/sci/ - Science & Math

>>11164469
any high lev physics.

pde aint that bad. what ya struggling on?

>>11164493
PDEs+complex analysis is a tough course. seriously. residues and contour integrals are notoriously tricky and then you need to compound that with a lot of memorization for heat equations with dirichlet+neumann+cauchy boundary conditions. so it requires good problem solving skills as well as some chem style memorization.

i admit it depends on the instructor a lot though. and this is basically a result of the fact that PDEs are so hard that often a skilled instructor can challenge you much more than a mediocre one.

even if you do a course in Jackson, the jackson stuff that requires residues and contour integrals gets dumbed down to basically crib-sheet tricks to skip over actually solving stuff. and that course is the filter course for big-brain physicists vs. average-brain wannabes

>>11164493
i dont know what i dont know, the professor is always 10 minutes late and doesnt post the notes online also

Physical chem

>>11164707
this one is brutal

>>11164469
Arithmetic (the real one).

>>11164729
pchem students usually resort to a lot of memorization. that is a skill but it doesn’t compare to the creativity required to find the kino contour you need to find a residue method solution

Conceptually, the hardest course I took was ODE III which was an intro course on differential equations where time could take any value in the complex numbers

everything

>Mfw I have a 64 in Calc 1
Should I just stop?

maths is the hardest

>>11164795
Nah, although it should be a wake up call if you want to go further. Better to suck now then to finish your degree and still suck.

>>11164469
gender studies, i keep failing for pointing out that there are biological factors in addition to environmental and cultural ones that should be considered. it's like i'm forced to lie just to get a pass.

>>11164515
>Residues and contour integrals are notoriously tricky

Are you retarded?

Residues and contour integrals in the complex plane have some of the most powerful theorems out there to make shit easy as fuck.

>>11164515
brainlet. this board is meant for people with iq's of at least 130.

>>11164814
based

>>11164795
How are you fucking it up this bad? Calc I is piss easy compared to pre-calc and even intermediate algebra.

Either you have attention deficiency problems or you're straight up not trying

Show up to your classes and pay attention (and actually use this advice for every class you take from now on)

>>11164796
based

>>11164795
>tfw i almost killed myself the one time i made a B in undergrad

Quantum physics for now

>>11164932
I was a retard in pre-Calc. The only reason I passed it was because the professor gave a lot more opportunities outside of tests to earn points. My current professor bases 70% percent of the grade on tests, and I got 49% percent on the first two. It wasn't until we got to differentials that it started making sense and I got 79 on the third test. I get decent homework scores though, but they hardly change my overall grade. I'm just retarded when it comes to tests.

>>11164469
i had an easy PDE class. Guy allowed notes too cause memorization was stupid. IDK how useful this will be, but here's this. I'm not good at TeX, so take what you will

https://anonfile.com/zbAbt2Ban2/Partial_Differential_Equations_pdf

>>11164469
Molecular cell biology. It's so much memorization and I'm a brainlet. I don't know what's wrong with me.

Introduction to Engineering

Object-Oriented Programming in Java

>>11165193
kek

Complex Analysis

>>11165021
I know this feel too well. It was my only b in undergrad and it was because I failed the final. Almost jumped off the top of the library.

>>11164469
Advanced Bayesian Modeling

I'm the same as most people. Math is my hardest subject to understand.

advanced organic chemistry because my spatial reasoning is shit and i don't "get" molecular geometry

>>11165341
>you should be able to solve this

Information theory is killing me

Everything became quite easy after I took differential geometry. Most difficult was (abstract) algebra I guess.

>>11164469
Unironically introduction to data structures in c++. The professor was particularly awful and there weren't enough TA's. At one point, a homework problem was poorly phrased so it required an algorithm 10x as complex, and i spent around 8 hours trying to solve it, just to have the professor change the assignment after the fact.

