HOW TO STUDY PHYSICS 3(HOW TO APPROACH PHYSICS PROBLEMS)

General outline of how to approach a physics problem: 1. Read the problem.Look up the meanings of any terms that you do not know. Answer for yourself the question, "What's this about?" Make sure you understand what is being asked, what the question is. It is very helpful if you reexpress the problem in your own words or if you tell a friend what the problem is about. 2. Make a drawing of the problem.Even a poor drawing can be helpful, but for a truly good drawing include the following: a.Give a title that identifies the quantity you are seeking in the problem or that describes the problem. b.Label the drawing, including the parameters or variables on which the solution depends and that are given in the problem. Write down the given values of these parameters on the drawing. c.Label any unknown parameters that must be calculated along the way or obtained from the text in order to find the desired solution. d.Always give the units of measure for all quantities in the problem. If the drawing is a graph, be sure to give both the units and the scale of the axes. e.Include on the drawing information that is assumed and not given in the problem (such asg, the value of the acceleration due to gravity), and whether air resistance and friction are neglected. 3. Establish which general principlerelates the given parameters to the quantity that you are seeking. Usually your picture will suggest the correct techniques and formulas. At times it may be necessary to obtain further information from your textbook or notes before the proper formulas can be chosen. It often happens that further information is needed when the problem has a solution that must be calculated indirectly from the given information. If further information is needed or if intermediate quantities must be computed, it is here that they are often identified. 4. Draw a second picturethat identifies the coordinate system and origin that will be used in relating the data to the equations. In some situations this second picture may be a graph, free body diagram, or vector diagram rather than a picture of a physical situation. 5.Even an expert will oftenuse the concrete methodof working a problem. In this method you do the calculation using the given values from the start, so that the algebra gives numerical values at each intermediate step on the way to the final solution. The disadvantage of this method is that because of the large number of numerical calculations involved, mistakes are likely, and so you should take special care with significant figures. However this method has the advantage that you can see, at every step of the way, how the problem is progressing. It also is more direct and often makes it easier to locate a mistake if you do make one. 6.As an expert, you will more and moreuse the formal methodof working a problem. In this method, you calculate the solution by doing as much as possible without using specific numbers. In other words, do as much of the algebra as you can before substituting the specific given values of the data. In long and complicated problems terms may cancel or expressions simplify. Our advice: gain experience in problem solving by substituting the numbers when you start physics, but gradually adopt the formal approach as you become more confident; many people adopt a compromise approach where they substitute some values but retain others as symbols (for example, "g" for the acceleration due to gravity). 7. Criticize your solution:Ask yourself, "Does it make sense?" Compare your solution to any available examples or to previous problems you have done. Often you can check yourself by doing an approximate calculation. Many times a calculation error will result in an answer that is obviously wrong. Be sure to check the units of your solution to see that they are appropriate. This examination will develop your physical intuition about the correctness ofvery valuable for later problems and on exams.