Physics II Advice

[13132]

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I just finished my Sophomore year and just took Physics I this semester. I just found out I got my first B in the course. I registered for Physics II at the local extension of my university and I am deathly afraid I will have a repeat performance in another 5 credit hour course.

That being said, how do you suggest I get a head start on the material? Should I just start the textbook material or should I buy some sort of "Physics II for Dummies"? I just want to avoid another low grade in a 5 credit hour class.

Thanks

 

[mauberley]

I just finished my Sophomore year and just took Physics I this semester. I just found out I got my first B in the course. I registered for Physics II at the local extension of my university and I am deathly afraid I will have a repeat performance in another 5 credit hour course.

That being said, how do you suggest I get a head start on the material? Should I just start the textbook material or should I buy some sort of "Physics II for Dummies"? I just want to avoid another low grade in a 5 credit hour class.

Thanks

Could you describe what you found difficult about Physics I?

 

[HG1HH217]

If you're that motivated, I would just go ahead and read the book. Concepts are much much easier to understand the second time you've been exposed to them. Make sure you understand the material; don't just memorize the equations. If you're having trouble with it, there exist some great explanatory resources online which you should be able to find with a quick google search. But don't stress too much. You sound like you're taking the subject seriously, and if you apply that determination to your course next semester you should be fine.

 

[13132]

I'm not even sure really. It was one o those situations where I walked into the test feeling prepared and confident, but lost it as I flipped through the exam. I did VERY poorly on the exams. That could be do to the fact that they were 25 questions each (3 exams 1 final) and totaled 55% of the course grade. Making an answer negative or using the wrong sign can cost you 4% on an exam. IMO Physics should be partial credit.

So that was a tangent, but in summary I think it is clear I didn't have a true "understanding" of the material and that is why new and more complicated problems confused me. How do I fix that though?!?!

Also, does Physics II use any material from Physics I?

 

[Northwesterly]

I just finished my Sophomore year and just took Physics I this semester. I just found out I got my first B in the course. I registered for Physics II at the local extension of my university and I am deathly afraid I will have a repeat performance in another 5 credit hour course.

That being said, how do you suggest I get a head start on the material? Should I just start the textbook material or should I buy some sort of "Physics II for Dummies"? I just want to avoid another low grade in a 5 credit hour class.

Thanks

For Physics I, you mostly just need to be comfortable with the algebra or calculus (depending on which version of the course you're taking.) For Physics II, assuming it's the standard "1st term mechanics, 2nd term EM/Relativity" setup, you should make sure you understand the current/voltage/resistance (DC and AC!) stuff cold. You can still plug and chug, but it's a lot less intuitive than ballistics and friction. You can try physics for dummies, or pre-reading the textbook, MIT opencourseware, or Khan Academy--whatever works. Just make sure you have some grasp of the numbers you're swapping around when you start in on circuits and you'll be fine.

 

[13132]

Thanks and I completely agree with what you said. I heard physics was easy and probably just didn't treat it with enough respect.

Honestly, if I had approached it like organic it would have been fine I think.

 

[mauberley]

I agree with what's been said above, then. Take it more seriously and become more comfortable with the material and you should be fine. It doesn't sound like you have problems necessarily grasping the concepts.

 

[CrushMCAT]

Khan Academy and Schaum's Outlines helped me in Physics I. I plan on relying on them during Physics II as well. I also used Schaum's 3000 Physics Problems solved but found it had a lot of overlap with Schaum's Outlines.

 

[TypeFun]

Don't sweat a B, dude. It's not the end of the world, or the end of your medical school journey. Getting an A in a class is as much about the teacher as it is about the student, or the material. Having said that, Kahn Academy is a great resource.

 

[envirocopy512]

I thought the concepts in physics II were a little more conceptually difficult than physics I, but the actual math involved in solving the problems was much less tedious. There were barely any vectors in physics II compared to physics I, for example, in my experience. Overall the class isn't that bad, although I'm sure the right professor could make it a nightmare. Just practice the problems and be able to explain to yourself why you're doing what you're doing as you solve them (i.e. no mindless plug and chug).

 

[highhigh]

Don't sweat a B, dude. It's not the end of the world, or the end of your medical school journey. Getting an A in a class is as much about the teacher as it is about the student, or the material. Having said that, Kahn Academy is a great resource.

Yup, Kahn Academy is amazing.

 

[miabullitt]

physics 2 is easier than physics 1 IMO

 

[Carbon009]

Physics II is much easier. Just work hard and you'll get the results you want.

 

[Cerena]

I used to struggle a lot with physics. But, what I found the most helpful is to study with someone much smarter than me (i.e. my boyfriend!). He noticed several concepts that I was struggling with that I didn't even know I was missing.

Also, practice questions are super important! If you are really motivated about doing well, I would do many practice questions which will be at the back of the book. Focus on the ones that seem to appear the most.

I just did physics II and I believe the major concepts were electricity and magnetism. These concepts are fairly straightforward. I actually found physics II much easier than physics I, but you will have to remember some basic concepts like kinematics from physics I.

But, just like calculus, I found that practice is the best way to succeed in physics 🙂

 

[boko]

definitely planning to use khan academy for physics..thanks 🙂

 

[DryHopped]

I had no problem with physics I, but I had trouble conceptualizing much of the material in my physics II course until I discovered this site: http://www.freelance-teacher.com/videos.htm#PHYSICS
Although the videos and playlists are very long, the guy does a great job teaching the main concepts. I had an awful physics II professor that could barely speak English and relied on these videos and my textbook to learn and ended up with an A in the class.

 

[TribalSeeds]

I'd probably pre-study for Physics 2 if you found physics 1 hard.

 

[common man]

if your professor is half decent then he will hold you primarily responsible with the lecture notes and use the text only as background. a textbook has so much crap that is not covered on the exam. ask your prof what material he emphasizesn take excellent notes. that's the critical 1/4 of the work. without it you're screwed. the rest is practice problems. practice, practice, and PRACTICE! guaranteed success strategy.

I just finished my Sophomore year and just took Physics I this semester. I just found out I got my first B in the course. I registered for Physics II at the local extension of my university and I am deathly afraid I will have a repeat performance in another 5 credit hour course.

That being said, how do you suggest I get a head start on the material? Should I just start the textbook material or should I buy some sort of "Physics II for Dummies"? I just want to avoid another low grade in a 5 credit hour class.

Thanks

 

[BeachBlondie]

I just finished physics II and I would suggest practicing until you cannot stand to look at the material. Also, I think that the second half is more conceptually based, so if you can not only work the problems but know WHY you're working them and HOW the different theories work with one another, it would be invaluable.

 

[BeachBlondie]

Also, you're most welcome for that second, run-on sentence.

 

[Carbon009]

i just finished physics ii and i would suggest practicing until you cannot stand to look at the material. Also, i think that the second half is more conceptually based, so if you can not only work the problems but know why you're working them and how the different theories work with one another, it would be invaluable.

+1

 

[13132]

Thanks for all the advice. The professor was just posted, and he is a visiting professor so I am not sure how to take that. I think he could either be really relaxed or really difficult.