<p>Is it better to take the Physics B test and then end up taking a physics mechanics and then a physics e+m course, and basically not using the B credit if it is given, or while taking a physics B course, study for the C exam. I am in Calc AB and I have covered integrals, Riemman sums and summations. I am leaning toward taking the C, but just want some confidence in doing so.
I plan to attend either Boston College, WPI or RPI, and wanted to get a minor in either CS or electrical engineering.</p>
<p>Well, as you already probably know, the C exam is spilt into two seperate ones: Mechanics and Electricity and Magnetism. Mechanics is not too bad and is not all that calculus heavy. However, a thorough understanding of calculus is required to do understand C topics. E&M on the flip side, is a lot more calculus heavy. I am not trying to discourage you, but you should know that mastering Calculus AB may not be enough to do well on the exam. You should talk to your physics B teacher about this. Look at the FR and MC questions online for C and decide what to take. Good luck.</p>
<p>Physics B exam is USELESS for science/engineering majors... don't waste yoru money on the exam... but the course itself is NOT necessarily a waste if it provides you a solid, yet basic intro for physics.</p>
<p>Here is my advice (I have a PhD in astrophysics and have taught college physics)... focus on mastering calculus in high school...
and DO NOT skip any physics course in college.
If you get a 5 on the calculus AB exam, skip first semester calculus.
If you get a 5 on BC exam, skip first two semesters calculus. Even if your school gives credit for a score of 3 or 4, do NOT skip... just retake.
MASTERING CALCULUS is crucial for physical sciences/engineering.</p>
<p>No matter what your score on the Physics AP exams, whether B or C, do NOT skip any physics courses... by all means, if you do well, take an honors track if availabale, but do not skip any courses in physics.</p>
<p>harvard<em>and</em>berkeley, do you recommend retaking post AP mathematics courses in college such as vector and multivariate calculus and linear algebra, even if college credit has been gained (5 on BC examination)?</p>
<p>Huggybear...
It really depends on the rigor of those courses... where did you take them?</p>
<p>With calculus I and II, there is a VERY STANDARD curriculum, and if you ace (again, only a score of 5 in my book) the AP exams, you can be confident that you can go onto the next level... with math courses beyond that, we don't have any standardized test to say whether the course was rigorous enough...
so, again, it depends.</p>
<p>So I took Calc B WHILE I was taking Physics C. I ended up acing the course and getting a five on each section of the exam (Mech and E&M). So it is possible.</p>
<p>That said.</p>
<p>It was NOT FUN TIMES.</p>
<p>I was halfway through E&M before learned what an integral was. I basically learned the calc and the physics at the same time.</p>
<p>If you have already covered all of the basics in calc, you will have a much easier time than I did. If you can take BC at the same time as you take Physics C, that would be awesome. Otherwise, it will require some more dedication. In the end, I'd say if you have calc background are planning on needing physics credit in college (as an engineering major), then it's definitely worth it to take C.</p>
<p>My two cents. Most of all, stick to your comfort level. Your the best judge of your own ability.</p>
<p>
[quote]
I was halfway through E&M before learned what an integral was.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>How did you do derivation of the center of mass and moment of inertia, things like work etc, in mechanics without integration?</p>
<p>I took C with a 5 on both parts but ended up taking physics again...just completed mech last quarter and am in e/m right now. it's a really valuable refresher with many many new concepts. its much like how ap chem has no integration while many chem for chemE/chem/biochem etc majors has tons of it.</p>
<p>:)</p>
<p>W/o integration it is basically Work = Favg * distance. And acceleration in constant at all times.</p>
<p>Center of mass is basically using algebra and there is no such thing as varying density mentioned. It would be problems with like a mass of blah and blah on each end, and a rod uniformly distributed meaning its center was in the middle. Then you balance that. It wasnt my favorite thing to do. Moment of inertia, my class didnt cover it, but other books just gave you the 10 or so formulas. I wish we use integration, I understand everything a lot more with it, and its much more realistic.</p>
<p>Well, yeah W=FdotS but I was under the impression [from my ap course] that the ap curricuum specifically wanted the student to be able to solve using variable acceleration. Guess my teacher just liked to throw in crazy examples...not a bad idea considering virtually all the people in the class were engineering majors.</p>
<p>:)</p>
<p>I should rephrase a little. We were halfway through E&M before we got to integrals in calc. My physics teachers knew that some of us in the class didn't have the proper background, so he tried to teach the calc as he went along. Still, I didn't have a formal understanding of most calculus concepts until I'd been using them for weeks or even months. In the end, not the best way to go.</p>
<p>Maybe your are suppose to, but when theres a topic that isnt covered that much, maybe 1 or 2 mc, he just skips it. He did that for one thing or maybe two so far, but I dont pay that much attention to know exactly what.</p>
<p>I think that it is unfair that AP Physics B in not credited in Engineering. The amount of calculus used in pre-engineering physics in virtually non-existent. Just basic integration and differentiation. If a student took and aced calculus AB or BC along with Physics B the student should get credit for Both Physics C's.</p>
<p>I dunno mate, the amount of calc in the physics for sci/eng majors at ucsd is pretty hefty...</p>
<p>Noob...</p>
<p>NO... NO... NO.
