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HowtoStudyPhysics
"HowtoStudyPhysics"byDavidR.HubinandCharlesRiddell,waspublishedbytheLearningSkillsCenter,
Univ.ofTexasatAustin,in1977.ThisrevisionisbyLawrenceC.Shepley,PhysicsDept.,Univ.ofTexas,
Austin,TX78712.(HegratefullyacknowledgestheadviceofLeslieDickie,JohnAbbottCollege,QuebecKal
Kallison,LearningSkillsCenter,UTAustinandJohnTrimble,EnglishDepartment,UTAustin.)

You,likemanystudents,mayviewcollegelevelphysicsasdifficult.You,againlikemanystudents,mayseem
overwhelmedbynewtermsandequations.Youmaynothavehadextensiveexperiencewithproblemsolving
andmaygetlostwhentryingtoapplyinformationfromyourtextbookandclassestoanactualphysicsproblem.
Wehopethispamphletwillhelp!

It'sdesignedtohelpyoustayoutofthedifficultiesthatcomewhenyouthinksmallandgettooinvolvedin
memorizingformulasorotherspecificdetailswithoutunderstandingtheunderlyingprinciples.Itwillguideyou
inunderstandinghowtoapplyspecificknowledgetotheproblems,howtostart,howtoseekhelp,howtocheck
youranswer.Inshort,itwillhelpyoudevelopthestudyskillsthatareimportantnotjustinphysicsbutinallof
yourcourses.

Contents
GettinganOverview
EffectiveParticipationinaPhysicsClass
ReadingYourPhysicsTextbook
ProblemSolvinginPhysics
ExamplesoftheApplicationoftheProblemSolvingPrinciples
EffectiveTestPreparation
WeeklyFlowChartforStudyingPhysics
Tips

GettinganOverview

It'simportanttorecognizethatphysicsisaproblemsolvingdiscipline.Yourphysicsteacherwillstressmajor
themesandprinciples,andonemajorgoalisthatyou,thestudent,willbeabletoapplytheseprinciplesto
understandandsolveproblems.Youshouldfocusonthisfact,thatinaphysicscourse,youareexpectedto
solveproblems.

Anoverviewofyourcoursecanhelpyouorganizeyoureffortsandincreaseyourefficiency.Tounderstandand
retaindataorformulas,youshouldseetheunderlyingprinciplesandconnectingthemes.Itisalmostinevitable
thatyouwillsometimesforgetaformula,andanunderstandingoftheunderlyingprinciplecanhelpyou
generatetheformulaforyourself.

Takethesestepstogettinganoverviewearlyinthetermsothatallsubsequentmaterialcanbeintegratedinto
youroverview:

1.Examinethecourseoutline(firstdayhandoutorsyllabus)carefully,andreadtheofficialdescriptionof
thecourseintheUniversityCatalog.Lookforunderlyingthemesorapatternonwhichthecourseis
developedandhowthiscoursefitsinwithyourothercourses.

2.Previewthetextbook:
A.Readtheintroductionandtableofcontents.
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B.Readanynotestothestudent(orteacher)thatareincludedandthepreface.
C.Checkthecourseoutlinetoseewhatchaptersareassignedandwhichareomitted.Iftheyarenot
assignedinthesameorderasinthetableofcontents,canyouseeareasonforyourteacher's
decisiontoaltertheorderofpresentation?

3.Asyoupreviewthecoursefromthisperspectiveearlyintheterm,lookforimportantthemesand
principles.Glanceatsomeoftheproblems.Howareimportantthemesillustratedintheseproblems?

EffectiveParticipationinaPhysicsClass
It'simportantthatyoubewellpreparedforclassinordertouseitspotentialfullyforintegratingthecourse
material.Topreparefortheclass,youshoulddothefollowing:

Priortoeachclass:

1.Checkthecourseoutlineorreadingassignmenttoseewhatwillbecovered.Preparebybriefly
previewingthesectionsofthetextbookthatapplytothesubjectstobecovered.Thispreviewwill
improveyourabilitytofollowtheclass,foryouwillhaveseenthenewterminologyandwillrecognize
signpoststhatwillhelpintegratetheclassesintoanoverallpicture.

2.Readtheintroductionandthesummaryoftherelevantchapterandlookatthesectionheadingsand
subheadings.Trytoformulatequestionsinyourmindaboutthesubjectstobecovered.Thisquestion
formulatinghelpsyoumanipulateandthereforebetterunderstandthematerial.

3.Examinethedrawingsandpictures.Trytodeterminewhatprinciplestheyillustrate.

4.Makenotesofnewwords,newunitsofmeasure,statementsofgenerallaws,andothernewconcepts.

5.Donotunderlineorhighlightthetext,sinceyoudonotyetknowwhatwillbeemphasizedbythe
instructor.

