<p>should I do any summer prep ? If so what should I study over the summer ? I have taken Ap calculus AB (A/B+) and im taking Calc BC along with physics C this yr (senior yr) however the bad news is I have never ever taken anything related to physics. What should I do :( lol</p>
<p>I took physics honors but literally learned nothing, only memorized some formulas, class was mainly a study hall. I’m taking AP Physics C Mechanics and I’m also screwed, but I haven’t taken Calc yet either…Oh well if you’re a science kid you’ll be fine</p>
<p>Yes I heard that physics C is just mix of calculus and physics … I heard that calculus was essential ! I had to fight to get into physics cause I had no background but what worked for me was that I had calculus ^,^ … I just want to get some summer prep so I look smart on the first day 
good luck !!</p>
<p>I don’t know about other schools, but general physics at my school is plugging numbers from a word problem into an equation. If you can interpret word problems and you know how to manipulate an equation like df= di + vi*t + 1/2at^2 to solve for any of the variables, you won’t be behind the students that took general physics before AP Physics. </p>
<p>The fact that you’ve taken Calculus already helps a bunch. I’m guessing that most students in AP Physics will be concurrently enrolled in Calculus - so on the first day, you’ll be one of few that actually know that acceleration is the derivative of velocity or that area under a velocity/time graph is the distance traveled. </p>
<p>So honestly I wouldn’t worry about it, but if you really want to study before the class starts, watch videos on Khan Academy to learn about 1D and 2D kinematics, forces, work/energy/power, and momentum (in that order). That way you’ll have a basic understanding of physics concepts to build on.</p>
<p>Thank you tons baileyj !!! 
… What kind of calculus is used in physics ? Is it just like derivatives, integration, separation of variables (for some reason i loved doing those)</p>
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<p>For Physics C Mech, that’s pretty much all there is to it. For E&M, it’s a little more complex. While there is still basic differentiation and integration, there’s the addition of integrating over closed loops and surfaces (these are really multivariable calculus topics, but the AP doesn’t expect you to know multi obviously, so it’s more of understanding them qualitatively, rather than quantitatively, so it’s not difficult with a background in AP Calc).</p>
<p>So mech is more of the math physics and e&c is more concept physics ? Lol</p>
<p>So I got bored and looked at physics C equations … And I think I just scared myself to death there was TONS! Of weird letters nd symbols … And now I feel ■■■■■■■■ for signing up for a class that from the looks of it is physics and Greek</p>
<p>It’s not as bad as it seems when you look at an equation sheet - equation sheets typically list out every possible formula, but in class you will learn the basic ones and the rest you derive through substitution and such. You really don’t have to memorize a bunch of equations as long as you understand the concepts.</p>
<p>It’s actually not as bad as you think. Granted, if you’ve never taken calculus before, some symbols might look dementing at first. Over time, you’ll grow accustomed to it. </p>
<p>Also, if you have some physics knowledge, you will notice that a lot of formulas are similar to each other. This is because most of the algebraic formulas can be derived from the calculus formulas. For instance, Power is the change in energy over change in time. Typically, in Physics B, this is average power. However, if we want the power at a specific point in time, we would want to take the limit of the quotient as the change in time approches 0 (to have the power at a specific point in time, where change in time is esscentially 0). What we have is a calculus equation: Power equals the derivative of energy with respect to time: P = dE/dt. If we want to know the average total energy used in a time period, we would use the algebraic equation Pt = E. However, if we want the exact total energy used in a time period, we would take our equation for power (P = dE/dt), multiply both sides by dt, and then take the integral of both sides. Then we have another form of the same equation. (Take Calculus if you didn’t understand what I just said.)</p>
<p>My advise is to make sure you are familiar with the algebraic formulas (those on the equation sheet for Physics B). Then, once you have learned the respective formula in Physics C during the school year, try to derive the algebraic formula from Physics B, and understand under what cases is that true. You will learn much more information about the concept behind it that way (not all of it obviously).</p>
<p>By the way, I memorized every equation, Algebraic and Calculus formulas, just to save time in class deriving things. Plus, in case I forget something, I know either the algebraic or calculus formula, and base the formula I need on that.</p>
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<p>I wouldn’t necessarily say that. I’d say there’s more mathematical rigor in E&M, but both courses are both math-intensive and physics-intensive. Both have some easier topics and both have harder topics.</p>
<p>The big difference between Mech and E&M is that Mech is more physical (no pun intended), as it describes motion of objects that you can see, while E&M is more abstract (i.e. you can’t see magnetic fields, but rather only their effects). Some people find that, along with a bit more intensive math, makes E&M the more difficult of the two courses (though both get roughly the same percentage of 5’s on the AP exam).</p>
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<p>It’s a bit more than basic integration. You will need to know integration by trigonometric substitution, a topic that is only covered on Calculus BC. Integrals that require trigonmetric (or hyperbolic, makes it easier) substitutions arise when calculating the potential due to a line of charge, for example. </p>
<p>As for the preliminaries from multivariable/vector calculus, you will need to know partial derivatives, though that’s usually taught in physics class.
