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The Edexcel FP2 (22/06/12 - PM) and FP3 (25/06/12 - PM) Revision Thread

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I've done the first four chapters of FP3 they were quite straightforward, though is it just me or the mixed exercise in chapter 2 are a lot more difficult than the exercise before them? Now I am procrastinating on doing chapters 5 and 6, as I think vectors and matrices are too dry to do by myself. I saw i x j = k, j x i = -k, and I closed the book. These topics just kill my motivation.

Reply 41

Dreamweaver

Original post by JohnyTheLad

I was in exactly the same position as you a couple of weeks ago. Chapter 2 mixed is painful. Thankfully, the actual exam questions don't seem to be too bad.

Yeah the last 2 chapters are hard to self teach. Livemaths seems really good for this. Matrices aren't as bad as Vectors (IMHO) so it might be worth starting with those although vectors do pop up in one or two of the questions. How are you finding the integration?

Reply 42

Dreamweaver

Original post by Groat

I hate how I aced the June 2009 paper, but failed the June 2010 paper which had higher boundaries!

FP3 Loci questions vary so much!

Hate those ones :/ I'm going to do the review exercises before doing all the papers. Seems to work well for me.

Reply 43

Dreamweaver

Original post by Groat

I recommend you take a look at transformation of lines when they are given in cartesian form! I hadn't a clue how to do it and fudged my way through an awful method.

Thanks for the advice. I'm alright on matrices but i absolutely hate finding the intersection of two planes in Cartesian form. I've seen different methods of doing it but i always end up with something different.

Reply 44

Rahul.S

gonna subscribe :colone:

Reply 45

Mr Tough

Just started learning FP2 myself even though im not doing the exam this june , is FP3 a big step up?

Reply 46

Rahul.S

Original post by Mr Tough

Just started learning FP2 myself even though im not doing the exam this june , is FP3 a big step up?

most say fp2 is harder than fp3 :tongue:

Reply 47

snow leopard

Original post by Mr Tough

Just started learning FP2 myself even though im not doing the exam this june , is FP3 a big step up?

I prefer FP3 but they're of even difficulty imo... the hardest thing about FP2 is the complex numbers, and for FP3 it's vectors.

Reply 48

Zhy

FP5 is even harder you have to solve all those 19th order differential equations.

Reply 49

TheJ0ker

I'm subscribing :ninja:

Just taking FP2 though, my teachers can't even teach FP3 or M4+5 :tongue:

I've probably got the easiest F.Maths modules going. Ah well no excuse for not getting the A*.

Reply 50

Mr Tough

Original post by snow leopard

I prefer FP3 but they're of even difficulty imo... the hardest thing about FP2 is the complex numbers, and for FP3 it's vectors.

Hmm i guess i haven't really seen anything tough yet, just started, inequalites = doss :smile:

Both those topics you mentioned do appear to have rather large chapters!

Original post by Rahul.S

most say fp2 is harder than fp3 :tongue:

Well i guess that gives me something to look forward to! the first 2 chapters of fp2 do look rather simple though :smile:

Reply 51

Dreamweaver

Original post by Mr Tough

Just started learning FP2 myself even though im not doing the exam this june , is FP3 a big step up?

Depends on your strengths and what you find easy. I would say they are pretty similar. What gets most people is the complex numbers/polars in FP2 and vectors/matrices in FP3. Just make sure you give yourself plenty of time to prepare for them as some topics can be difficult to understand at the beginning.

Reply 52

Rahul.S

Original post by Zhy

FP5 is even harder you have to solve all those 19th order differential equations.

just 19

you got got a long way to go :tongue:

Reply 53

Mr Tough

Original post by Dreamweaver

I've just "learnt" the matrices chapter in FP3, looked horrid at first, but now it all seems reasonably logical, going to have a go at the mixed ex tomorrow and see how much of what I attempted to learn in 1 hour I have forgotten :biggrin:

Reply 54

Dreamweaver

Original post by Mr Tough

Yeah it's so easy to forget. Just make sure you are alright with the FP1 stuff too as FP3 is synoptic. Did a matrices proof with hyperbolic functions yesterday. It was not nice :/

Reply 55

Dreamweaver

For this question, can you use De Moivre's theorem to expand

\cosh 5\theta

? Technically, we are not ment to know this as it comes in FP2 and both modules are independent. But i was wondering if you would have got the marks as going down the addition formula route is horrible. Any thoughts?

(edited 12 years ago)

F3E1Q16.jpg16.6KB

Reply 56

f1mad

Original post by Dreamweaver

For this question, can you use De Moivre's theorem to expand

\cosh 5\theta

No?

De Moivre's theorem only applies to: (cosx+isinx)^n.

They would expect the additional formulae.

Reply 57

snow leopard

Original post by f1mad

No?

De Moivre's theorem only applies to: (cosx+isinx)^n.

They would expect the additional formulae.

Can't you find cos5x by de Moivre's theorem and then use Osborne's rule to turn it into cosh5x?

Reply 58

Dreamweaver

Yeah you get the same answer from both methods.

Answer:

16\cosh ^5 \theta -20\cosh ^3\theta +5\cosh \theta

Reply 59

tiny hobbit

Original post by Dreamweaver

Yeah but the legacy papers are arranged in different modules which is a pain. I do have other papers and resources like Solomons but they are much harder than normal papers. I got something like 48/75 on my first one and 69/75 on an actual exam paper.

So has your teacher got access to the old questions rearranged for the new modules? Tell him/her that they are in Graham's Emporium under "Practice papers".

If that doesn't work, get back to me.