6.Rightbeforethebeginningofclass,checkyournotesfromthelastclass.Readingyournoteswillprepare
youtolistentothenewphysicsclassaspartofanintegratedcourseandwillhelpyoutoseethebroad
developmentofthemes.

Duringclass:

Cometotheclassontimeandstaytilltheveryend.Oftenteachersgivehelpfulhintsinthefirstand
lastminutesofthelecture.Unfortunately,thesetimesarewhenalotofpeoplearenotlistening.

1.Takegoodnotes.It'shelpfultodrawupasetofabbreviationsandusethemconsistentlyintakingnotes.
Keepalistofthemforlaterreference.Leaveamplemarginsforlatercommentsandforquestionsorwrite
ononlyonesidesothatyoucanusetheoppositesideforcommentsandquestions(seeAfterClass,
below).

2.Whenyoucopydrawings,completenessisworthmorethancarefulartwork.Youshouldnotonlycopy
whatisontheboardbutalsorecordimportantpointsthattheteachermakesorallyaboutthediagram.

3.Ifyougetbehindinyournotetaking,leaveaspaceinyournotesandgoon.Youcanfillinyournotes
laterwiththehelpofaclassmateoryourtextbook.(Note:TheLearningSkillsCentercangiveyou
additionalinformationonnotetaking.)

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4.Askquestions.Don'tbeembarrassedtoaskyourteacherquestions.Manyteachersdependonfeedback
fromstudentstohelpthemsetaproperpacefortheclass.Andofcourseitcanhappenthattheteacher
doesnotexplainastepheorshetakes,orevenmakesamistakewhenwritingsomethingontheboard.

Afterclass:

1.Immediatelyafterclass,orassoonaspossible,reviewandedityournotes.Youneednotrewritethem.
Rather,youshouldlookforimportantideasandrelationshipsamongmajortopics.Summarizetheseinthe
marginorontheoppositesideifyou'vetakennotesonlyononeside,andatthistimeyoumaywantto
addanoutlinetoyournotes.Also,thiswouldbeagoodtimetointegratenotesfromyourtextbookinto
yourlecturenotesthenyouwillhaveonesetofintegratednotestostudyby.

2.Asyoureviewyournotes,certainquestionsmaycometomind.Leavespaceforrecordingquestions,and
theneitherasktheteacherorevenbetter,trytoanswerthesequestionsforyourselfwithyourfriendsand
withthehelpofthetext.

ReadingYourPhysicsTextbook

Readingthetextandsolvinghomeworkproblemsisacycle:Questionsleadtoanswersthatleadbacktomore
questions.Anentirechapterwilloftenbedevotedtotheconsequencesofasinglebasicprinciple.Youshould
lookforthesebasicprinciples.TheseLawsofNaturegiveordertothephysicists'viewoftheuniverse.
Moreover,nearlyalloftheproblemsthatyouwillbefacedwithinaphysicscoursecanbeanalyzedbymeans
ofoneormoreoftheselaws.

Whenlookingforrelationshipsamongtopics,youmaynotethatinmanyinstancesaspecificproblemisfirst
analyzedingreatdetail.Thenthesettingoftheproblemisgeneralizedintomoreabstractresults.Whensuch
generalizationsaremade,youshouldreferbacktothecasethatwaspreviouslycitedandmakesurethatyou
understandhowthegeneraltheoryappliestothespecificproblem.Thenseeifyoucanthinkofotherproblems
towhichthatgeneralprincipleapplies.Somesuggestionsforyourphysicsreading:

1.Makeuseofthepreviewthatyoudidpriortotheclass.Again,quicklylookatthemajorpointsofthe
chapter.Thinkbacktothepointsstressedinclassandanyquestionsyoumighthavewrittendown.

2.Readthehomeworkproblemsfirst.Ifspecifichomeworkproblemshavenotyetbeenassigned,select
severalandlooktheseover.Criticallyassesswhatprinciplesseemtobemostsignificantintheassigned
chapter.Baseduponyourbriefreviewoftheclassandyourexaminationoftheproblems,trytogenerate
questionsinyourmindthatyouwantthechaptertoanswer.

3.Readactivelywithquestionsinmind.Apassiveapproachtoreadingphysicswastesyourtime.Readwith
apencilandpaperbesidethebooktojotdownquestionsandnotes.Ifyoufindthatyouarenotreading
actively,onceagaintakealookattheproblemsandthelecturenotes.Readtolearn,nottocovermaterial.

4.Stopperiodicallyandpointedlyrecallthematerialthatyouhaveread.Itisagoodideatorepeatmaterial
aloudandespeciallytoaddnotesfromthetextbookintothemarginsofyourclassnotes.

