Posted by finelinebob on January 24, 2002, at 22:30:35
In reply to Re: the physics of failing a final, posted by Katey on January 18, 2002, at 10:27:57
HaH! Phailing physics phinals ... the memories that brings back... you know, as an undergrad I was a physics major. Also deeply, suicidally depressed and in complete denial of the existence of any sort of problem. So there I was, Physics 401 -- the first "senior-level" class everyone who was a physics major basically had to nail -- and I was failing miserably. Too late to withdraw without still having to pay for the course and still getting a big fat W on my transcript, and the last thing I wanted on my transcript was a D. Funny thing was that if I failed, I could take the class a second time and they'd average the grades ... could still theoretically pull off a C.
So I intentionally tried to fail the final. Sat there for a couple of hours, tried to do a problem or two, wound up mostly writing "I repeat myself when under stress." over and over on the desktop.
Stupid cuss of a professor gave me a C- for my final grade. Chicken didn't have the guts to fail me. Sheesh!
Then there was my third semester of calculus. Got something like 5% correct on the first test (after having been a straight-A student in HS ... yikes!). But the prof allowed us to substitute our homework grades for our lowest test score.
Anyway, with two weeks left in the term, he tells us that he wanted to give us three tests over the course of the term plus our final. He had given us one test to date. So, the plan was to have an in-class exam on the last day of class, pick up a take-home on the way out, then drop that off after the weekend and take a few days to study for the final.
Two sessions, three exams.
My overall homework score was something like a 96/100. With extra credit on the first two tests, my average was over 100 going into the final.
We spent the entire semester studying theoretical stuff. The final was entirely on applications of the theoretical stuff. I was SO depressed after the final I went home and slept for about 20 hours or so.
I got a B+ in the class ... that's how bad my final was.
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Now, having also been a high-school physics teacher, I can tell you this: physics is especially important for "artsy" people, perhaps more than any other science, but 99.9% of the physics being taught out there ain't going to be taught how you need it to be taught. So if you ever need an example of how topic X in physics applies to your particular flavor of "artsy", drop me a line.The more real it is, the easier (and more enjoyable) it is to learn.
cheers,
flb
poster:finelinebob
thread:16749
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20020112/msgs/17171.html