[zactissue]

I liked...
- nearly all C1, C2, FP1 topics
- functions/ transforming graphs of functions in C3
- coordinate geometry and vectors in C4


But I find differentiation/integration/differential equations(FP2) so dull. For me, it feels like memorising some techniques and keeps repeating those in all the questions.

So yh, I pretty much love all the topics I've learnt so far except calculus.

Is anyone else's interest similar to mine?

I know some people love calculus.
How can I increase my interest in that topic? I want to do maths at university and I was wondering how much calculus in involved?

[nuodai]

The fact that we can do calculus is extremely cool. The theory behind it that makes it all work (which you'll learn at university) is also extremely cool. Unfortunately, actually using it can be quite dull. (Exactly the same can be said for statistics, linear algebra, character theory, etc.) It's just something you have to plough through before doing interesting things later on.

(Original post by zactissue)
But I find differentiation/integration/differential equations(FP2) so dull. For me, it feels like memorising some techniques and keeps repeating those in all the questions.

Just stick with it. If you want to start to hate it less then I recommend getting this textbook some time before you start your maths degree.

(Original post by zactissue)
I want to do maths at university and I was wondering how much calculus in involved?

Calculus is probably the single most important tool in all of applied mathematics, and the theory behind it (mathematical analysis) is one of the biggest fields of pure maths. Fortunately it becomes more interesting than "use the substitution to solve the following integral". Depending on your interests, you might be able to avoid it if you really do hate it so much -- 4 of the 7 courses I'm doing this year have no element of calculus in them at all, and I could quite comfortably have avoided it all together if I'd wanted to -- but you'll come across a lot of calculus in your 1st or 2nd year. Strangely, perhaps, you'll probably have more A-level-style calculus if you do, say, Physics, Engineering or Economics, than if you do Maths.

[Agrippa]

(Original post by nuodai)
I recommend getting this textbook some time before you start your maths degree.

Classic. I used this to try and get beyond the A-level tedium. Highly recommend.

[Brit_Miller]

It definitely gets a lot more interesting than the standard A-level stuff. It can be really satisfying recognising how to solve different differential equations etc. As one of my lecturers said, it's almost like an artform of sorts. Not sure how other courses are, but we did a fair amount in our first year - it cropped up in nearly all of my modules.

[lubus]

****ing ****er integrals

[Dukeofwembley]

try khanacademy(free) or livemaths(£90)

[Dreamweaver]

(Original post by nuodai)
x

I'm an A2 student sitting my final exams. I'm taking a gap year but the thought of no maths for the first time in over a decade scares me! Which mathematically related books can you recommend that are genuinely interesting. I have a deferred offer for medicine so i won't be doing maths at uni. I looked at limit theory the other day and i can't believe that something so fundamental isn't included anywhere in the A level spec. Sorry for going slightly OT. Cheers.