EK Physics Review

[ahmedqman]

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Now, I'm aware that some people swear by Nova. I have Nova Physics, got to about chapter 11 and I found some of the conceptual explanations too "slimmed" down (there was a movable pulley discussion and I completely missed what it was talking about, heck I don't even know how the heck a movable pulley works!). Also, their discussion of fluids was pretty meh (I was never taught fluids in physics, so bernoullis equation is foreign to me).

Now, I have EK Bio and have read through a friends EK Chem (Both were pretty damn good, only flaw in the EK chem was I still don't get heat engines and my understanding of thermo, p-v work and how it relates to adiabatic expansion of gases), and those were pretty damn good. How's EK Physics review in terms of conceptual understanding of concepts?

I wouldn't recommend Kaplan too much for some of these advanced topics because I feel like the review notes just recite formulas (but their practice is superb).

 

[zizebrazi]

I think that EK physics is superb! You only need to know the general concepts which EK provides for the test. EK physics is truly all you really need. I only used EK physics which I compared to various MCAT physics material out there before like PR and other textbooks which are too detailed.

 

[BrainTeazer]

I am not too fond of EK Physics. I write Berkeley review book for that better. EK doesnt have any examples, so it can be helpful only after you have understood the concept. But I still didn't like it that much personally. I like their EK Bio the best.

Good luck!

 

[Dr.Pdizzle]

I am not too fond of EK Physics. I write Berkeley review book for that better. EK doesnt have any examples, so it can be helpful only after you have understood the concept. But I still didn't like it that much personally. I like their EK Bio the best.

Good luck!

I agree with this poster. I found EK Physics to be just okay. For their physics section, I thought the first half of the book was good (good concepts, examples, problems, explainations, etc.) but the latter half of the book, particularly sections covering fluids, electricity, and magnetism, to be inadequate for the preparation I was looking for.

[note: I had been out of physics for 4 years, and I needed to see some examples on each topic and well-explained solutions to recall some of the material, which EK lacked because they're so concise.]

 

[bigserve99]

Yeah, Nova seems to be my thing. I still use EK physics though for quick read-throughs.

 

[ahmedqman]

Which text is best given my circumstances? TBR? Should I just stick with Nova and learn to like it?

 

[bigserve99]

Which text is best given my circumstances? TBR? Should I just stick through Nova and learn to like it?

I prefer Nova....but it might not be right for you. I learn best by doing problems, as I assume most people would. For that, NOVA seems to work well. I use EK as a supplement.....I read it while eating breakfast or something. I mean, the book is really a pretty quick read. Realistically how much are you going to get out of it. I mean, people say that's all you need, but then, what do you do after you've spent a Saturday, and half of Sunday, and you finished the thing?

I think people are right, when they say, you need to understand concepts. But understanding concepts and applying them to "new" situations (ie. MCAT style) are two different things. I think one needs to do problems outside of just reading EK physics to really get a good feel for the physical sciences.

Hope that helps.
Peace.

 

[zizebrazi]

I think it depends upon your physics background. I truly liked EK physics, because the concepts were presented in a clear manner and they were easy to understand. I enjoy the physics and love math! However, if you truly need more detail, you can look into The Berkeley Review, Nova, or Princeton Review, but it is not necessary. It is not the number of solving problems that helps you in doing well in the physical sciences questions. It is understanding CONCEPTS and the REASONING for why you missed a particular question after doing practice exams. Not memorizing formulas. This is only my opinion, which worked for me on the physical sciences section. 🙂 Good luck.

 

[gdawg102]

I did poorly in undergrad physics, and struggled with the physical science section. I used TPR for physics, which helped a little, but I think what makes EK physics more likeable for me is that it has pictures and colors that make the subject matter a little less boring- I've managed to increase about 4 points on practice tests for that section after 2 months of studying out of that book. I also found that doing the EK physics with its corresponding 1001 questions really help drill the concepts and help you practice remembering the few equations you would need to know.

You don't have to memorize formulas in general, but I find that actually remembering the formulas and what the individual variables represent will help you understand the concepts, which I think EK does a good job doing, and allows you to go through problems faster - you don't have forever to reason out a passage that has an equation that you don't know yet would have understood better if you actually memorized and understood the equation and its concepts buried beneath the variables. Ek physics is not going to expound on the topics as much as you like, but as a review book with occasional supplementation from more detailed books as TPR, Nova, etc. will suffice in my opinion.