*Official Course-Related Questions Thread*

[celestial605]

<p>Post any questions you have about specific classes or requirements here!</p>

[celestial605]

<p>About math:</p>

<p>skatearabia asked:

does the regular Math 50 series provide a solid foundation for later extensive work with proofs? How much does the course rely on computer algebra systems?

ajimmy kid answered:

The 50 series is difficult in its own way, according to many of the people i’ve talked to. There are SOME proofs in 50 series, but there isn’t an emphasis on that, as opposed to the honor series which is all proofs. I can’t tell you if it provides a solid foundation, but it does provide a good foundation. I know math majors who have taken the 50 series. I suggest you shop both classes and see for yourself the first week. I’m not sure what you mean by computer algebra systems, but the 50 series has some assignments with Matlab (the mathematics program on the computer), and the honor series doesn’t even touch a calculator.

</p>

[celestial605]

<p>About physics:</p>

<p>skatearabia asked:

To any physics people out there, how’s the 60 series? I’ll have 5s on both AP Physics C exams, and plan to be a physics major…I’m wondering if it’s worth it to take the full 60 series as opposed to skipping 41 and 43, going right into 45.

marlgirl answered:

60 series physics was pretty tough. I’ve heard the book this year isn’t that great (last year’s was pretty good) and I don’t think I’ve heard great things about the teacher. The prof/book for next quarter should be better and probably easier, and I have no clue who the prof will be in the spring or which book they will use (Physics 65 was my favorite quarter by far last year, we had this awesome prof who was actually a post-doc and is now teaching on the east coast). I think most people in the class think it’s rather difficult. Physics 45 is incredibly boring and is basically the reason I chose Physics 60. I’m fairly sure that if you want to major in physics you need to take either the entire 40 series or the entire 60 series. That means you’d have to retake 41 and 43, although you could just skip lectures and just do the problem sets and take the exams. My friend who was in both thought that the physics series was harder, another friend thought the 50 H math series was harder… it depends who you ask.

oct123 answered:

In response to the question about the Physics 60 series, it is considered a difficult but very rewarding series of classes, especially for those who want to major in Physics. What I heard was the professor who taught it this year was interesting and very helpful, but the text was new and rather hard.

</p>

[celestial605]

<p>The writing requirement:</p>

<p>skatearabia asked:

Referring to the whole WR requirement business, is it generally advisable to take a regular class that gives WR2 credit, rather that PWR2 itself? From what I’ve read here and heard elsewhere, the PWR classes seem like a burden more than anything else…are regular classes or intro seminars (for example, History 20N: Russia in the Early Modern Europe Imagination) that fulfill the WR2 requirement better? If so, why? Less work, more interesting, etc.</p>

<p>Related to that, how is PWR (1 and/or 2)? Is it really that bad? I’m a good writer and have three years of research paper experience (in the second semester of history/government classes at my school we have to find a topic, research, write 12-15+ pages, fully cited, etc), so is there anything in the class that would be new or difficult?

celestial605 answered:

You might have seen me voice my opinion on another thread; I vote strongly in favor of taking a non-PWR writing class. Being a “techie” in general, I am not terribly interested in many of the PWR class choices, whether they be “The Rhetoric of Silence” or “I Fought the Law: The Rhetoric of Resistance”. Go here <a href=“http://pwr.stanford.edu/[/url]”>http://pwr.stanford.edu/&lt;/a&gt; for course offerings and descriptions. Some people definitely find PWR interesting, so I’m just saying that for me personally… not so fun. I got lucky with PWR1: I took “Building Bridges: Brain, Biology, and Behavior” which was PERFECT (check out the classes I’ve taken, which makes this relatively obvious). Unfortunately, I don’t think it’s offered anymore, but it was fun because we read popular science articles, wrote a couple papers, and did one presentation. Pretty enjoyable and low key.</p>

<p>For PWR2, nothing looked good to me, so I applied to “Current Concepts in Transplantation”, an introsem, and got in. It was very interesting and easy ; we read a couple journal articles and critiqued them, wrote a 6-8 page paper, did one presentation, and had a debate. Totally chill WRITE-2 checked off my list. I was very happy that I could find a class to fulfill the requirement that interested me AND was less work than a regular PWR class.</p>

