July 17, 2013

Today I began to study physics. I have decided to take AP Physics next year. According to Ms. Pamela, physics is the hardest of the three lab science classes, which are chemistry, biology, and physics. Therefore, I thought that it will be safer to have a preview on physics. Just like Mr. Jones once said, practicing during the summer will ease the stress that comes in the school year. I barely survived high-school physics last year. I don’t want to give myself so much stress next semester on top of all the college essays and SAT. Therefore, I took out the book I purchased before summer and moved on to the first chapter. The first chapter was surprisingly boring, talking only about theory, hypothesis, and units. The first five chapters are basic high-school physics that I learned last year. They haven’t escaped my memory after half of the summer break. However, materials usually get more difficult as you read on. Luckily, my next-door neighbor just graduated from college with a physics major. Although he graduated from a Taiwanese college, teachers used English textbooks to teach the students. My neighbor, unfortunately, used a textbook that is different from mine. Despite the difference, they are actually just the same materials arranged in different orders. With his help, I was able to move through rest of the materials smoothly. Any complex concept or equation that requires calculus, which I haven’t taken the course, was broken down into smaller and simpler pieces for me to comprehen. He was a really good tutor. I am on chapter 12 now. I wonder if I could finish the last chapter before school begins.