I have taught college physics for engineers. Physics B is NOT EVEN CLOSE to being rigorous enough for engineering.</p>
<p>When I took Physics 2045 (engineering track) in UFL, its content was only slightly more difficult than AP physics B stuff. Got 5 on AP test and A and the college class without much effort in both. So the calculus based physics was a joke in terms of difficulty, atleast at UFL, Calculus 3 was almost twice as hard as engineering physics, but it was also easy.</p>
<p>THis might be a little offtopic but here goes anyways:</p>
<p>I am currently taking AP Physics B and I must say, im not doing too well.. My average grade in the chapter tests is around 80 and my first semester grade was a B-. From what my professor tells me, his tests are slightly harder than the AP exams but he says that my grade on the tests is representative of what I would get on the AP exams..I am hoping to major in Mechanical Engineering. Does a grade of a B- warrant me rethinking my major since the physics will only get harder as I go on in college?</p>
<p>Thanks much.</p>
<p>What kind of book are you using. I was originally reading a B book and didnt really like the formulas. After switching to a Calculus based book, by Tipler, it starts making more sense. Sometimes switching books will help you learn better. Also, remember, that a 80 on the AP exam is a 5. How are other people doing in the class. If you like physics and thats what you want to do, then youll find a way to succeed at it.</p>
<p>Well according to him, 90's in his test would get you a 5, 80's a 4, and so on.. I personally trust his scale coz he's a good profesor and imo, knows what he's talkin about ( doesnt BS.. )...</p>
<p>We're using the book by Giancoli....Is this the book your talking about? :
<a href="http://www.whfreeman.com/tipler/%5B/url%5D">http://www.whfreeman.com/tipler/</a> </p>
<p>We're a class of 7 students out of which 5 of them are probably doing pretty good ( high b's , low a's usually.. There are times when some of them get low 80's but thats the lowest they ever go... The lowest i've got is in the low-70's but only in one or two tests out of the fourteen he has given so far)... The 6th one is just a slacker and thats probably why he doesnt get a good grade..</p>
<p>I personally dont really like studying physics... To put it in simple terms ( which might sound stupid .. lol ), I wanted to major in Mechanical Engineering just so that I can acquire a thorough understanding of "how things work". For that, I guess I need to be really good at physics but its just not something that interests me. I"m not sure whether:</p>
<p>A) Im just being lazy and not practicing enough which leads to frustration.. The fact that I'm not able to solve problems frustrates me and makes me hate studying physics
B) Physics is just not for me and I should forget about Engineering
C) there's another major out there to accomplish what I want to achieve</p>
<p>I personally have an inquisitive/curious mind but not sure if its with engineering-related tasks... For example, my peers get excited about building scooters, planes,etc but that really isnt fun for me. </p>
<p>I guess what I mean is that if someone asked me, "why does this happen", "how does that work", I would like to possess enough knowledge to be able to give a detailed exaplanation and understand it enough to be able to sucessfully teach it to someone else. The learning process never stops obviously and there will always be somethign I dont know but still, a more advanced train of thought and good analytical skills is something i'd like to achieve..</p>
<p>Thanks</p>
<p>Physics B isn't given credit because Calculus based physics is used in every physics course from Mechanics to Quantum so you'll need it.</p>
<p>LauraN, I know how you feel. Basically, my Physics C teacher gave us a crash course in calculus during the first couple weeks of school. She knew that half the class was only just taking AB, so we had to learn integrals. (We learned derivatives in intro to cal.). Thanks to her, now I'm coasting through Calc.</p>