>>11164469

gender theory

>>11166027
Unironically yes because of all the lying to yourself and comprises you have to make with your conscience just to get the grade

>>11164469
Liberal arts.
They never define what they want, and I can't be fucked to start up my bullshit generator when there are better things to think about

>>11164469
I did geophysics, 2 of the most challenging courses i took were complex analysis and structural geology. Complex analysis was incredibly heavy on proofs and it was the first time ever doing proofs and it was a summer course, structural geology was just an extreme amount of memorization, pure blunt memorization which i disliked heavily due to the amount of material covered in the exams, the exams in structural geology were the most comprehensive exams i have ever taken, every subject material within the textbook was covered on those 2 exams, so one would practically have to memorize or either somehow someway gain access to previous exams to do average to great on the exam. I never once used a past exam in university and somehow i was able to procure a C- in complex analysis and an B- in structural geology, the average grade for structural geology was a C- and the average grade for complex analysis that summer was a C-, so i think i did pretty good given my honest academic record.

Ohh and the first time i took PDEs i got a D- and the second time i got a B+, in my case pdes really did depend on the professor, frenchman mathematicians are way better than russian mathematicians.

>>11165193
based

>>11164469
A module on quantum chaotic dynamics. Itnwas both conceptually and mathematically assblasting.

Weirdly enough, Intro biology 2. I'm really bad at taxonomy I guess.

>>11164469
very nice tits

Calculus on manifolds

>>11166164
Sounds fun as hell. Recently someone here argued chaotic dynamics and quantum mechanics were incompatible.

Probably general relativity. But also group theory is pretty hard. On the contrary, things like nuclear/subnuclear physics are probably a little easier mathematically, but this makes them less understandable to me, because it seems like things thrown there without a sense

p-point set topology

>>11166518
Why are you making her cry?????

>>11165247
>Almost
thats a shame

topology and measure theory

>>11165357
hey same fren

>>11165328
>Black masculinity
Wtf do you even do in that class, watch cuck porn?

>>11166271
OCC is a good school, ain't it?

Mine has to be 3-manifold topology that shit is nigh impossible

>>11164469
US History 1. The guy teaching was 72 years old and no matter how good of a correct answer you gave on the test it wasn't enough and he took points off. Dude was losing his mind.

as far as content goes....Statistics? I really didn't take hard classes.

Logic

Hated the class in community college and it was an extremely hard online course. Nothing compared to the difficulty even comparing my transfer to university.

>>11164469
Grad-level math class on unsupervised machine learning algorithms

>>11164469
P-chem and I’m most likely going to fail

>>11167466
study more

organ chemistry

>>11165328
this has to be bait

>>11165035
Don't blame it on the tests.

The differentials part of Calc I is the easy part of Calc I. I should know, I'm a TA of Calc 1.

Study more. Period. If you want to be successful, study 10x more. If you are getting 50% on tests, you have the time to study 10x as much as you are currently studying. Calc 1 is not hard. Put in the effort and stop complaining.

>>11165035
What is this % of grade I always hear about. Is it just something US exclusive? We just have one exam at the end of a course with a Pass/Fail. Any and all projects are simply assessed as Pass/Fail too, so if pass everything, you pass the course, if you fail something, you fail the course.

>>11167806
weighted average.

>>11167820
But then why would tests only be 70% of your grade? It seems really low, it should be like 95% or something. Also, doesn't that limit grading? Like if you want three components that you _have_ to pass, but the passing grade is below 2/3rds, then there is no way to do that.

>>11167832
It is at the discretion of the professor, right now I have a course that is 30 - 30 - 30 for the percentages of the 3 exams, and the last 10% is for other assignments/hw. Usually it is weighted around this unless the course has large projects as a component, then the completion of the project will take up some of the exam percentages, but it basically acts as another exam. I have another course that has 2 exams, 40 40 and the last 20% is a couple course projects.

Combinatorial Design (Design Theory.)

>>11164469
Electronics/electricals.
Have to take it for my mechanical engineering degree. Though I think it's mostly the fault of the lecturer.

Algebra 1
I'm not white

>>11168186
Same, I'm in struggling through pre algebra. I'll push through Calc 2 if I gotta though.

>>11168461
Do they offer pre algebra in college?

>>11164469
none of them were very hard. the hardest part of undergrad was making sure to do normal adult things like laundry and shopping.
t. math PhD student

>>11168496
this, i my mold would be 6yo and entering preschool if i didn't have to kill it when moving out of the dorm
rip Molly

>>11164469
Spaceflight Mechanics 2. Orbits in 3D are hard.

