[Umairy363]

Hi again everyone, back again!

I'm just going over C1-C4 again now and will go over FP1-FP4 again before September so that i base is good! Would it be best to start to go over STEP I questions after i've finished C1-C4?

Also, whilst looking at this thread i noticed that you separated applied from pure. When you say applied, do you mean Mechanics, Statistics etc.....

[Maths_Lover]

(Original post by jukebox123)
hey guys, is it better to complete all of the STEP I pure questions first, then the applied ones, or to complete a whole paper at a time?
Oh, and I'm quite a bit better at pure than applied if that matters

Whole paper at a time.

I'm also waaaay better at pure than applied but I've realised: hey - I've got to do it sometime! It's best not to do pure and applied separately, I think.

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[I smell like maths]

(Original post by Umairy363)
Hi again everyone, back again!

I'm just going over C1-C4 again now and will go over FP1-FP4 again before September so that i base is good! Would it be best to start to go over STEP I questions after i've finished C1-C4?

Also, whilst looking at this thread i noticed that you separated applied from pure. When you say applied, do you mean Mechanics, Statistics etc.....

i would go through all of further maths as well, then start doing STEP papers. the reason being that you'll gain a deeper understanding of c1-c4 and this will help you tackle STEP 1, ya dig?

remember, it is never too early to start revising for STEP. STEP is the mother of all a-level maths papers; a cruel b**** mother infact.

[desijut]

wow, very eager, I remember at this point, I would **** myself over STEP.

[Umairy363]

(Original post by I smell like maths)
i would go through all of further maths as well, then start doing STEP papers. the reason being that you'll gain a deeper understanding of c1-c4 and this will help you tackle STEP 1, ya dig?

remember, it is never too early to start revising for STEP. STEP is the mother of all a-level maths papers; a cruel b**** mother infact.

Yeh, i dig

So what's the difference between Pure and applied mathematics (I'm not a novice for not knowing this am i? )

[jukebox123]

(Original post by Llewellyn)
The geometry part? The first thing you need to do is get a nice expression for the distance considering that you are investigating k. There's quite a lot of terms when you first find an expression for the distance. The cases for k are quite straightforward (by not defining k, I think they have given a hint), but you may want to think about k in terms of a basic triangle or perhaps sketch a graph. The actual geometrical response isn't very long, and the brunt of the question is definitely the minimal distances.

Thanks a lot
Did you sit STEP I this year? If so, what mark do you think you got?

[msmith2512]

(Original post by jukebox123)
hey guys, is it better to complete all of the STEP I pure questions first, then the applied ones, or to complete a whole paper at a time?
Oh, and I'm quite a bit better at pure than applied if that matters

Like a lot of these questions it depends ...

... If you prefer pure questions and think that you can get 6 good answers out of the 8 pure questions then why bother with the mechanics or stats questions at all. This is a valid technique which a number of people use.

... However the mechanics and stats questions can be (and very often are) much easier than the pure questions. E.g if there is a projectiles question then it will be almost the same method each time. This year on each paper probably 2 mechanics and at least 1 stats seemed (to me) to be 'more accessible' than most of the pure. More accessible being marker-speak for higher marks. We'll see what the examiners report says in September.

Being a person who likes applied I go for these every time. When practicing I did whole papers rather than topics. This means you practice all areas not just some.

[TheMagicMan]

(Original post by msmith2512)
Like a lot of these questions it depends ...

... If you prefer pure questions and think that you can get 6 good answers out of the 8 pure questions then why bother with the mechanics or stats questions at all. This is a valid technique which a number of people use.

... However the mechanics and stats questions can be (and very often are) much easier than the pure questions. E.g if there is a projectiles question then it will be almost the same method each time. This year on each paper probably 2 mechanics and at least 1 stats seemed (to me) to be 'more accessible' than most of the pure. More accessible being marker-speak for higher marks. We'll see what the examiners report says in September.

Being a person who likes applied I go for these every time. When practicing I did whole papers rather than topics. This means you practice all areas not just some.

The problem with a pure only approach was seen quite obviously on step this year: on step ii there were three easy applied question, and on step iii one of the pure questions was wrong and several others were quite time consuming


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[M2k13]

(Original post by Umairy363)
Yeh, i dig

So what's the difference between Pure and applied mathematics (I'm not a novice for not knowing this am i? )

Pure is just the algebra...
Applied mathematics is the mechanics/statistics side... Applying Maths to 'real-life' scenarios...


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[Farhan.Hanif93]

(Original post by M2k13)
Pure is just the algebra...
Applied mathematics is the mechanics/statistics side... Applying Maths to 'real-life' scenarios...


