If there is a God, i must have pissed him off

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the frustrations of academic challenges, particularly in differential equations, linear algebra, and chemistry. Participants share experiences of poor exam results, unexpected jury duty, and the difficulties of performing calculations without a calculator. The conversation includes humorous exchanges and suggestions for dealing with jury duty and exam stress.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Meta-discussion

Main Points Raised

  • One participant expresses frustration over failing a midterm exam and struggling with a chemistry test due to dead calculator batteries.
  • Another participant humorously suggests that mentioning a background in physics might exempt them from jury duty.
  • Some participants discuss the importance of memorizing logarithmic values and other mathematical constants for exams.
  • A suggestion is made to fill out jury duty forms in crayon as a humorous excuse for not attending.
  • Concerns are raised about the legal system's reliance on jurors who may not understand scientific concepts, reflecting a lack of faith in the system.
  • Several participants share their own academic pressures, including preparing for finals and dealing with stress.
  • Humorous exchanges about the challenges of studying and the pressures of academic performance are prevalent throughout the discussion.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally share a common sentiment of frustration regarding academic pressures and unexpected responsibilities, but there is no consensus on the best way to handle these challenges. Humor is a recurring theme, but differing views on the legal system and academic performance are present.

Contextual Notes

Participants reference specific mathematical concepts and personal experiences, indicating a shared background in STEM fields. The discussion reflects a mix of serious concerns and light-hearted banter, with no definitive solutions offered for the challenges discussed.

Who May Find This Useful

Students facing academic challenges, individuals interested in the intersection of legal responsibilities and academic life, and those looking for a humorous take on exam stress may find this discussion relatable.

Pengwuino
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Boy did i have one hell of a day. I get my results from my last midterm for htis differential equations and linear algebra class... f...F... FAIL, beyond fail even! I should have been given an X on it. Then on my chemistry exam on, amongst other things, electrochemistry, my calculator batteries die and i don't have any backups. Do you know how hard it is to figure out what the hell ln(1/2) on a test with no calculator? Or how bout [tex]k = e^{\frac{E}{R}(\frac{1}{{T_2 }} - \frac{1}{{T_1 }})}[/tex] ??

Oh well it wasn't that bad...

Then i got home and looked at the mail and BOOM, Jury duty.

Day = suck
 
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Well I'm sure Cyrus will be here to make fun of you
 
yomamma said:
Well I'm sure Cyrus will be here to make fun of you

He's already late
 
I'll call him at home
 
That's when you know your day is really bad and that you're not just belly-aching and making up drama... you get hit with jury duty summons.
 
give some BS excuse not to go
 
yomamma said:
give some BS excuse not to go

Yah like "I plan on being tossed in jail because i didn't report to jury duty"? This isn't some school field trip to a museum. Thankfully from what I hear, you just tell them you're a physicist or a physics major and the lawyer's will tell you to go away and build a laser.
 
fill out the form in crayon and explain that you cannot possibly serve jury duty because you are a penguin. that should do it.
 
Math Is Hard said:
fill out the form in crayon and explain that you cannot possibly serve jury duty because you are a penguin. that should do it.

Yah and instead of a deputy, they'd send out the nut-house guys to my house :smile: :smile: :smile:

Ahh so many people don't care about their civic duty these days that i bet they even expect people not to come.
 
  • #10
It just takes doing a few half-life problems before it gets permanently etched in one's brain that ln2 = 0.693. So, ln(1/2)=-0.693

Alternatively, from high school math classes you might recall that lnx=2.303logx, and surely you know that log2=0.301

As for calculating the rate constant from Arrhenius, I couldn't say unless I had the numbers.

It's also useful to feep a couple other numbers in your head for a rainy day : log3=0.4771, log7=0.8451

Mostly, that's all you'll need to find any other logarithm.
 
  • #11
Pengwuino said:
my calculator batteries die and i don't have any backups. Do you know how hard it is to figure out what the hell ln(1/2) on a test with no calculator?

