Struggling with the Maths in AS Physics... Help/Opinions?

Personally I'd recommend that you drop psychology and take maths A level instead. That way you'll get to study relevant concepts in depth (trig, mech and calcus will be especially useful) so when they come up in physics you'll already understand them. In answer to your second question, you will be instructed on method but it's likely that not too much time will be spent on it.

I agree with Torpedo Fish, drop psychology and take mathematics to (at least) AS level - things such as logarithms and trigonometry, which will come up in physics, can be tricky to learn unless you've studied them in maths. Just out of interest, any ideas on what you want to read at university?

I want to study medicine, now before anyone lectures me on what I should be taking and what I should have gotten at GCSE. I am FULLY aware of the admissions process and entrance requirements for every single University. For that reason I am definitely taking Chemistry and Biology, which I would've taken them anyway because I enjoy them the most. I have already picked out the 4 universities I will be applying for, which were decided by looking at their teaching methods and their GCSE requirements, which I meet.

I'm not saying you were going to lecture me, but I've came across more than a few on here that think they know it all and will advise me wrongly, so I had to get that point across.

Here's an example...

u = 0ms^-1, s = -560m, a = -g = -9.81ms^-2, t=?
Need to find t, so use s = u x t + 1/2 x a x t^2. (I understand this)

Stages of working it out...

a) s = u x t + 1/2 x a x t^2

b) -560 = 0 + 1/2 x -9.81 x t^2 (I understand how they got this)

c) t = square root of 2 x (-560) / -9.81 = 10.7s (1.d.p) = 11s (to the nearest second)

I don't understand how they got from b to c.

I'm not an expert on medicine admissions, but I always got the impression that chemistry and biology were the two important subjects for medicine, especially chemistry - in which case you would be right in the subjects that you are taking. Could you retake your maths GCSE perhaps? In any case, you could always drop physics after AS and continue on with Chemistry, Biology and Psychology - but you never really know until results day.

I think putting in an extra stage will help;

a) s = u x t + 1/2 x a x t^2

b) -560 = 0 + 1/2 x -9.81 x t^2 (I understand how they got this)

c) -560/ (1/2 x -9.81) = t^2

//a fraction divided by another fraction can be flipped over and multipled if that makes sense***

d) (-560 x 2) / -9.81 = t^2

e) t = square root of 2 x (-560) / -9.81 = 10.7s (1.d.p) = 11s (to the nearest second)


*** e.g.

1/2 divided by 1/3 = 1/2 * 3/1

4/10 divided by 3/5 = 4/10 * 5/3


EDIT: in response to how you can help with your maths, I'd recommend sitting in on mechanics lessons being taught at your school.

You are correct.
Yeah, I'm going to ask about resitting, however, that may make me worse off with some of the universities as some do not accept GCSE resits.
I was thinking about getting this - Calculations for Physics A level which might help me throughout.

I understand that a fraction divided by another fraction can be flipped over and multiplied, I can do that part, however I am still very much lost on re-arranging the equation properly, or even where I would begin to do that.

b) -560 = 0 + 1/2 x -9.81 x t^2 (I understand how they got this)
c) -560/ (1/2 x -9.81) = t^2

I don't understand how b) is re-arranged to make t the subject in c). BLAAAAH. It's probably something so simple. It's so frustrating.



Maybe Physics A level isn't for me, purely because of the maths.



EDIT: Maybe I have spotted it...
I remember something about when it 'swaps sides it swaps sign' or something. Is this what it is in the case of the * replacing the =, therefore changing to /?
If not... Ignore this :}

EDIT 2: I thought brackets were always done first? I'm probably incorrect in this case, but It's confusing me why you don't do the brackets first? It would make more sense for me to put the
brackets like this (-560 / 1/2) / -9.81 = t^2 as if I saw c) below, I would automatically do 1/2 x -9.81 first?
c) -560/ (1/2 x -9.81) = t^2
d) (-560 x 2) / -9.81 = t^2

If you whack it into a calculator, you'll see both of these return the same answer; I just put the brackets in there so you can see it's divided by (1/2 x -9.81) rather than just the 1/2.

I just put in step d so you could see how the original steps were working.




If I change the steps a little it might make it a bit more obvious where I'm coming from;

c) -560 / 1/2 = t^2 * -9.81
d) -560*2 = t^2 * -9.81
e) -560*2/-9.81 = t^2
and then square root.