<p>Hi I will be taking general physics this semester. I am a bio major and most bio majors at my school take the algebra based physics while engineers and physics majors take the calculus based physics. However, one difference seems to be that the professor for the calculus based class is much better overall compared to the algebra based physics. My overall goal is to pass physics without pulling my hair out so I was wondering if anyone could give me advice( The most experience I have had with calculus is pre calculus)</p>
<p>Take the Algebra based Physics courses by all means if your highest Math class is PreCalculus. Calculus based Physics I (Mechanics) assumes that you have already taken Calculus I as a prerequisite and are taking Calculus II as a corequisite.</p>
<p>This is not only the case at your school. Professors simply loathe having to teach the algebra based physics class. It is easier for the professor to teach the course when he knows the students have a solid foundation in calculus. But with only precalculus background, you simply have no choice in this one. The University might not list a prerequisite math course for Mechanics (some do, mine did not), and list a co-requisite of calculus 1. However, the professor will most likely assume you are through calculus 1 and have had a fair share of material in calculus 2.</p>
<p>At my community college, the first course in the calculus based physics series had the first course in the algebra based physics series (as well as Calc I) as a prereq. But none of the later courses in the calculus based physics series had any algebra based physics prereqs, only calc prereqs. So, I asked my dad this same question, wondering if I needed to take both complete physics series. (His cred, BS/MS in math back in the day, now retired and audits physics and math classes among others, for fun.) </p>
<p>His advice was to just take the first course of the algebra based series, to get the prereq out of the way, then after starting calculus, go straight to calculus based physics and don’t look back. He said that algebra based physics would be mostly memorization of formulas, which simply become apparent if you know the calculus, and pointed out that calculus was invented to help solve some physics problems. </p>
<p>I would wait to take each until after you have had the corresponding calculus class, though. That is, if you intend to take calculus.</p>
<p>Hope that helps, good luck!</p>
<p>I would take the algebra based physics.</p>
<p>That is what I thought. Thanks for the info!</p>