>>11164814
Literally me. I'm a white conservative male in a humanities department. All I can do is grit my teeth and bear it.

>>11168553
Wait a minute anon, did you just admit to committing murder?

>>11168676
i never said i killed it, just that i had to

Unironically topology

But mostly because my teacher was horrible and I'm not very good at geometric thinking generally.

>>11164707
Peopke in my uni are crying over pchem but they don't go to class, don't prepare for seminar/lab
No reading and too lazy to try to solve any problems that require math
If you actually take it seriousky it's not hard
Feel like people definition of an hard course is if I cannot pass without working it's hard

>>11168174
>teachers fault
not gonna make it.
competent teaching staff is a privilege, not a right

Quantum II because my prof was a supernova astro guy who cared jack shit about teaching.

Hardest intellectually to grasp was dif geo or numerical pdes

>>11168904
>topology
same, shit is so fucking confusing

>>11167278
Hi ryan

numerical methods

>>11168706
>I didn't kill it, but I had to kill it and its dead

Theoretical Philosophy

What's it like pursuing difficult degrees? I was never good at studying or focusing in school, but man I would like to go back and do something more with my life. Do you just dedicate every moment of free time to studying? How can I even get myself to that point? I think I have the capacity for it but actually doing it is another matter.

>>11169290
of course, could have been anyone, or it died on its own
you're not taking me to gitmo today, agent

>>11169403
>Do you just dedicate every moment of free time to studying?
yes and then some
>How can I even get myself to that point?
drugs, coffee any other stimulants

>>11165328
>Black Masculity?

>>11169499
Why did the child need to die?
Why did you need to kill it?

>>11169513
>Why did the child need to die?
apparently she was violating some hygiene standards or something and supposedly could have posed a health hazard
>Why did you need to kill it?
they told me to kill it and dispose of the evidence or i would have had to pay for "ruining" the room and a professional mold hitman

Smooth brain here: probably my first pre-algebra class. I fucked off in high school so i didn't know shit.

>>11169575
>fucked off in high school so i didn't know shit.
Same wish I didn't, didn't do anything with my time anyways, gaming was a mistake

>>11164469
Symbiotic Logic class. I still got an A on both midterms though but, the professor is a lax grader.

>>11164469
Real Analysis. That shit was high level man.

>>11170047
>middle school level math
>hard
lol

>>11170066
My friend said it was a good course too. And he's studying statistics at CMU now.

>>11170068
your friend had better be 8 years old, if you don't have 3 PhDs by the age of 14 your career in science is over

>>11170070
not even sure how he got into that PhD program desu, i looked at the other students and they're all extremely impressive. He's just a guy who gets good scores on his exams.

>>11170072
Unlike real science mathematics doesn't require you to have actual research results you just have to stall and ask for more funding.

physics 1 with calc. But i'm more scared of next semster physics 2 with calc. i'm not sure if the course is hard, or if the professor is trying to fuck us all blinded. the class highscore on the last test was a 68.

>>11170164
If most people are failing a test then the people who go to your college are stupid. If everyone is failing the test the professor is an incompetent asshole and you should file a formal complaint.

>>11169091
Is it Connor?

>>11164469
Calculus of variations, thankfully the professor didn't feel like writing exams so he cancelled them all, but since he's one of the top in the field all the homework was original content and there was zero help online.

Graduate course on Markov Processes.
It is somewhat intuitive some of the time but the technical details are really doing a number on me.

Taking a course on finite model theory and descriptive complexity theory this semester, and the exercises are killing me.
Just so many new ideas to me

>>11164469
In undergrad, nothing jumps to mind

The "gpa killer" >>11164707
Pchem wasn't too bad, but only the first term wasn't watered down.

In grad school probably the first statistical physics course. I jumped in without an undergrad in physics, so had to pick up the classical/quantum that I missed along the way. 2nd term is actually easier despite covering more difficult things (Renormalization group :0)

>>11164469
Molecular Biology.

Taught by "The Teacher From Hell." Believed in the so-called 'Brutal Reality' exam method (i.e. points subtracted for each wrong choice in multiple-choice questions that had, say, 7 or 8 detailed choices, with only 1-3 true. So, possible to get question 'right' but still lose points...).

