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GRAH!!!! I just got into an argument with my folks on my last exam, they said that if I studied i wouldn't have a hard time, so one week of all night studying isnt considered studying?... Is there any way I can convince them that high level physics and math isn't as simple as "just studying"? I wish college was by year and not semester... Then they wouldnt cram 3 chapters on quadric surfaces, derivation of magnetic forces, etc. up our butts. If you think of it, if engineer dont have a tight grasp on concepts, many people could die... http://www.aloha.net/~icarus/index.htm aloha airlines...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japan_Airlines_Flight_123 japan airline

Can't help you there. I avoid higher level math like the plauge. But not just any plauge, some sort of super plauge that could shoot lazers and quote Ann Raynd.

...

OK, I would actually go looking for that disease, but the point I'm trying to make is all the subjects I'm interested in actually can be overcome by study (except biology, sort of)

Perhaps if you were to go through a textbook with them?

One week of studying isn't considered studying imo. Studying is an ongoing process starting from the first day of classes that ends after your final exam. You're supposed to learn something that you can take on to other places and use it there and it's a road you have to walk, you simply can't jump to the end by cramming. I am attending Carnegie Mellon University (one of the top 10 engineering school in the US, top CS school) atm, studying to become an electrical and computer engineer. I can promise you that higher level courses actually require you to know the stuff really well to even get a D in the tests. You'll need to be familiar with the questions to get a better grade. So cramming might earn you a D or even a C if you're lucky, but if you want to do better, you'll have to actually do work and keep up to date as you go.

This is why college is so different from high-school or lower. You can cram and do well in an exam when you're in high-school, doing the same in college would result in you failing.

Just my 2cents about college vs high-school.

-Zaragor

Sometimes math just doesn't click the first time. Then again, I don't have to explain why I don't get math to my folks. It's usually English for me.

...Then again, I take math classes for fun... I'd get up early on Saturdays for them...

Lol, you would probably love my calc243 class by Mr.Siu (aka mr.Siu next semester, dude has a 83% failure rate) Go look him up on rate my proffessor under university of hawaii at manoa...

What course is calc 243?

We have a course here names 15-251 - Great Theoretical ideas of Computer Science. All the CS majors have to take it. And the average score on tests in that subjects are 50% :p And these CS kids are like ppl who got into MIT and CalTech rejected them.

i can't really comment on this seeing as i'm in year 12, but personally not studying has helped me more than studying because i seem to forget stuff when i revise that i actually need to know and remember useless stuff instead

College is college. There's no such thing as taking an engineering route and expecting to not have to cram hours and hours of study and homework just to pass the classes. Buddy of mine is going to Embry-Riddle (aeronautical engineering college), and I've spent a few weekends with him just to harass him. What he does is balances all his study and work time with equal amounts of play time. It leaves him going to classes for 6 hours a day, working for 4 hours, gaming for 4 hours, and sleeping (or being passed out) the other 10 hours.

Could try something like that, see how it works. Could also try lots of coffee. I know a lot of hippies (just joking, maybe) these days are against stuff like caffeine, but coffee is my life blood and in my professional opinion it is the ultimate work-aid. Maybe work-aid is an understatement for the true power coffee has over me. Refer to my favorite shirt for a better understanding - http://tinyurl.com/5umnnp

yeah coffee really helps with being awake in the mornings. especially when you have to get up at 6. i have 5 cups of coffee every morning minimum.

also i should advise people against using my method as it probably isn't that smart

Lol, I try to stay away from coffee, I drink tea instead =^_^= weird though, hot tea wake me up, but cold tea knocks me out

Math 243 is Calculus 3... and i still have to take 244 T_T

*right now im spending my breaks typing on two kinds :P*

If college was made year round, think thats a good idea?

it would depend on whether there were more breaks or the same amount. and whether it meant less hours each day.

there are many reasons for and against it

Something around the lines of highschool v2 :P Just like a continuation of highschool after you get your GED, same breaks and such

Have a starbucks on my way to school ^_^

Calc 3... Have no idea what that is. What do you guys do? Currently, I'm doing 3D calc. It's a challenge, but not that bad. Going to do Diff-eq next I think.

Methods? I don't do methods anymore, already finished that last year, got 48/50 for Study Score (i live in Australia so this may be different for u guys)

No argument there. I'm in my university's Ceramics and Materials Engineering program (we're the fun chemical engineers), and I agree with you. I'd say my hardest math course was my Calc 2 (108 here) class. Hard as anything. Calc 3 isn't that bad, and I heard calc 4 was even easier (at least compared to calc 2).

Sure, if I only had one test, I may be able to study for a week strait to get the A (rather, B in my case). But, you don't have just one test. There's calculus, then physics, then chemistry, computers...you see where I'm going with this. It took me two semesters to get my system down for studying, and it works well for me.

I prefer classes that start earlier in the day -- 9:00 or so. I get up at 8:00 go grab some breakfast, then go to all my classes and labs, and am usually out around 2 or 3. Then I go to work for a few hours (where I can get a lot of my stuff done), and eat dinner. At this point, it's usually 5-6. That gives me a good 8 hours until I should go to sleep. I give myself 2 hours of free time, which I usually spend at the gym or playing video games. The others are usually spend doing homework and the like. Rinse and repeat until Saturday.

Again, I would say it depends on your major. My friend, who's a history major, has only a fraction of the work I have, and usually spends his free time napping. I've made it through most of the weeder classes in engineering, and I can attest that this major is hard. Heck, my buddy had a 4.7GPA in high school, yet he's almost failing his intro chemical engineering class. To expect to pass a class, let alone get an A, without copious amounts of studying isn't happening. The only way I'd get an A in all my classes is if I spend every free minute of mine studying. Always. But hey, what fun is that?