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Prerequisites |
This
course assumes that you have completed more than two semesters of college
calculus and at least two semesters of university physics.
More
specifically, it assumes you are thoroughly familiar with both differential and
integral calculus and are somewhat acquainted with both partial differential
equations and vector calculus. Needless to say, you should also understand all
the mathematical prerequisites to these topics, namely, Euclidean geometry,
algebra, trigonometry, and analytical geometry (or pre-calculus). If you are
weak in any of these areas, obtain a good reference book and be ready to review
the appropriate background material as you need it for the course. Because of
the tree-like structure of Modern Physics 1, you will not need all of these
mathematical tools as long as you remain in the lower branches. But as you advance
to higher and higher levels of knowledge you will need more and more of these
tools.
Modern
Physics 1 assumes that you are familiar with classical physics - the physics of
the macroscopic world of everyday life, namely, mechanics, heat, sound, light,
electricity, and magnetism. Again, you may not need all of this knowledge in
the lower branches of the course, but the upper branches assume you know most
of this material. So get yourself a good physics textbook and refer to it as
needed to refresh your memory of this background material.
In a few
cases, where experience has shown that most students taking the course are weak
in a particular area, I have included background material in the course itself.
This makes it easier for you to review material you should have already learned
before coming into the course. In these cases, you need only to click the
appropriate button to go to a review page for a quick refresher course on the
topic.
Questions:
Q1. Which of the following is NOT
a prerequisite for this course? (A) Two semesters of college calculus, (B) Two
semesters of university physics, (C) Acquainted with partial differential
equations, (D) Acquainted with vector calculus, (E) Acquainted with tensor
analysis.
Q2. What should you do if you are
weak in one of the prerequisites for this course? (A) Drop the course immediately. (B) Review
everything before proceeding with the course. (C) Review the appropriate topics
before proceeding to the higher branches of the course. (D) Review unfamiliar
prerequisites as you encounter them in the upper branches of the course. (E)
Drop the course when you encounter a subject you cannot understand.
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