<p>Now, since you’ve brought this up, it sounds like you definitely wouldn’t have issues in PWR. You’re probably not going to learn much as far as format, but I’m sure they’ll work on refining your writing style. Lucky you - I hadn’t written a paper over 4 pages in high school =/ I think PWR papers usually range from 6-20 pages, depending on the assignment as well as the class. You will probably write 2 papers, I think… this probably depends as well. So it’s by no means awful… it’s just that WRITE classes are usually less.

</p>

[Ihope]

<p>Wow, nice threads celestial605. My hat’s off to you.</p>

[fuzzylogic]

<p>yeah, thanks a lot celestial. once again, you’ve gone out of your way to help us. :)</p>

[celestial605]

<p>You’re welcome, and thanks for the compliments… but I’m too lazy to sift through everything and link to old questions =/ So let the new asking begin!</p>

[mis]

<p>Is [**B]Physics 20 series the easiest and 60 series the hardest b/c ? (i suck at physics and i want to get the credit for premed donce as quickly as possible.)</p>

[calikent]

<p>yep - there’s also a 40 series in between</p>

[celestial605]

<p>It’s generally recommended that premeds take the 20 series. Don’t take a higher level unless you really enjoy physics and want to learn more than necessary for the MCAT.</p>

[jwj]

<p>Either that, or unless you’re thinking about becoming a chemistry/biochemistry major. The 40 series is required for that.</p>

[edwinksl]

<p>And the 60 series are only for hardcore physics majors? :D</p>

[XRedcomet]

<p>Not really, but not for most freshmen or the faint of heart. :)</p>

<p>Eh, it’s probably fun, but highly challenging. I knew a few freshman guys who took it last quarter, but they were pretty smart folks.</p>

[fuzzylogic]

<p>About summer courses, I e-mailed summersession [at] stanford dot edu and got this response:

I’m sorry to say that the Undergraduate Admission office does not permit entering freshmen to participate in the HSSC. They do not want freshmen to begin their undergraduate careers early. We encourage you to enjoy this “bridge” summer and perhaps take some time to travel or pursue a non-academic interest. You will immerse yourself in Stanford’s academia soon enough!

</p>

<p>Is this true? I have a six month long summer break and if I don’t study for that long, my brain will melt into a gooey mass. I am going to do some volunteer work and go to China but 6 months is a really long time. Do you guys have any suggestions?</p>

[celestial605]

<p>Sounds like an exciting summer! Perhaps you could get a job (internship, tutoring, non-academic work like a restaurant), take courses at a nearby community college, do some research… I feel as though volunteering could really take up a lot of time; for example, I did volunteer tutoring that was 4 hours a day, 4 days week, for 2 1/2 months. What kind of volunteering had you planned to do?</p>

[fuzzylogic]

<p>I’m going to be volunteering at an institute for the blind. I’ve been doing it for quite a while and thought I’d spend more time there in the summer.</p>

[celestial605]

<p>That sounds really interesting. Even with that, you don’t feel like you have enough to do? Hmm… I’ll ponder that. When I’m bored, I knit and crochet, but I guess that just makes me old If I think of more summer ideas, I’ll let you know.</p>

[fuzzylogic]

<p>^haha…really? is it possible to learn how to play an instrument in under 6 months?(gotta get ready for LSJUMB)</p>

<p>i saw a YouTube video of 2005’s big game. LSJUMB seems so disorganized compared to Cal’s impressive marching band. …was it wrong of me to say that?:rolleyes:</p>

[edwinksl]

<p>Dude, not to worry. I haven’t been in school for the past 2 years. 6 months is significantly shorter than 2 years. :D</p>

[celestial605]

<p>Well, I think it’s possible to learn an instrument in under 6 months. It’ll definitely help if you have some theory background. Even if you haven’t, you can get it done with a good teacher (whether a friend or a professional). I imagine it would be hard to learn theory and details of your instrument on your own.</p>