How has physics helped you in med school?

[jones173]

physics has actually helped me out with some of the concepts in Cardio and respiratory phys like capacitance and flow.

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[Soze]

I think that in general, there's too much emphasis on direct application of X (be it orgo, physics, whatever) in medical school and being a doctor. Sure, physics helps with the circuits, pressures and what not. But what is really being learned from is the ability to think analytically and apply concepts in abstract ways.

I'm sure you all remember the days of high school where all you typically had to do was regurgitate whatever it is the instructor told you to get a 4.0. But that type of learning really isn't what being a professional is all about. It's being able to take a basic set of facts and apply them in a unique way. The difficult classes of physics, orgo, etc. are really the first steps in becoming that professional. It's much less about directly applying Ohm's law as a physician as it is about learning how to think. It turns out that these classes in the end do help seperate the wheat from the chaff, but in my opinion this is only a consequence of the ability to think in more abstract terms.

Believe it or not this not only comes in handy when a patient comes in with chest pain in the middle of the night, but also helps when you're wondering whether or not to believe that new JAMA article about whether or not it's good to use aspirin in ACS. THere are really countless examples for the benefits of higher learning.

I'd refer interested people to Bloom's taxonomy of learning if they are interested. Here's a brief image reflecting that taxonomy.

Bottom Line: Enjoy your classes that challenge you, you'll appreciate it at the end of the line as you'll be a more competent physician.

 

[EM_Rebuilder]

Anyone?

My physics prof was the funniest teacher I ever had. He had the craziest store for everything. I guess Physics has helped me have something to talk about at cocktail parties whenever everyone else is talking about some cool teacher they have once upon a time ago...

 

[Critical Mass]

I had a similar physics prof experience as EM. I wouldn't be where I am today without my favorite physics prof.

I'm surprised that this thread has such legs.

 

[ericana_83]

I saw this joke within the last week somewhere in the forums, but I can't find it now, so I'm going to attempt it myself because I think it's really applicable. If I do a bad job, please do not hesitate to intercede for the sake of humor.


SO apparently someone's physics prof was so bold as to announce "physics is the most important influence on modern medicine" (or something like that)
There was obviously some disagreement among classmates and with the prof, and one bold (probably pre-med) student dared to ask why the professor thought this.
The professor simply replied, "because it keeps the *****s out of med school."


Sorry, couldn't resist--especially since physics was so hard for me and almost kept me out.

 

[acute2]

...A basic knowledge of physics puts you more "in touch" with the world, and this is why it is required..but can you imagine not knowing how an electric motor works?

I have no idea how an electric motor works.

Yeh, how does an electric motor work?

 

[TheMightyAngus]

IMO, you need a solid foundation in basics physics and chemistry to really understand physiology (especially cv and pulm). This is why I think the MCAT is worthwhile.

 

[SitraAchra]

My post was made in jest. Granted I could've switched the order and perhaps made it more obvious, but I don't think you could go through medical school without knowing a) what carbon is or b) what a cell is. But it's cute how worked up you got.

i'm glad your absurdly dry sense of humor and nonexistant delivery make at least one person [yourself] laugh. but i'm a guy so calling me cute won't get you very far.

 

[RokChalkJayhawk]

Physics is pretty important to an orthopod (or any surgeon for that matter). Maybe not things like capacitance but a good knowledge of how you expect things to react when you manipulate them.

 

[Biscuit799]

i'm glad your absurdly dry sense of humor and nonexistant delivery make at least one person [yourself] laugh. but i'm a guy so calling me cute won't get you very far.

Considering you were the only person to remark about how Biology has in fact helped you in medical school, I'd say it's apparent that you're just a dolt who can't understand sarcasm when it slaps him upside the head. There's a difference between finding a genuine joke funny, and good ol' sarcasm. Sarcasm can be dry. And I didn't call you cute, I said it was cute how worked up you got. Read the sentence before you reply.

 

[SitraAchra]

Considering you were the only person to remark about how Biology has in fact helped you in medical school, I'd say it's apparent that you're just a dolt who can't understand sarcasm when it slaps him upside the head. There's a difference between finding a genuine joke funny, and good ol' sarcasm. Sarcasm can be dry. And I didn't call you cute, I said it was cute how worked up you got. Read the sentence before you reply.

I said something along the lines of "it's all biology." How did I remark that biology has helped me in medical school? I didn't. You need to read the sentence before replying too.

And when I said "I'm a guy so calling me cute won't get you far" - THAT was meant to be a joke. I read your post and understood it very clearly. I suppose we just have different senses of humor. Goodbye.

 

[Critical Mass]

IMO, you need a solid foundation in basics physics and chemistry to really understand physiology (especially cv and pulm). This is why I think the MCAT is worthwhile.