5.Duringyourreadingyouwillnoticesections,equations,orideasthatapplydirectlytoassignedproblems.
Afteryouhavereadsuchasection,stopandanalyzeitsapplicationtoahomeworkproblem.The
interplayofreadingandproblemsolvingispartofthecycleofquestion>answer>question.Ithelps
yougaininsightsthatarenotpossiblebyreadingalone,evencarefulreadingalone.Passivereadingis
simplyfollowingthechainofthoughtinthetext.Activereadingalsoinvolvesexploringthepossibilities
ofwhatisbeingread.Byactivelycombiningthequestionsthatareinherentinproblemsolvingwithyour

reading,youenhancebothyourconcentrationwhilereadingandyourabilitytorecallandtoapplythe
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reading,youenhancebothyourconcentrationwhilereadingandyourabilitytorecallandtoapplythe
material.

ProblemSolvinginPhysics
Youmaynowbelikemanystudentsanoviceproblemsolver.Thegoalofthissectionistohelpyoubecomean
expertproblemsolver.Effective,expertproblemsolvinginvolvesansweringfivequestions:

What'stheproblemabout?

WhatamIaskedtofind?

WhatinformationamItouse?Whatprinciplesapply?

WhatdoIknowaboutsimilarsituations?

HowcanIgoaboutapplyingtheinformationtosolvetheproblem?

Doesmysolutionmakesense?

You,theexpert,willdecide,"thisisanenergyproblem,"or,"thisisaNewton2problem."Anoviceismore
likelytodecide,"thisisapulleyproblem,"or,"thisisabaseballproblem."Thenoviceconcentratesonthe
surfacefeaturesoftheproblemwhileyouconcentrateontheunderlyingprinciple.You,anexpertproblem
solver,willanswerthesequestions,playaround(briefly)withtheproblem,andmakedrawingsandsketches
(eitherinyourmind,orevenbetter,onpaper)beforewritingdownformulasandplugginginnumbers.Anovice
problemsolver,ontheotherhand,willtrytowritedownequationsandpluginnumbersassoonaspossible.A
novicewillmakemanymoremistakesthanyouwillwhenyoubecomeanexpert.

Inaphysicscourseit'simportanttorememberacoupleofthingsaboutphysicistsandphysicsprofessors:

Aphysicistseeksthoseproblemsthatcanbemodeledorrepresentedbyapictureordiagram.Almost
anyproblemyouencounterinaphysicscoursecanbedescribedwithadrawing.Suchadrawingoften
containsorsuggeststhesolutiontotheproblem.

Aphysicistseekstofindunifyingprinciplesthatcanbeexpressedmathematicallyandthatcanbe
appliedtobroadclassesofphysicalsituations.Yourphysicstextbookcontainsmanyspecificformulas,
butyoumustunderstandthebroaderLawsofNatureinordertograspthegeneraloverviewofphysics.
Thisbroadunderstandingisvitalifyouaretosolveproblemsthatmayincludeseveraldifferentprinciples
andthatmayuseseveraldifferentformulas.Virtuallyallspecificformulasinphysicsarecombinationsof
basiclaws.

Generaloutlineofhowtoapproachaphysicsproblem:

1.Readtheproblem.Lookupthemeaningsofanytermsthatyoudonotknow.Answerforyourselfthe
question,"What'sthisabout?"Makesureyouunderstandwhatisbeingasked,whatthequestionis.Itis
veryhelpfulifyoureexpresstheprobleminyourownwordsorifyoutellafriendwhattheproblemis
about.

2.Makeadrawingoftheproblem.Evenapoordrawingcanbehelpful,butforatrulygooddrawinginclude
thefollowing:

A.Giveatitlethatidentifiesthequantityyouareseekingintheproblemorthatdescribestheproblem.

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B.Labelthedrawing,includingtheparametersorvariablesonwhichthesolutiondependsandthatare
givenintheproblem.Writedownthegivenvaluesoftheseparametersonthedrawing.

C.Labelanyunknownparametersthatmustbecalculatedalongthewayorobtainedfromthetextin
ordertofindthedesiredsolution.

D.Alwaysgivetheunitsofmeasureforallquantitiesintheproblem.Ifthedrawingisagraph,be
suretogiveboththeunitsandthescaleoftheaxes.

E.Includeonthedrawinginformationthatisassumedandnotgivenintheproblem(suchasg,the
valueoftheaccelerationduetogravity),andwhetherairresistanceandfrictionareneglected.