Slide rule?
 
  • #12
Rach3 said:
Slide rule?
:smile: Good idea . . Batteries not needed.
 
  • #13
Pengwuino said:
Do you know how hard it is to figure out what the hell ln(1/2) on a test with no calculator?

Tsk tsk. You really should remember stuff like ln 2. Of course ln 0.5 = -ln 2

Here's what I have committed to memory, I consider this to be the basic minimum.

Natural log (ln) 2 = 0.693
Common log (ld) 2 = 0.301

By dividing those, you can work out ln 10, and you can convert between natural and common logs.

Oh yeah, also remember powers of 2 up to around 2^20 and up to the fifth powers of other numbers from 3 to 11 (of course you can omit the composites and powers (6 = 3*2, 9 = 3^2, 8 = 2^3 etc), 5 = 10/2 and powers of 11 are trivially easy with a Pascal's triangle-like addition algorithm, so that amounts to memorising only powers of 3 and 7). And try and remember stuff like sqrt 2, 3, 5 and 10 up to 3 decimal places. And of course pi and e to 9 decimal places (e is very easy, it almost seems to be a recurrent decimal for the first few places).

All this stuff will really help you in a pinch. It's like the Amex ad : "just in case". :smile:
 
Last edited:
  • #14
Pengwuino said:
Yah and instead of a deputy, they'd send out the nut-house guys to my house :smile: :smile: :smile:
But it would get you out of it. :biggrin: :smile:

Better stock up on books, because you'll have a lot of time to sit around and wait while they decide you can't serve on any case for jury duty. Lawyers don't like people with a science background; they understand the forensics too well. Then again, you could show them the F you got and maybe they'll decide you're okay to put on an interesting case. :-p

Now, where is Cyrus? You're down and he isn't here picking on you...I hope he's feeling okay. :rolleyes:
 
  • #15
Moonbear said:
Lawyers don't like people with a science background; they understand the forensics too well.

If this is true, I've lost all faith in the legal system. :frown: If the fate of someone depends on convincing the ignorant and/or unintelligent, what hope have we of justice ?

I would've said I've lost all faith in lawyers, but I never had any to begin with. :smile:
 
  • #16
Too bad you got an F. Just take it again next time and study hard. Now I must return to studying for my 2 finals this saturday myself. I have forced myself off of PF by blocking it on my IE6. :bugeye: Cold-turkey is not good...

bye bye
 
  • #17
Pfft. A whining penguin? New species! I shall name you.. Spheniscus whinasaurus :biggrin:

Its just a couple of F's.. Gale got a dozen of those, I'm almost there. Just retake it and next time get an A and be like BOOYA!
 
  • #18
cyrusabdollahi said:
Too bad you got an F. Just take it again next time and study hard. Now I must return to studying for my 2 finals this saturday myself. I have forced myself off of PF by blocking it on my IE6. :bugeye: Cold-turkey is not good...

bye bye
An alien has taken over Cyrus !
 
  • #19
cyrusabdollahi said:
Too bad you got an F. Just take it again next time and study hard. Now I must return to studying for my 2 finals this saturday myself. I have forced myself off of PF by blocking it on my IE6. :bugeye: Cold-turkey is not good...

bye bye

:bugeye: :bugeye: :bugeye: :bugeye: :bugeye: :bugeye: :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?!
 
  • #20
Pengwuino said:
:bugeye: :bugeye: :bugeye: :bugeye: :bugeye: :bugeye: :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?!
And you thought you had a bad day! Obviously, poor Cyrus is completely crumbling under the exam pressure. :eek:
 
  • #21
cyrusabdollahi said:
Too bad you got an F. Just take it again next time and study hard. Now I must return to studying for my 2 finals this saturday myself. I have forced myself off of PF by blocking it on my IE6. :bugeye: Cold-turkey is not good...

bye bye

A man under great stress, i bet Cyrus has spare batteries, calculator and a
back up slide rule, i guess it makes one feel good knowing they have paid out
for that F.
 

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