Agree.

Now can somebody tell me the difference between compliance, elasticity, and stiffness? I thought that I had it down with the blood vessels, but I'm finding myself lost again with the lung stuff.

 

[Biscuit799]

I said something along the lines of "it's all biology." How did I remark that biology has helped me in medical school? I didn't. You need to read the sentence before replying too.

And when I said "I'm a guy so calling me cute won't get you far" - THAT was meant to be a joke. I read your post and understood it very clearly. I suppose we just have different senses of humor. Goodbye.

you're contradicting yourself.

 

[Biscuit799]

Agree.

Now can somebody tell me the difference between compliance, elasticity, and stiffness? I thought that I had it down with the blood vessels, but I'm finding myself lost again with the lung stuff.

Elasticity: before the implants
Compliance: after the implants
Stiffness: what happens to guys after the implants

 

[Critical Mass]

Elasticity: before the implants
Compliance: after the implants
Stiffness: what happens to guys after the implants

The concept suddenly makes sense now.

 

[SitraAchra]

you're contradicting yourself.

Don't worry about it - not worth explaining. Unless you were cracking another hilarious joke, in which case "haha."

 

[Biscuit799]

Don't worry about it - not worth explaining. Unless you were cracking another hilarious joke, in which case "haha."

You're annoying. Go away like you said you were going to.

 

[SitraAchra]

:-/

 

[la petite mort]

Medical Physics is actually IN my program, not as a prereq. I'm sucking horribly.

 

[Blesbok]

i would say the act of working out problems and reasoning through them helps tremendously in physiology but equations and there are a few theories such as flow etc that are important.

 

[kdburton]

Anyone?

We had a professor who told a joke about this the other day when talking about why physics is a required course for med school and on the MCAT and all that...

Q: How has physics saved anyone's life in medicine?

A: It keeps all the dumb people out of medical school

In all seriousness though there are physics concepts that are very related to the heart and circulatory system.

 

[SomeDoc]

Knowledge of physics can be quite helpful in med school. It comes in handy during physio (equation's, etc.), and also in other situations; such as path for example (ex: why are infarcts of the lower GI and lung "red" an understanding of circuits and anatomy will allow you to easily understand that the lower GI and lung are supplied via various anastomoses, which equates to parallel circuits. Thus in an infarct of the lower GI or lung, part of the parallel circuitry is eliminated, thus increasing resistance. This leads to the hemorrhage of rbcs out of vasculature. This is just a quick example that I was able to equate to physics when going over path, but there are times when situations will arise. Such cross referencing of information will make understanding and retention much easier. O-chem can also be helpful in biochem and pharm as well.

 

[thebeatblitz]

Foundational physics is pretty useful. Nobody cares about super physics unless you're doing research in like quantum dots or esoteric rads imaging. But I'd imagine if you were doing PhD work in one of those fields, you'd be pretty good at physics.

 

[vtucci]

Physics? It has not helped at all. Waste of time. Ditto with organic chemistry.

Both subjects are just for weeding out the applicants who don't want to go into medicine badly enough. It is a hazing ritual.

 

[BozoSparky]

Physics? It has not helped at all. Waste of time. Ditto with organic chemistry.

Both subjects are just for weeding out the applicants who don't want to go into medicine badly enough. It is a hazing ritual.

i am happy that physicians have a basic understanding of physics and know what a molecule is...these classes are relevant introductory courses and certainly not a waste of time. they are not always fun, however.

 

[Hurricane95]

I agree with everyone who says it's important background because, well, it is. It's easy enough to say that physics and the other sciences are worthless now that you've taken them and understand them (at least to some degree). I'd love to see someone thrown into a medical school class having NEVER taken a single semester of worthless biology, chemistry or physics..."um, teacher...why does the sodium thing want to go into the cell....I don't get it...wait, what's a cell?" There's a reason they're called the basic sciences...it's because they lay the foundation for all of the upper level disciplines. If it weren't for biology, chemistry and physics, medicine would not exist. Rather, modern medicine would not exist.

What does it have to do with us? Well, yeah, I suppose you could give a lab monkey a master (huge) list of symptoms and their associated conditions and a prescription pad and allow him to hog wild...but I would (at the very least as a curious individual with a scientifically inclined mind) like to understand what the hell is going on here with my patients.

That's my 0.02. Honestly I at the very least like to understand how the world around me works. I couldn't imagine being one of those many people who have no clue about how anything functions....ah the ignorance....

And yes, as a last resort it's a weed-out...we can't let EVERYONE into medicine you know.