Missed the final exam due to a scheduling conflict. Teacher was an ABSOLUTE asshole and refused to work with me in arranging another time to take exam. Said wait until next year to take it (course was only offered once a year). I said that wasn't possible. Got an incomplete -- which later turn into an F. Body-slammed my GPA.

All that stress for nothing...

>>11170564
i have to take model theory next semester im so nervous

>>11169504
>>How can I even get myself to that point?

>drugs
Yes. They're called Nootropics (pronounced "know-troh-pics"). I use them. They help a LOT. Some are just natural herbs, like Bacopa monnieri.

>coffee
Yes (but only in moderation).

>any other stimulants
"Any"? Not those addictive illegal kinds we often hear about. A big ''no" in that regard...

>>11164839
>thinking iq is a measurement of anything other than your ability to take standardized tests

lol enjoy your starbucks job with 6 figs of debt

I'm sure your big brain will impress all the karens into not calling out your smug bullshit to your manager

>>11172176
the multiple choice thing I've noticed is favored a lot by bio teachers, I think its to lower the cognitive burden of writing essay questions so students finish with time to spare to check answers but most people don't actually check answers and would learn more from the exams just from having to explain their thinking instead of being qued up to respond with a specific response. you should know though that missing finals is a huge red flag for most teachers and even if you contact them ahead of time it usually has to be at least a month or so in advance with proof to get away with a proctored make-up exam.

none because im not a retard and cheat on everything

>>11172288
Based Pajeet.

>>11164469
Matrix algebra. It was required, and I had to take it 3 times to get a passing grade.

>>11165982
change the assignment after the fact.
Good practice for the real world.

>>11172285
>...contact them ahead of time it usually has to be at least a month or so in advance...

As I recall, finals scheduling wasn't known until a week before they started. There was a conflict, and he refused to work with me. In fact, he was sorely lacking in interpersonal skills, and it seemed holding office hours was a waste of time for him, as he was a 'lab rat', of sorts, always running some important research experiment, and couldn't be bothered with student concerns (I've found that a lot of PhDs are like that: passionate about research, but teaching 'in passing'...).

But, thanks for your input. (BTW, this happened ~30 years ago, so I just look back on it now like 'water under the bridge'...)

Honors independent research. I want to fucking die. 30+ hours are spent in that lab weekly fuck my ass.

>>11172350
What was your ending GPA and what do you do now? I'm bound to make a C in molecular biology. It will be my first C and it's making me pretty demoralized.

>>1117235
well there was probably a lot less sympathy for students before the explosion in undergraduate population. I don't think I would have taken that well if it happened to me. What are you doing on 4chan though

>>11170368
After four years of math and physics courses, calculus of variations was just more euler-lagrange

>>11172358
>What was your ending GPA and what do you do now? I'm bound to make a C in molecular biology. It will be my first C and it's making me pretty demoralized.

I was a double major in Biology and Computer Science as prep for graduate studies in something called Bioinformatics (quantitative genetic analysis). I ended up taking a break from college and working for a while before returning to finish.

So, let's just say GPA got hit 'substantially' and I don't like to think about it too much. I fucking HATED that teacher, after what happened (as many other students did) and I just had to get away for a while to get my sanity back (not to mention earn some money).

So, if you're getting a 'C' at this point, consider yourself in good company because that is probably par for a course like that.

>>11170068
>statistics at CMU
That's a meme department in the humanities school.

Engineering brainlet, our big weedout course was statics and dynamics; two thirds of the class dropped or got a D/F, a lot of the remaining third were retaking it. Managed to get a B my first time, but barely.

The intro materials science class was pretty rough too, but the professor really wasn't trying and a lot of my classmates point-blank told me they cheated on the exams (out of class, you just did them online).

>>11165982
My school had a professor who ended up failing most of his algorithms/data structures class because he was legendarily awful. He only taught it that one time, every other professor has a pretty high pass rate.

>>11172358
>I'm bound to make a C in molecular biology. It will be my first C...

Oh, forgot to mention that I recall being between a B and C in Molecular up until finals weeks, myself. So, again, don't feel bad. