Learning material after taking a course

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around participants' feelings of inadequacy in their understanding of advanced concepts in physics and mathematics after completing related coursework. They seek recommendations for resources that could enhance their grasp of these subjects, particularly through applications and discussions rather than traditional textbooks.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Homework-related

Main Points Raised

  • One participant expresses a desire for resources that provide a deeper understanding of concepts like bosons, fermions, and string theory, feeling that traditional study methods have not been sufficient.
  • Another participant shares a similar sentiment, questioning the normalcy of feeling unprepared despite passing exams.
  • A suggestion is made to read "Feynman Rainbow" by Leonard Mlodinow, which discusses the struggles of understanding physics from a student's perspective.
  • One participant proposes that proving everything in textbooks and solving problems independently could enhance understanding, although this is met with skepticism by others who feel they already excelled in exams.
  • Another participant emphasizes the importance of real-world applications and discussions, suggesting that engaging with problems posed by others could be beneficial.
  • A different approach is suggested where teaching a topic to someone else might provide a more complete perspective on the subject matter.
  • Recommendations for specific books, such as "The Road to Reality" by Roger Penrose and "Computational Beauty of Nature" by Gary Flake, are offered as potential resources for deeper understanding.
  • One participant shares their academic background and aspirations in Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, indicating a desire for a solid foundation in the underlying principles of math and physics.
  • A participant expresses concern about not receiving responses to their contributions, wondering if their input was taken seriously.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally agree on the feeling of lacking a deep understanding despite academic success, but there are multiple competing views on how to address this issue, with no consensus on the best approach or resources.

Contextual Notes

Participants express varying levels of confidence in their understanding and the effectiveness of traditional study methods. There is a recognition of the need for practical applications and discussions, but no specific methods or resources are universally accepted as the solution.

Who May Find This Useful

This discussion may be useful for students in STEM fields who have completed introductory courses but feel uncertain about their understanding of advanced topics and are seeking alternative resources for deeper comprehension.

amb123
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Well, here I am, done with calculus, physics, diff eq, linear algebra, blah blah blah..

Thing is, even though I did well, and was able to work the exam problems, I don't feel like I have a good understanding of a lot of this stuff. I would like to buy a book, cd, video, whatever, that can help with a general understanding of the concepts presented in these courses. Applications of calculus, diff eq, etc. I picked up Stephen Hawking's Universe in a Nutshell on cd, and have been listening to it, but I find that I just can't seem to grasp a lot of these things (bosons, fermions, imaginary time, etc.) I can listen, and I can grasp what is being said, but I can't make myself think like this and believe these things with no hands on experience with any of it. The universe seems so vast, and I wonder how any of these people can come up with such things as string theory, quantum mechanics, supergravity, etc. Maybe a better understanding of the mathematics of it all would help, but I don't know where to begin.

Right now, I'm working on finishing up Organic Chemistry, and aside from molecular orbitals (which seems important, but was pretty much skipped in our courses), I am pretty good with chemistry (at least reactions.)

Any suggestions for me? Non-textbooks for those who have taken courses but aren't seeing the full picture? I need a deeper understanding of the fundamentals..

thx!@!
-A
 
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I almost made a post about this subject a few days ago, i feel similarly that that even though i have passed the exam i haven't really "got it" yet. Not sure how normal it is, hopefully not all too rare.
 
I liked this book helped a little understand other physicist. Its a book called Feyman Rainbow by Leonard Ldodinow. Pretty good book from my point of view about a bunch of disccusion with Feyman from a physics student(post doc) who felt he was wasting his time cause he wasnt understanding/getting it . Get if from the library =)
 
Dragovich said:
I almost made a post about this subject a few days ago, i feel similarly that that even though i have passed the exam i haven't really "got it" yet. Not sure how normal it is, hopefully not all too rare.



simple answer: take your textbook and prove everything in it & solve every problem without looking at any of the proofs given. write down the definitions and the statements of the theorems and then... close the book. try to figure everything out for yourself.
 
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Thing is, even though I did well, and was able to work the exam problems, I don't feel like I have a good understanding of a lot of this stuff

I feel you. Poke your nose around here and work problems that other people have. It helps, a lot.
 
Regarding taking textbooks and proving things, I am not sure that is the answer to this. I was able to do the proofs on the exams, I was able to work the problems, you have to be able to to get A's. The problem is that I need some real-world application like books, discussions, etc. I think taking a look at the post doc student's questions in the book recommended might help, but I'm not nearly at that level, so that might be a bit beyone my grasp since I'm not a physics major and I'm still an undergraduate. I guess now that I'm done with Organic II, i'll spend the rest of the summer studying for the ACS exam, poking around on here, learning languages, etc. Maybe I just expect too much, dunno.

Thanks, guys. I hope that I can get some of this stuff down a bit before Fall. Suggestions of other application/discussion books would be great as well!

-A
 
Personally when I feel like I don't understand a certain topic, I try to teach it to someone. That'll help give you a different, more complete, perspective.
 
what exactly are you studying...
mmm if phys/math penrose book might be a good start :Road to Reality people have been complimenting on this forum

I would also suggest
"Computational Beauty of Nature" By Gary Flake
 
Thanks! I am studying to be a Chemical Engineer/ Materials Scientist (double majoring, not sure where I want to go with it, maybe nano.)

I just really want to have a good understanding of the underlying principals of math, physics, etc. I am doing pretty well with chem at least.

Thanks, I will check those out!

Devious, I wanted to tutor in math, actually, but they make it stringent hours-wise at my school, and you have to pass an exam in algebra (which i'd honestly probably have to study for because I probably don't remember some of the specific formulas they use frequently in those courses.) It just wasn't feasible at the time due to my full time job and full time coures load. Thankfully I won't have a job anymore in just 4 more weeks!

-A
 
  • #10
nobody responded to what i said so i wonder if everyone thinks I'm just trying to be funny.
 

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