Civil/Construction Management Major...

joewhiz
Mon, 21 Jul 2008 20:20:50 +0000

If it is your first time taking on physics, it might be wiser to take the non-calculus based physics before getting into calculus based physics. The level of math does not necessarily make calc-based physics hader. Calculus allows you to derive basic physics concepts, but the calculus in and of itself is not difficult. What does make calc-based physics harder to some students is the level of understanding that is expected. In “regular” physics, you can memorize formulas and use it to solve problems without necessarily understanding why you use that equation or how that equation was derived. Dimensional analysis still gets you to the answer in most cases, but a higher level of understanding is required to solve the more difficult, not-so-straight forward problems.

I don’t know if algebra based physics teaches you the same tools to solve calc based physics problems, but it should give you a decent overview of the subject matter so that you can spend less time figuring out what something is and more time understanding how to solve certain problems. Some basic tools you should work on is dimensional analysis, understanding and utilizing free body diagrams, using calculus to derive equations (for example: finding the relationship of Impulse, momentum, and Newton’s 2nd Law), and vector analysis (the use of vectors adds a level of difficulty to physics, but it also makes it much easier to solve physics problems through the use of Law of Superposition).

If you do not want to push off taking calc-based physics at your current institution, try taking either non-calc based physics or calc-based physics (whichever one you feel best suits your needs) at a local college during the summer or at night. This could or could not be for transfer credit, but regardless it should give you a heads up so you don’t get behind trying in your physics course at OSU. Another option, if you are the self study type) is to get your hands on a physics prep book (such as Barron’s or an AP Physics C Prep) or the textbook you will be using next year (assuming it doesn’t change), and start reading and solving the examples.

Don’t fret too much. Physics is not impossible to learn and a lot of it seems harder than it actually is (that is until you get into upper level physics courses). Also, some of the concepts and skills you learn/use in your physics mechanics course will come in handy towards your engineering courses. Make sure to pay close attention to Moment of Inertia and get comfortable using free body diagrams.