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At A-Level, perhaps. That doesn't apply so well from undergraduate onwards - most of the stuff in the A-Levels will come under the "applied" side.

[M2k13]

(Original post by Farhan.Hanif93)
At A-Level, perhaps. That doesn't apply so well from undergraduate onwards - most of the stuff in the A-Levels will come under the "applied" side.

Ooh true, I didn't know that .


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[M2k13]

Just a quick question...
Does anyone know when the STEP syllabus changed and what topics were in paper I, II and III, and now aren't?
Additionally what about AEA?
Since some of the questions I've noticed in paper I involved further pure stuff which I haven't done yet >.>
I need to know what papers to do... Since all I done is
C1,2,3,4 & M1,2 & S1


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[Lord of the Flies]

(Original post by M2k13)
Just a quick question...
Does anyone know when the STEP syllabus changed and what topics were in paper I, II and III, and now aren't?
Additionally what about AEA?
Since some of the questions I've noticed in paper I involved further pure stuff which I haven't done yet >.>
I need to know what papers to do... Since all I done is
C1,2,3,4 & M1,2 & S1


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I know complex numbers used to be included in STEP I (<1999 I think)...

[TheMagicMan]

(Original post by M2k13)
Just a quick question...
Does anyone know when the STEP syllabus changed and what topics were in paper I, II and III, and now aren't?
Additionally what about AEA?
Since some of the questions I've noticed in paper I involved further pure stuff which I haven't done yet >.>
I need to know what papers to do... Since all I done is
C1,2,3,4 & M1,2 & S1


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There have been more recent changes, but there is a major difference between the pre and post 1994 papers


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[M2k13]

(Original post by TheMagicMan)
There have been more recent changes, but there is a major difference between the pre and post 1994 papers


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So which papers are best to do that do not involve Further pure ?

[msmith2512]

(Original post by M2k13)
So which papers are best to do that do not involve Further pure ?

I would suggest you start with STEP I and look at 2006 onwards. Have a proper go at each question - they will be hard to start with until you start to get to know what you are looking for each time. If you get stuck then play around with the question - if this doesn't help go on to then next one and come back the following day.

Don't use the answer thread until really necessary. Then only as a hint and continue to work through the question.

[shamika]

(Original post by M2k13)
So which papers are best to do that do not involve Further pure ?

The following require little A-Level maths at all:

1999 STEP I Q1
2003 STEP I Q2
2005 STEP I Q1
2006 STEP I Q1
2006 STEP I Q2 (hint: don't use calculus)
2007 STEP I Q1
2009 STEP I Q1

... and so on. These are among my favourite questions, since they test whether you are methodical and persistent, two skills very necessary to succeed at university style maths. (They also happen to easy once you've practised a few of them, so if you get something similar in your paper you can pounce on it!)

Pretty much any pure question post 1999 in STEP I and II will be accessible with C1-C4. Leave the later exams for actual practise and study if/when you get an offer from a university requiring STEP.

Also use the Siklos booklets - great for practise at this level...

[.Username.]

(Original post by shamika)
The following require little A-Level maths at all:

1999 STEP I Q1
2003 STEP I Q2
2005 STEP I Q1
2006 STEP I Q1
2006 STEP I Q2 (hint: don't use calculus)
2007 STEP I Q1
2009 STEP I Q1

... and so on. These are among my favourite questions, since they test whether you are methodical and persistent, two skills very necessary to succeed at university style maths. (They also happen to easy once you've practised a few of them, so if you get something similar in your paper you can pounce on it!)

Pretty much any pure question post 1999 in STEP I and II will be accessible with C1-C4. Leave the later exams for actual practise and study if/when you get an offer from a university requiring STEP.

Also use the Siklos booklets - great for practise at this level...

From the siklos booklet 'advanced problems in mathematics' (not core); which of the questions are designed for STEP I and II

[Stray]

(Original post by .Username.)
From the siklos booklet 'advanced problems in mathematics' (not core); which of the questions are designed for STEP I and II

Not sure there's a reference for that - but I made a cross reference for the core booklet:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/...Wc&pli=1#gid=0

You could add the original-booklet cross reference to that (I used a combination of text-searching on my computer and then just flicking through and scanning them visually to find the original questions).

[.Username.]

(Original post by Stray)
Not sure there's a reference for that - but I made a cross reference for the core booklet:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/...Wc&pli=1#gid=0

You could add the original-booklet cross reference to that (I used a combination of text-searching on my computer and then just flicking through and scanning them visually to find the original questions).

Yeah ive printed the whole booklet apart from the III parts; i just need a reference for the 'advanced problems in mathematics' booklet