I'm a physics teacher myself, I intend to enhance my classes with this revolutionary way of teaching, by using everyday examples to maximize students learning. Thank you very much professor Lou!!! =]

Dear Professor Bloomfield, I glad to inform you that I successfully completed the online course named "How things work-An Introduction to physics". I really amazing and enjoyed this course with practical definitions without much mathematics. This course gives more confident to study other courses, learn other lectures etc. Thanks a lot for giving me a nice platform.

Excellent course to learn the basics of mechanics, through explanations and examples are easy to remember... Just perfect for those who want to bring themechanics physical and the more advanced students (sometimes they make mistakes stubidi). This course resolve the gap between the formality of a university course of mathematics and the physical meaning retrievable in everyday life

Pr. Bloomfield presents an amazing introduction to the world of physics. The courses are really easy to follow without any prior knowledge of any sort and they provide a deeper and most of the time easier understanding of what you'll study in a general physics classroom. Thank you Mr Bloomfield and I really hope you'll be able to produce the rest of this work in the near future.

It's been very helpful, and it didn't take much time to finish. Although I think some answers to the questions asked in the videos are a bit confusing (I believe some questions have multiple correct answers and some I can't see clearly the connection between them and the course, better with more explanation...), the course is overall high-qualified and well arranged. Thank you!