What am I supposed to know to start my BSEE studies?

[Wolverine31]

What am I supposed to know to start my BSEE studies??

My studies Bachelor's of Electronics engineering begins from next september. What might be the things that can I do right now so that it will of much help when I begin my studies. I mean sth like the topics that I should be familiar with and the online resources to access them. So a little help from from everyone would be appreciated.
Thanks in advance.

 

[yungman]

For online help, this is it! Ask question here. Regarding to getting a good start, study Calculus and be good at it. Make sure you are good in trigonometry. If you are strong in these, life will be a lot easier.

 

[jim hardy]

practice your algebra.

Calculus itself is simple
because what it really is is turning a seemingly incalculable problem into an algebra problem.
That's why Newton invented calculus - he needed it to figure out how the universe works.

My problem in first semester calculus was not calculus, but dropping signs and mis-reading my scrawly printing resulting in algebra errors. And not only is the answer no less wrong from algebra error than from calculus error, but the frustration level is way higher.

Dumb as this sounds - practice your printing, polish up your algebra, and refresh on your trig identities.

old jim

 

[Oberst Villa]

I have a site where I provide some commented links to resources for learning analog electronics:

www.wisewarthog.com

As a preparation for studying, it would probably be a good idea to focus on the theoretical aspects, so the page about analyzing basic linear circuits might be interesting to you:

http://www.wisewarthog.com/electronics/recommendations-basic-linear-circuit-analysis.html

I agree with yungman that this forum is an excellent resource. A very big site where you can find a lot of links is

http://educypedia.karadimov.info/electronics/electronicaopening.htm

but you have to spend some time there to find the best ones – asking for a link in this forum here might produce even faster results if you are lucky. Try what works best for you.

 

[Oberst Villa]

For online help, this is it! Ask question here. Regarding to getting a good start, study Calculus and be good at it. Make sure you are good in trigonometry. If you are strong in these, life will be a lot easier.

I agree. For a free Calculus introduction, try

http://tutorial.math.lamar.edu/pdf/CalcI/CalcI_Complete.pdf

It includes a review of prerequisites like trigonometry. If you like it, there is more at

http://tutorial.math.lamar.edu/ (Paul’s Online Math Notes)

If you don’t like it, tell us what you are missing – there are lots of calc introductions out there.

 

[Wolverine31]

Thanks everyone for your advices.
And I am surprised here because I did not expect everyone would suggest me to strengthen my mathematical skills in algebra and trigonometry. I thought it would be like basic knowledge of programming and some electronics components like diodes ...( and I was wrong and thanks everyone for clearing my misunderstanding).
And yet I have another question and that is how will my knowledge in mathematics help me excel in my electronics engineering. Can someone please illustrate some co-relations here (may be some practical examples) ??
And once again thanks to everyone for their suggestions.

 

[Studiot]

Hello wolverine,

What am I supposed to know to start my BSEE studies??

The most important thing to learn before you start is how to write your name correctly at the top of the exam paper.

The second most important thing is to read the question twice and answer the question they have set.

 

[jim hardy]

practical ?

Current through a capacitor is solved by calculus from differential equation i = C * dV/dt.

Current through an inductor is solved by calculus from differential equation i = L * ∫v*dt.

Do you remember learning multiplication tables in about third grade?
first two semester calculus will go even faster.

So don't be like me, so imperfect in algebra that it holds you back in calculus class. I spent 50% of my homework time recovering from silly algebra mistakes. That's really hard on a guy's confidence.
If they offer a course in "College Algebra", which is just remedial high school algebra, you might think about taking it. I should have.

old jim

 

[Wolverine31]

practical ?

Current through a capacitor is solved by calculus from differential equation i = C * dV/dt.

Current through an inductor is solved by calculus from differential equation i = L * ∫v*dt.

Do you remember learning multiplication tables in about third grade?
first two semester calculus will go even faster.

So don't be like me, so imperfect in algebra that it holds you back in calculus class. I spent 50% of my homework time recovering from silly algebra mistakes. That's really hard on a guy's confidence.
If they offer a course in "College Algebra", which is just remedial high school algebra, you might think about taking it. I should have.

old jim

Thank you very much for enlightening me. Now I sense the direction I should be heading.

 

[metiman]

Interesting question. I am currently reviewing my college calculus with Dana Mosely lectures. I think he is an amazing teacher. I am going to watch his college algebra lectures as well. I'd recommend watching all of his stuff and doing some practice problems in algebra, trig, and calculus every so often to stay sharp mathematically.

Do you know exactly what courses you are going to be taking? Probably Calculus I, Physics I, Circuit Theory I and some fluff courses. If you have the time you could study all of those things. Ideally find out what textbooks the instructors teach with and get those. Also get a copy of The Art of Electronics (Horowitz and Hill), a decent multimeter, an old oscilloscope, a decent soldering iron, and find yourself an electronic project to build from a schematic. Or even better start designing your own simple circuits while reading Horowitz and Hill. I'd also recommend reading the allaboutcircuits online ebook and look at their forums for project ideas and for occasional help when you get stuck.

You should also get familiar with software. Start learning how to run circuit simulation and PCB layout software like Proteus, Tina, Orcad, LTSpice, Multisim, and Pspice.

MIT has first year Physics, Calculus, and Circuit Theory courses on their web site. Watch them.

And if you don't already have one, get yourself a good programmable calculator. I used an HP48SX in my university days. I'd recommend an HP48G or HP48GX from Ebay. You might also consider an HP 50G if you plan to write a lot of programs. It has a much faster CPU than the 48 series (although some speed is lost on emulation), but it has a 'slow' keyboard. I can enter a problem noticeably faster with the HP48 clicky keypad than with the newer models and speed is everything on exams. You may already favor TI, but maybe you've never tried one of the older HP designs from before HP just started apeing TI's design.

 

[jim hardy]

I LOVED the clicky keypad on HP-35 ca 1971...

and the RPN was wonderful.

HP was once a great and innovative company.

 

[tamtam402]

Another good website is allaboutcircuits.com, if you want to cover some of the material you'll see in your first year. I didn't know about that website before starting but I use it as a resource when my book/teacher's notes aren't clear enough!