Self Study Physics C...is it really that hard? (I am taking Physics B in school)

energize
Wed, 23 Jun 2010 00:10:29 +0000

(^…which is why you don’t try to learn a semester of calculus-based physics in two weeks.)

I self-studied AP Physics B this year (which wasn’t too bad) and am starting on the calculus-based version this summer. I watched some of the MIT OCW lectures while I was doing Physics B, but I didn’t really find them engaging or educational enough (the second fault is probably related to the lack of calculus in the B exam) to sit through. Your mileage may vary, however; try them and see.

On the other hand, I found that this video series, [url=http://www.learner.org/resources/series42.html]The Mechanical Universe and Beyond/url was more helpful in grasping the concepts behind the equations and words.

(Of course, you don’t want to rely on just videos; get a textbook and an AP prep book, preferably PR or maybe Barron’s if you have a bunch of time.)

So in conclusion, the answers to your questions are: yes, it is entirely possible (but start early), and E&M is definitely harder than mechanics. (You need mechanics for many E&M problems, anyway, so it wouldn’t make too much sense to do E&M first…)