3.Establishwhichgeneralprinciplerelatesthegivenparameterstothequantitythatyouareseeking.
Usuallyyourpicturewillsuggestthecorrecttechniquesandformulas.Attimesitmaybenecessaryto
obtainfurtherinformationfromyourtextbookornotesbeforetheproperformulascanbechosen.Itoften
happensthatfurtherinformationisneededwhentheproblemhasasolutionthatmustbecalculated
indirectlyfromthegiveninformation.Iffurtherinformationisneededorifintermediatequantitiesmust
becomputed,itisherethattheyareoftenidentified.

4.Drawasecondpicturethatidentifiesthecoordinatesystemandoriginthatwillbeusedinrelatingthe
datatotheequations.Insomesituationsthissecondpicturemaybeagraph,freebodydiagram,orvector
diagramratherthanapictureofaphysicalsituation.

5.Evenanexpertwilloftenusetheconcretemethodofworkingaproblem.Inthismethodyoudothe
calculationusingthegivenvaluesfromthestart,sothatthealgebragivesnumericalvaluesateach
intermediatesteponthewaytothefinalsolution.Thedisadvantageofthismethodisthatbecauseofthe
largenumberofnumericalcalculationsinvolved,mistakesarelikely,andsoyoushouldtakespecialcare
withsignificantfigures.Howeverthismethodhastheadvantagethatyoucansee,ateverystepofthe
way,howtheproblemisprogressing.Italsoismoredirectandoftenmakesiteasiertolocateamistakeif
youdomakeone.

6.Asanexpert,youwillmoreandmoreusetheformalmethodofworkingaproblem.Inthismethod,you
calculatethesolutionbydoingasmuchaspossiblewithoutusingspecificnumbers.Inotherwords,doas
muchofthealgebraasyoucanbeforesubstitutingthespecificgivenvaluesofthedata.Inlongand
complicatedproblemstermsmaycancelorexpressionssimplify.Ouradvice:gainexperienceinproblem
solvingbysubstitutingthenumberswhenyoustartphysics,butgraduallyadopttheformalapproachas
youbecomemoreconfidentmanypeopleadoptacompromiseapproachwheretheysubstitutesome
valuesbutretainothersassymbols(forexample,"g"fortheaccelerationduetogravity).

7.Criticizeyoursolution:Askyourself,"Doesitmakesense?"Compareyoursolutiontoanyavailable
examplesortopreviousproblemsyouhavedone.Oftenyoucancheckyourselfbydoinganapproximate
calculation.Manytimesacalculationerrorwillresultinananswerthatisobviouslywrong.Besureto
checktheunitsofyoursolutiontoseethattheyareappropriate.Thisexaminationwilldevelopyour
physicalintuitionaboutthecorrectnessofsolutions,andthisintuitionwillbeveryvaluableforlater
problemsandonexams.

Animportantthingtorememberinworkingphysicsproblemsisthatbyshowingallofyourworkyou
canmuchmoreeasilylocateandcorrectmistakes.Youwillalsofinditeasiertoreadtheproblemswhen
youprepareforexamsifyoushowallyourwork.

8.Inanexamination,youmayhavetodoproblemsunderastricttimelimitation.Therefore,whenyouare
finishedwithahomeworkproblem,practicedoingitagainfaster,inordertobuildupyourspeedandyour
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confidence.

Whenyouhavecompletedaproblem,youshouldbeable,atsomelatertime,toreadthesolutionandto
understanditwithoutreferringtothetext.Youshouldthereforewriteuptheproblemsoastoincludea
descriptionofwhatiswanted,theprincipleyouhaveapplied,andthestepsyouhavetaken.If,whenyouread
yourownanswertotheproblem,youcometoastepthatyoudonotunderstand,thenyouhaveeitheromitteda
stepthatisnecessarytothelogicaldevelopmentofthesolution,oryouneedtoputdownmoreextensivenotes
inyourwriteuptoremindyouofthereasonsforeachstep.

Ittakesmoretimetowritecarefulandcompletesolutionstohomeworkproblems.Writingdownwhatyouare
doingandthinkingslowsyoudown,butmoreimportantitmakesyoubehavemorelikeanexpert.Youwillbe
wellpaidbackbytheassurancethatyouarenotoverlookingessentialinformation.Thesecarefulwriteupswill
provideexcellentreviewmaterialforexampreparation.

ExamplesoftheApplicationoftheProblemSolvingPrinciples

SAMPLEPROBLEM#1:

Thisproblemisstatedandthesolutionwrittendownasyouwouldworkitoutforhomework.

In1947BobFeller,formerClevelandpitcher,threwabaseballacrosstheplateat98.6mphor44.1
m/s.Formanyyearsthiswasthefastestpitchevermeasured.IfBobhadthrownthepitchstraight
up,howhighwouldithavegone?

