Will MIT OpenCourseWare supplement community college Physics 2 and Diff Eq adequately?

[omagdon7]

I will be taking Physics 2 w/ calc and Diff Eq over the summer at a community college. I am concerned that my education is going to be lacking as an engineer I need Diff Eq. I was going to supplement class with the MIT opencourseware lectures do you think this would be sufficient? Also the Diff Eq teacher only has a Master's is this a concern? Thanks in advance.

 

[graphic7]

I will be taking Physics 2 w/ calc and Diff Eq over the summer at a community college. I am concerned that my education is going to be lacking as an engineer I need Diff Eq. I was going to supplement class with the MIT opencourseware lectures do you think this would be sufficient? Also the Diff Eq teacher only has a Master's is this a concern? Thanks in advance.

Most likely this won't be an issue. If the course is 3 credit hours, then you'll cover all the typical material - first-order linear (homogeneous and nonhomogeneous), numerical solutions (Euler's method and RK4), higher-order methods (Variation of Parameters and Undetermined Coefficients), along with either, Laplace transforms and series solutions. It's very rare that a class will be able to cover, both, Laplace transforms and series solutions, unless you are taking a 4 hour course. As long as you cover the material I've laid out here, you should be fine.

Edit: Throw in familiarity with the uniqueness and existence properites of solutions, along with estimation of solutions (upper bounds, etc). Don't forget about reduction of order, either - i.e reducing a second-order equation to a first order, regardless of linearity.

 

[RadiationX]

I will be taking Physics 2 w/ calc and Diff Eq over the summer at a community college. I am concerned that my education is going to be lacking as an engineer I need Diff Eq. I was going to supplement class with the MIT opencourseware lectures do you think this would be sufficient? Also the Diff Eq teacher only has a Master's is this a concern? Thanks in advance.

I attend a community college also and I've had the same concerns in the past,but their are some really great teachers at community colleges! if you don't feel that you're getting all you need in the classroom then self educate! when you learn something on your own you really know it. i feel it also improves your confidence. BTW what school are you attending?

 

[omagdon7]

I'm a student at the University of Florida.

 

[RadiationX]

do you have an instant message service bcause i'd like to talke to you. could you send me a private message.