 

[da8s0859q]

And yes, as a last resort it's a weed-out...we can't let EVERYONE into medicine you know.

No, just me. Me and my girlfriend whose picture you have as an avatar.

 

[AUD]

Now I'm just a lowly premed who stumbled across this thread , but I could see physics being useful because it teaches you to apply general concepts to a myraid of problems. If you learn anything from physics, it should be problem solving skills using the limited knowledge and relationships presented to you.

Limited Knowledge --> the knowns of the problem
Relationships --> formulas you know

 

[Non-TradTulsa]

Now I'm just a lowly premed who stumbled across this thread , but I could see physics being useful because it teaches you to apply general concepts to a myraid of problems. If you learn anything from physics, it should be problem solving skills using the limited knowledge and relationships presented to you.

Limited Knowledge --> the knowns of the problem
Relationships --> formulas you know

That's an admirable way to look at it! Actually, in my opinion, in medicine you need to know a tiny bit about fluid dynamics to understand circulation (if you know that fluids are incompressible, you're about 90% done - maybe a little bit about turbulent fluid behavior). You need to understand just a dab about gas behavior and the partial pressures of mixed gasses and gas solubility. If you want to be an orthopedist, maybe a little about lever behavior.

Truth is, physics is just one more discipline that's part of your background training to be a scientist. I could teach you all the physics you actually need for medicine in about two weeks, not two semesters.

 

[SugPlum]

I have to admit that I haven't taken physiology in med school yet, but I have had undergraduate advanced physiology. I don't see how I need a year of college physics to understand physiology in med school. I think that all the necessary basics can be taught in one semester. I actually don't see physics being in prerequisites for the undergraduate and early graduate level physiology courses at my alma mater.

 

[vtucci]

i am happy that physicians have a basic understanding of physics and know what a molecule is...these classes are relevant introductory courses and certainly not a waste of time. they are not always fun, however.

It depends whether the courses and the information you obtained from them are used in medical school in a clinically relevant manner. There are plenty of intro courses that are designed for engineering students and not premed students, making the emphasis quite different.

Also, knowing what a molecule is-- that comes in with general chemistry. I thought general chemistry was more helpful than orgo or physics and biochemistry was useful. However, the most useful would have been upper level bio courses like anatomy and physio.

 

[roja]

I think that in general, there's too much emphasis on direct application of X (be it orgo, physics, whatever) in medical school and being a doctor. Sure, physics helps with the circuits, pressures and what not. But what is really being learned from is the ability to think analytically and apply concepts in abstract ways.

I'm sure you all remember the days of high school where all you typically had to do was regurgitate whatever it is the instructor told you to get a 4.0. But that type of learning really isn't what being a professional is all about. It's being able to take a basic set of facts and apply them in a unique way. The difficult classes of physics, orgo, etc. are really the first steps in becoming that professional. It's much less about directly applying Ohm's law as a physician as it is about learning how to think. It turns out that these classes in the end do help seperate the wheat from the chaff, but in my opinion this is only a consequence of the ability to think in more abstract terms.

Believe it or not this not only comes in handy when a patient comes in with chest pain in the middle of the night, but also helps when you're wondering whether or not to believe that new JAMA article about whether or not it's good to use aspirin in ACS. THere are really countless examples for the benefits of higher learning.

I'd refer interested people to Bloom's taxonomy of learning if they are interested. Here's a brief image reflecting that taxonomy.

Bottom Line: Enjoy your classes that challenge you, you'll appreciate it at the end of the line as you'll be a more competent physician.

Oh my. You used bloom's taxonomy!

 

[roja]

I don't think you need a hard core calc based physics course. But basic physics helps. It will help you more in other fields (nuclear med, rads, etc). Even in other fields. I use physics to teach why a 20g IV is not a large bore IV and why a triple lumen central line is a horrid line to try and fluid resuscitate a patient. Its basic physics.

 

[shreypete]

I had had biophysics last semester and I hated it...wish I had a good background in physics..but nevertheless I passed with a B....

 

[BozoSparky]

It depends whether the courses and the information you obtained from them are used in medical school in a clinically relevant manner. There are plenty of intro courses that are designed for engineering students and not premed students, making the emphasis quite different.

Also, knowing what a molecule is-- that comes in with general chemistry. I thought general chemistry was more helpful than orgo or physics and biochemistry was useful. However, the most useful would have been upper level bio courses like anatomy and physio.

what i'm sayin' is, i think physicians need to know basic science, even if it's not clinically relevant...they should be somewhat scientifically competent, as well.

 

[Pinkiex]

Physics helped me understand physio better. Plus, I'm sure it'll help a lot when you get a bright/annoying patient who wants-2-know-all about how things/this/that thingy work