1.Whatdoestheproblemaskfor,andwhatisgiven?Answer:Thespeedofthebaseballisgiven,andwhat
iswantedistheheightthattheballwouldreachifitwerethrownstraightupwiththegiveninitialspeed.
Youshoulddoublecheckthatwhoeverwrotetheproblemcorrectlycalculatedthat98.6miles/hrisequal
to44.1m/s.Youshouldstateexplicitly,inwords,thatyouwillusethe44.1m/sfigureandthatyouwill
assumethebaseballisthrownfromaninitialheightofzero(groundlevel).Youshouldalsostateexplicitly
whatvalueofgyouwilluse,forexample,g=9.81m/s2.Youshouldalsostatethatyouassumethatair
resistancecanbeneglected.Sinceyoudon'tknowthemassofthebaseball,saythatyoudon't(youwon't
needit,anyway).

2.Makeadrawing:

3.Thegeneralprinciplestobeappliedherearethoseofuniformlyacceleratedmotion.Inthiscase,theinitial
velocityvodecreaseslinearlyintimebecauseofthegravitationalacceleration.Themaximumheightym
occursatthetimetmwhenthevelocityreacheszero.Theaveragevelocityduringfromt=0tot=tmis

theaverageoftheinitialvelocityv=v andthefinalvelocityv=0,orhalftheinitialvelocity.
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theaverageoftheinitialvelocityv=voandthefinalvelocityv=0,orhalftheinitialvelocity.


4.Makeaseconddrawing.Inthiscase,tryagraphofvelocityasafunctionoftime:

Noticethatthegraphisfairlyaccurate:Youcanapproximatethevalueofgas10m/s2,sothatthevelocity
decreasestozeroinabout4.5s.Therefore,evenbeforeyouuseyourcalculator,youhaveagoodideaof
aboutthevalueoftm.

5.Theconcretemethodcannowbeapplied:Aninitialvelocityof44.1m/swilldecreaseattherateof9.81
m/s2tozeroinatimetmgivenby

tm=44.1/9.81=4.4954s.

Duringthattime,theaveragevelocityisvav=44.1/2=22.05m/s.Thereforetheheightisgivenby

ym=vavtm=99.12=99.1m.

Noticethatforall"internal"calculations,morethanthecorrectnumberofsignificantfigureswerekept
onlywhenthefinalanswerwasobtainedwasitputintothecorrectnumberofsignificantfigures,inthis
casethree.

6.Todothisprobleminaformalmethod,usetheformulafordistanceyasafunctionoftiftheacceleration
aisconstant.Donotsubstitutenumbers,butworkonlywithsymbolsuntiltheveryend:

y=yo+vot+at2/2,

whereyo=0istheinitialposition,vo=44.1m/sistheinitialvelocity,anda=g=9.81m/s2isthe
constantacceleration.However,donotusethenumericalfiguresatthispointinthecalculation.The
maximumvalueofyiswhenitsderivativeiszerothetimetmofzeroderivativeisgivenby:

dy/dt=vo+atm=0>tm=vo/a.

Themaximumheightymisgivenbyputtingthisvalueoftmintotheequationfory:

ym=yo+vo(vo/a)+a(vo/a)2/2=yovo2/2a.

Nowsubstitute:yo=0,vo=44.1,a=9.81.Theresultis

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ym=0+0.5(44.1)2/9.81=99.1m.

7.Lookoverthisproblemandaskyourselfiftheanswermakessense.Afterall,throwingaballalmost100
mintheairisbasicallyimpossibleinpractice,butBobFellerdidhaveaveryfastfastballpitch!

Thereisanothermatter:Ifthissameproblemhadbeengiveninachapterdealingwithconservationof
energy,youshouldnotsolveitasoutlinedabove.Instead,youshouldcalculatewhattheinitialandfinal
kineticenergyKEandpotentialenergyPEareinordertofindthetotalenergy.Here,theinitialPEiszero,
andtheinitialKEismvo2/2.ThefinalPEismgymandthefinalKEiszero.EquatetheinitialKEtothe
finalPEtoseethattheunknownmassmcancelsfrombothsidesoftheequation.Youcanthensolvefor
ym,andofcourseyouwillgetthesameanswerasbeforebutinamoresophisticatedmanner.

8.Toprepareforanexam,lookoverthisproblemandaskyourselfhowyoucansolveitasquicklyas
possible.Youmaybemorecomfortablewiththeconcreteapproachorwiththeformalapproachpractice
willtell.Onanactualexam,youmightnothavetimeforacompletedrawingoracompletelistingof
principles.Byworkingthisproblemacoupleoftimes,evenafteryou'vegottentheansweronce,youwill
becomeveryfamiliarwithit.Evenbetter,explaintheproblemtoafriendofyours,andthatwayyou
reallywillbeanexpert!

