<p>Well, it might be true. I pulled a 5 on AP Physics C mechanics, but that was with a considerable amount of studying…okay, I was lazy. But it was with a considerable amount of stressing out over it. So If I were in high school and heard about your son, I would probably be like, “Oh my gosh, this kid is insane. Uh-oh, <em>scared</em>!” But now, it doesn’t really matter from my perspective. If he’s better than the average applicant to Caltech, it shouldn’t be too surprising, and good for him. </p>
<p>What Dean J says is really true. What you will get even from just browsing CC is the realization that, however amazing you might be, there are thousands out there who are equal to or vastly superior to you. And it’s okay, because at this level, trying to be better than everyone else is kind of a frivolous endeavor, isn’t it? </p>
<p>I don’t think there’s really any point to “have at him.” Like…what does that accomplish? If he is really good at physics, then perhaps he should be less pretentious, but what he said did not seem so much pretentious as simply proud, and there is nothing wrong with that. Of course, I don’t know better than you about what he said or anything, so I won’t comment further on that. Don’t try to actively seek out people to prove him wrong! If he really likes physics, he should be encouraged :D</p>