In all cases where a line/surface integral is involved, you will be able to simplify the integral by recognizing that the integrand is constant over the loop/surface, thus trivializing it. The point being you will need to perform calculations, but they’re very simple in all cases. (However, a full knowledge of vector calculus will always help).</p>
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<p>Trust me, once you’ve taken the course you’ll appreciate how limited the exam is in its coverage of topics. The exam covers maybe 55% of the course, and omits nearly all of the finer details - in other words, you’ll be fine. It was much the same with AP Chemistry, I’ll see whether the same is true of AP Biology next year :)</p>
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<p>I think you may be confusing trig substitution with basic (“u”) substitution. When you integrate an e-field or potential over a loop/line/disc/etc., you aren’t doing trig sub. Trig sub is also not part of the Calc BC curriculum. You’d need to do trig substitution when you have something like integral dx / sqrt(a^2-x^2). Your substitution then is x=a*sinθ.</p>
<p>Partial derivatives also don’t come up in the AP Physics C: E&M Course. Depending on your class, you may see them hinted at when talking about the differential relationship between e-field and potential, where E = -grad(V). The gradient operator there tells you to use partial derivatives when dealing with a multidimensional potential, but all you need for the AP exam is simply E = -dV/dx.</p>
<p>You’re right on about using trivial shapes for simplifying the line/surface integrals. As long as you can recognize the integral, it’s expected to just replace it basic geometric equations for area/volume/etc.</p>
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<p>Are you sure it’s not part of the Calculus BC curriculum? I’m 100% sure it was covered in the course I took. Maybe it’s not on the exam - although I find that a bit ridiculous, as trigonometric substitution is a key part of any single-variable calculus course.</p>
<p>In any case, you need it in order to calculate potentials or fields of continuous charge distributions. Consider a line of charge, and a point a distance h above the left end. Suppose we want to calculate the potential due to the charge distribution at this point. For an arbitrary element dq a distance x from the left end, the distance from the element to the point is r = sqrt( h^2 +x^2). As dV = 1/4\pi \epsilon_0 dq/r and dq = lambda dx, we have an integral of the form 1/sqrt(a^2 + x^2), which requires trig substitution (x = a tan u), or hyperbolic substitution.</p>
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<p>You’re right there, and I should have acknowledged this in my post. The course I took explicitly covered partial derivatives in the context of the relation between potential and E, but it would vary.</p>
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<p>Ah, yes. Trig sub does come up in that case. But it’s definitely not found in the AP E&M syllabus or exam. Those derivations aren’t expected, but a good, rigorous class will probably cover them.</p>
<p>There is a section about finding electric fields of charge distributions on page 28:
<a href=“Supporting Students from Day One to Exam Day – AP Central | College Board”>Supporting Students from Day One to Exam Day – AP Central | College Board;
However the textbook should have a small table of integrals that shouldn’t be too hard to memorize.</p>