SAMPLEPROBLEM#2:

Again,thisproblemisstatedandthesolutionwrittendownasyouwouldworkitoutforhomework.Asin
SampleProblem#1,wegothroughtheeightstepsofthegeneraloutline.

Aonekilogramblockrestsonaplaneinclinedat27otothehorizontal.Thecoefficientoffriction
betweentheblockandtheplaneis0.19.Findtheaccelerationoftheblockdowntheplane.

1.Theproblemasksfortheacceleration,notthepositionoftheblocknorhowlongittakestogodownthe
planenoranythingelse.Nomentionismadeofthedifferencebetweenstaticorkineticcoefficientsof
friction,soassumetheyarethesame.Themassisgiven,butyouwilleventuallyfindthatitdoesn'tmatter
whatthemassis.(Ifthemasshadnotbeengiven,thatwouldbeanindicationthatitdoesn'tmatter,but
eveninthatcaseyoumayfinditeasiertoassumeavalueforthemassinordertoguideyourthoughtsas
youdotheproblem.)

2.Hereisthefirstpicture.Notethattheangleislabeled ,andthecoefficientoffrictionislabeled .In
addition,theuseofmforthemassanda||fortheaccelerationdowntheplanearedefinedinthepicture.

3.Therearetwogeneralprinciplesthatapplyhere.ThefirstisNewton'sSecondLaw:

F=ma,

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whereFisthenetforce,avector,andaisacceleration,anothervectorthetwovectorsareinthesame
direction.Themassmwilleventuallybefoundnottomakeanydifference,andinthatcase,youmightbe
temptedtowritethislawasa=F/m,sinceaiswhatyouwanttofind.However,theeasiestwayto
rememberNewton'sSecondLawisF=ma,andsothatisthelawtoworkwith.

Thesecondprincipleisthatthefrictionalforceisproportionaltothenormalforce(thecomponentofthe
forceontheblockduetotheplanethatisperpendiculartotheplane).Thefrictionalforceisalongthe
planeandalwaysopposesthemotion.Sincetheblockisinitiallyatrestbutwillacceleratedownthe
plane,thefrictionalforcewillbeupalongtheplane.Thecoefficientoffriction,whichisusedinthis
proportionalityrelation,is .

4.Itisnowtimetodrawthesecondpicture.Ithelpstoredrawthefirstpictureandaddinformationtoit.In
thiscaseavectordiagramisdrawnandvariousforcesaredefined.

Notethatinthevectordiagram,theblockhasbeenreplacedbyadotatthecenterofthevectors.The
relevantforcesaredrawnin(allexceptthenetforce).Eventhevalueassumedforthegravitational
accelerationhasbeenincluded.Someefforthasbeenmadetodrawthemtoscale:Thenormalforceis
drawnequalinmagnitudeandoppositeindirectiontothecomponentofthegravityforcethatis
perpendiculartotheplane.Also,thefrictionforcehasbeendrawninparalleltotheplaneandopposing
themotionithasbeendrawninsmallerthanthenormalforce.Theanglesofthenormalandparallel
forceshavebeencarefullydrawninrelationtotheinclinedplane.Thissubdrawinghasatitleandlabels,
asalldrawingsshould.

5.Wewilldothisproblemusingtheformalapproach,leavingtheconcretemethodforacheck(seebelow).

6.Nowforcalculationusingtheformalapproach,whereyouworkwithalgebraandsymbolsratherthan
withnumbers.Firststateinwordswhatyouaredoing,andthenwritedowntheequation:

Magnitudeofgravityforce=weight=mg.

Resolvegravityforceintonormalcomponentandparallelcomponentwhosemagnitudesare:

FG||=mgsin andFGN=mgcos .

Themagnitudeofthenormalforceduetotheplaneisequalinmagnitude(butthedirectionis
opposite)tothemagnitudeofthenormalcomponentofthegravityforce:

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FN=mgcos .

Thefrictionalforceopposesthemotion,anditsmagnitudeisequaltothecoefficientoffriction
timesthenormalplaneforce:

Ff= mgcos .

Thenetforce(whichisalongtheplane)isthedifferencebetweentheparallelcomponentofthe
gravitationalforceandthefrictionforceitsmagnitudeis:

F=mgsin mgcos .

Theaccelerationisnetforceovermass:

a||=gsin gcos =g(sin cos ).

Thenumericalansweris(giventotwosignificantfiguressincethegivennumbershavetwo):

a=(9.8m/s2)(sin27o0.19cos27o)=(9.8)(0.4540.19x0.891)=2.79=2.8m/s2.

