THREE-DIMENSIONAL MODELING

Course objectives

General targets: To acquire basic knowledge in classical mechanics and in dynamical systems. Knowledge and understanding: Students who have passed the exam will be able to construct mathematical models not only for problems of mechanical nature, and to use analytic and qualitative methods of ordinary differential equations to deal with them. Applying knowledge and understanding: Students who have passed the exam will be able: i) to perform the qualitative analysis on the phase space for one-dimensional conservative systems and to obtain quantitative estimates; ii) to study problems of stability of equilibrium points elementary methods of Liapunov; iii) to calculate frequencies of normal modes around stable equilibria; iv) to choose properly Lagrangian coordinates for particular configuration manifolds; iv) to recognize the variational nature of Lagrange equations and their implications; v) to use specific criteria for searching prime integrals in Lagrange equations and to perform the subsequent reduction to a smaller number of degrees of freedom; vi) to perform numerical simulations of simple ODEs Making judgements: Students who have passed the exam will have the basis to analyze the similarities between the topics covered in the course and the already acquired knowledges in analysis and geometry; they will also acquire important tools and ideas that have historically led to the solution of fundamental problems of classical mechanics and dynamical systems. Communication skills: Students who have passed the exam will have gained the ability to communicate concepts, ideas and methodologies of analytical mechanics and dynamical systems. Learning skills: The acquired knowledge will allow students who have passed the exam to face the study, at an individual level or in a master's degree course, of specialized aspects of classical mechanics and, more generally, of the theory of dynamical systems.

Channel 1
EMANUELE CAGLIOTI Lecturers' profile

Program - Frequency - Exams

Course program
- Background on ordinary differential equations, equilibria and stability. - Axiomatic formulation of Newtonian mechanics for systems of point particles. - Cardinal equations and conservations laws. - Qualitative analysis of systems with one degree of freedom. - Central force motion and Kepler’s problem. - Variational principles and Euler-Lagrange equations. - Dynamics of constrained systems of point particles. - Lagrangian systems, reduction to normal form, first integrals. - Equilibria, stability and instability criteria, small oscillations. - Symmetries and Noether’s theorem. - Introduction to the dynamics of a rigid body.
Prerequisites
Useful prerequisites are the first courses of mathematical analysis and lenear algebra.
Books
P. Buttà, P. Negrini, Note del corso di meccanica razionale, Edizioni Nuova Cultura.
Teaching mode
Lectures on the theoretical concepts with classroom exercises.
Frequency
Attendance at lessons is strongly recommended for a good understanding of the teaching contents.
Exam mode
The exam is an oral exam and it consists of the discussion of some of the main topics presented in the course. To pass the exam the student has to achieve a grade no smaller than 18/30. The student has to show to have acquired a sufficient knowledge of the arguments presented in the course and to be able to apply the methods learned in the course to the most simple examples considered in it. To get a grade of 30/30 cum laude, the student has to show an excellent knowledge of the topics of the course and to be able to explain these topics in a coherent way.
Bibliography
V.I. Arnold, Mathematical methods of classical mechanics, Springer. H. Goldstein, Classical Mechanics, Pearson. V.I. Arnold, Ordinary differential equations, Springer.
Lesson mode
Lectures on the theoretical concepts with classroom exercises.
  • Academic year2025/2026
  • CourseMathematical Sciences for Artificial Intelligence
  • CurriculumSingle curriculum
  • Year2nd year
  • Semester1st semester
  • SSDMAT/07
  • CFU6