Mnemonics for Math, Chemistry and Physics

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the use of mnemonics to aid memory in mathematics, physics, chemistry, and related fields. Participants share various mnemonic devices they have found useful for remembering specific concepts and details.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • One participant mentions using "SOH CAH TOA" for trigonometric functions and "CHO SHA CAO" for cosecant, secant, and cotangent.
  • Another participant references the mnemonic "Oh Be A Fine Girl (Kiss Me Now)" for remembering stellar spectral classes in astrophysics.
  • A participant shares a personal favorite mnemonic, "Fluorinasaurus Rex and Francium always surrenders," related to electronegativity trends.
  • One participant humorously shares a mnemonic they created, "Andy Sucks Tiny Cock," for remembering which trigonometric functions are positive in the unit circle.
  • Another participant mentions "PMAT" for the stages of cell division in biology, indicating a personal method for remembering these terms.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants share various mnemonics without expressing disagreement; however, there is no consensus on a single best mnemonic, as each participant presents their own unique methods.

Contextual Notes

Some mnemonics may be specific to individual experiences or fields of study, and their effectiveness may vary among different learners.

Who May Find This Useful

Students and educators in mathematics, physics, chemistry, and biology may find these mnemonic strategies beneficial for enhancing memory retention of complex concepts.

BogMonkey
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I often have trouble remembering little details of things and using mnemonics solved that problem completely. I only started using these tricks recently and its resulted in me permanently remembering details which I used to have to look up every time. Heres the ones I use
SOH CAH TOA - You probably all know that one
CHO SHA CAO - The same as the one above but for csc, sec and cot.
NOD - Numerator over denominator. I forgot that one about a thousand times before I decided to just remember the word NOD.

Can you list any highly useful mnemonics you use for remembering details in maths, physics, chemistry etc.
 
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Can't say I've encountered more than a couple mnemonics in my academic history, one of which you've already mentioned.

If you study Astrophysics, chances are you might already be familiar with "Oh Be A Fine Girl (Kiss Me Now)" -> OBAFGKMN, which orders stellar spectral classes from highest energy to lowest.
 


My Personal favorite would be "Fluorinasaurus Rex and Francium always surrenders," referring to electro negativity trends.

One of my professors said he had to memorize "Sc-Ti-V-Cr-Mn-F-Co-Ni-Cu-Zn" for the transition metals while attending graduate school. He pronounces it very quickly, as if it were a single word.
 


Well for remembering which trigonometric functions were positive in the unit circle, I made up, Andy Sucks Tiny Cock, when I was 14.. But I suppose that one will never have mass appeal..
 


thayes93 said:
Well for remembering which trigonometric functions were positive in the unit circle, I made up, Andy Sucks Tiny Cock, when I was 14.. But I suppose that one will never have mass appeal..

Haha its easy to remember I suppose. Another one I came up with for biology is PMAT - Prophase, metaphase, anaphase, telophase. Interphase and prometaphase I remember naturally.
 

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