7.Whenyoulookoverthisanswertoseeifitmakessense,trydoingtheproblembysubstitutingnumbersin
ateachstep(theconcreteapproach).Theweightofakilogram,forexampleis9.8N.Thenormal
(perpendiculartotheplane)componentofthegravitationalforceis9.8timescos27oor8.73N.This
makessense,foriftheanglewereverysmall,thenormalcomponentofthegravitationalforcewouldbe
almostequalto9.8itself.Noticethatalthoughthefinalanswershouldbegiventotwosignificantfigures,
youshouldkeepthreeintheseintermediatecalculations.

Theparallelcomponentofthegravitationalforceis9.8sin27o=4.45N.Thenormalforceduetothe
planeisequalinmagnitudetothegravitationalnormalforce(butoppositeindirection),andsothe
frictionalforceis0.19times8.73or1.66N.Thenetforceisdowntheplaneandequaltothedifference
4.451.66=2.79N.Dividethisvalueby1kgtogettheacceleration2.79m/s2(whichisroundedoffto
2.8m/s2).

Againexamineyoursolution.Itsaysthattheblockdoesacceleratedowntheplanebecausethefinal
answerispositive.Theaccelerationislessthang,againareasonableresult.Noticethatiftheanglewere
morethan27o,thenitssinewouldbelargeranditscosinesmaller,sotheaccelerationwouldbegreater.If
theanglewerelessthan27othentheoppositewouldbetrue,andtheacceleration,ascalculatedabove,
couldbecomenegative.Butanegativevalueforaccelerationwouldbewrong,becausethatwouldsaythat
theblockwouldaccelerateuptheplanebecausethefrictionalforcedominates,andthatisimpossible.
Instead,ifthecalculationhadproducedanegativevaluefora,youwouldhavehadtochangethesolution
toa=0,meaningthatthefrictionalforcewasenoughtopreventsliding.

8.Nowanticipatehowyou'ddothisproblemonanexam.Istheconcreteapproachfasterandeasierforyou?
Orwouldyoubemorecomfortableusingtheformalapproachonanexam?Itisagoodideatopractice
doingthisproblemwhenyoustudyforanexam,ifyouthinkasimilarproblemwillbeasked.

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EffectiveTestPreparation

Ifyouhavefollowedanactiveapproachtostudysimilartotheonesuggestedinthishandout,yourpreparation
forexamswillnotbeoverlydifficult.Ifyouhaven'tbeenveryactiveinstudying,yourpreparationwillbe
somewhatharder,butthesameprinciplesstillapply.Alwaysremember:Physicscourses,andthereforephysics
exams,involveproblemsolving.Hence,yourapproachtostudyingforexamsshouldstressproblemsolving.

Herearesomeprinciples:

Intheweekpriortotheexam,followthethreestepsbelow.Thesestepsshouldgiveyouareasonably
goodideaofwhathasbeenstressedandonwhatyoucanexpecttobetested.

Reviewyournotesandrecheckthecourseoutline.Yourgoalatthispointistomakesureyouknow
whathasbeenemphasized.

Rereadyoursolutionstothehomeworkproblems.Rememberthatthesesolutions,ifcomplete,will
noteunderlyingprinciplesorlaws.

Reviewtheassignedchapters.Onceagain,yourpurposeinthisearlystageofexampreparationis
tomakesureyouknowwhattopicsorprincipleshavebeenemphasized.

Fromthisrapidoverview,generatealistofthemes,principles,andtypesofproblemsthatyouexpectto
becovered.Ifsamplesofpreviousexamsareavailable,lookthemover,also,butdonotassumethatonly
previoustypesofproblemswillbeincluded.Itdefinitelyhelpstoworkwithothersatthisstage.

Reviewactively.Don'tbesatisfiedwithsimplerecognitionofaprinciple.Aimforactualknowledgethat
youwillbeabletorecallandtouseinatestsituation.Trytolookatallthepossiblewaysthataprinciple
canbeapplied.Again,ithelpstoworkwithothersandtoexplainthingstoothers(andhavethemexplain
thingstoyou).

Forexample:Ifvelocityandaccelerationprincipleshavebeenemphasizedinthecourse,lookoverallof
yourhomeworkproblemstoseeiftheyillustratetheseprinciples,evenpartially.Thenifyoualsocan
anticipateanemphasisonfrictionandinertia,onceagainreviewallofyourhomeworkproblemstoseeif
theyillustratethoseprinciples.

Effectiveexaminationpreparationinvolvesaninteractionamonghomeworkproblems,theclasses,your
notesandthetext.Reviewactively,includingselftestsinwhichyoucreateyourownproblemswhich
involveacombinationofprinciples.Youneedtobesurethatyoucanworkproblemswithoutreferringto
yournotesortothetextbook.Practicedoingproblemsusingboththeconcreteandtheformalapproaches,
toseewhichyouaremorecomfortablewith.

