Hi everyone,
So, I am currently a sophomore in high school, and I’ve developed an interest towards Physics (from watching lectures and other resources), and would like to maybe do research in the field. Sadly, my school will not let students take Physics until their Senior year, therefore, I am somewhat at a disadvantage. Although I am at a disadvantage I find it important to add that I am passionate and am willing to put my time and effort into this.
Does anyone have any advice on how to approach this situation of mine?
Where do I start/ Who do I ask?
Also, I do also have interests in other fields such as Computer Science and mathematics, so I would also like to do research in those fields if not Physics.
Thank you all in advance for your help! I understand this is very vague, but am really curious!
Ok. I can only really speak to the math side of things.
So for math you won’t be able to jump right into research level topics. This is because math research really requires a very deep understanding of some topics. In general, to do math research you should have a really good handle on the following subjects. Linear Algebra, Abstract Algebra, Analysis, and Topology.
However, there are some problems which are understandable without the above subjects. Some research level proofs are completely understandable with (to a certain degree). If I was to pick a subject to find understandable problems it would have to be graph theory. It’s very intuitive on the surface but it yields some deep questions.
So my recommendations would be to start self studying some of the above material, if you haven’t completed calc yet, wait on the Analysis and Topology. Then if you can find a professor or even a grad student who might be interested in teaching you or finding some lower level stuff you should go to them. There are also summer programs which you can look into. Also, checkout the MIT open course ware (online lectures).
In short, show your dedication to the subject and find knowledgeable people in the field. If you commit to it, there will be people who are willing to help you develop.
@existential12 Thank you so much for the information! Just one more quick question. What should my time frame be like? How long should it take me to learn Linear Algebra, Abstract Algebra, and Analysis before even searching for a professor or grad student?
@apple1893 Linear Algebra is a one semester college course and introduction to abstract algebra is a one semester college course. Take you time on them though. With math, rushing is probably one of the worst things you can do. Also note that the grad student or professor will probably you to an already solved problem. This is completely fine. For reference, seniors at my college write their honors thesis on an already solved problem.
@apple1893 For math/CS research courses, most topics or problems will have already been solved. Only a handful of students I know have published original work in math, CS, or biology.
To add to @existential12’s posts, there are quite a few open problems in CS that are relatively easy to understand but still very tricky (hence the “openness”). A few examples:
*Fastest algorithm (asympotically) for multiplication of two n-digit numbers
*Fastest algorithm for n x n matrix multiplication
*Whether P = NP (although defining the P and NP complexity classes formally might be harder to understand), and similar problems in complexity theory
*Whether integer factorization can be done in polynomial time on a classical computer. Interestingly, it was shown in 2002 that checking whether a number is prime can be done in deterministic polynomial time.
^ that! You have to learn first.
No colleges near you for a physics or higher math course? No one with research knowledge to explain how people find topics?
Some already-solved problems might have different solutions that haven’t been found, or perhaps interesting generalizations.
However I simply don’t think you’re ready to tackle research-level questions yet. What particular field or subfield would you be interested in? If you were to delve into recent research you may find yourself way out of your league - focus on building those skills first.
At this point I would not worry about research, I would try to explore physics.
What level of Math are you taking? If you tell me Alg2 or Geometry that tells me you are not in an advance Math curriculum. If you say pre-calc or Calc, then you may have outgrown your HS and should perhaps see if there are alternatives.
If you are interested in physics, can you talk to the physics teacher and tell them of
your interest and see wha tthey say.
I would suggest taking the MIT open courses on physics and start learning about different aspects of physics and what interests you. http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/physics/
@bopper@MITer94@lookingforward@intparent Thank you all for your advice. The reason why I want to do research in the first place is to learn and be proactive with my learning. I understand that I am not at the appropriate level at the moment and therefore I will use the advice given to help me get there. Thanks again!