Rememberthatexamswillincludeavarietyofdifferentproblems.Youwanttolookbackonanexamand
say,"Iknowhowtodofrictionproblemssowell,thateventhoughtheywereaskedinaweirdway,I
couldrecognizethemandsolvethem."

WeeklyFlowChartforStudyingPhysics

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Tips
Thesetipsarebasedonalist"17TipsthatUTSeniorsWishThey'dKnownasFreshmen"byDr.JohnTrimble,a
professorintheEnglishDepartment.HeisamemberofTheUniversityofTexas'sAcademyofDistinguished
Professors.Thesetipshavebeenadaptedtofitphysicscourses,buttheyaregoodtipsforanyuniversitystudent.
Ihaveabbreviatedmostofthesetipsbuthavenotomittedany.Youcanfindthecompleteversionatthe
LearningSkillsCenter(andelsewhere).

1.Gettoknowyourprofessor.Gotohisorherofficehoursearlyinthesemesterandoften.Gettoknow
yourTAs.Gototheirofficehoursearlyinthesemesterandoften.UTAustinhasfacultyandgraduate
studentswhoareamongthebestintheworldgettoknowthem.

2.Assoonasyoucan,tradenamesandphonenumberswithatleasttwoclassmates.Don'tasktheprofessor
whatyoumissedifyouhappentomissclassaskyourclassmates.

3.Makesureyouareenrolledinthecourseyouthinkyouareenrolledin.Correctanyenrollmentmistakes
assoonasyoucan.

4.Readandstudyyourcoursepolicystatement(thefirstdayhandoutorthesyllabus).Itisalegalcontract!

5.Buyanduseanappointmentbook.

6.Keepanotebookofunfamiliarwordsandphrases.Lookthemuporaskwhattheymean.Buyandusea
gooddictionary.

7.Ifyouhaven'tyetlearnedtouseacomputer,doso.Ifyoudon'thaveagoodcalculator,whichyouknow
howtouseeasily,buyoneandlearntouseit.Aparticularcalculatormayberequiredforclassbesure
yougettherightone.Studyitsmanualandpracticeusingituntilyoucandosoquicklyandaccurately.

8.Learntotouchtype.Ifyouhuntandpeck,youwillbeatadisadvantage.Learneitherthroughacomputer
programoratAustinCommunityCollege.

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9.Bringtwocalculatorstoeachexamoronecalculatorandextrabatteries.Bringyourtextbooktoeach
exam.Bringextrapapertoeachexam.Bringtwopencilsandtwopenstoeachexam.Bringtwoblue
booksifrequired.Askwhichoftheseyouareallowedtouse,butofcoursedon'tusetheitemsthataren't
allowed.

10.Gotoeachandeveryclasssession.Bepunctual.Lookprofessional.Don'tdisturbtheclassbytalking.But
doaskquestions!

11.Exerciseatleasteveryotherday.

12.Whenyouwritepapers,dosoinatleasttwoeditingstages,withafewhoursoradayortwobetween
drafts.Typeyourpapers.Whenyouwriteuphomeworkproblems,dosoneatlyandcarefully.Ifpossible,
askyourprofessor,TA,orthegraderforfeedbackbeforeyouturninthefinalversionofanassignment.

13.Understandthatyouarereinventingyourself.Youaredefiningwhatandwhoyouareforagoodmany
yearstocome(youmaywanttoreinventyourselflater,at30or40),sobecarefulabouthowyougoabout
it.

14.Hangoutwiththesmartest,moststudiouspeopleyoucanfind.Watchhowtheywork.Eventuallypeople
willbewatchingyouhelpthemindevelopinggoodstudyhabits.

15.Taketheteacher,notthecourse.Shopforthebestteachersbyaskingolderstudentswhotheyareandby
readingtheCourse/InstructorstudentevaluationsattheUGL'sReserveDesk.Trytomeetprospective
teachersbeforeenrollment.Keepa"BestTeachers/BestCourses"notebook.

16.Assumeresponsibilityforyourowneducation.Exerciseinitiative.Learntolovethewholeprocessof
education,notjusttheendproduct.

17.Dr.Trimble'ssevenreasonsforgoingtocollege:

Tomeetalotofinterestingpeople,someofwhomwillbecomelifelongfriends.

Togainanenlargedviewofanenlargedworld.

Tolearnbetterhowtolearn.(Mostofwhatyoulaterlearn,you'llteachyourself.)

Toreinventyourselfthatis,todiscoverandexploremoreofyourselfthanyounormallycouldat
home.

Toacquireatleastadilettante'sknowledgeaboutalotofdifferentthings,sincebeinginformed
beatsthehelloutofbeingignorant.

Tolearnhowtohandleadultresponsibilitieswhilestillenjoyingasemiprotectedenvironment.

Toidentifyandexplorecareeroptions.

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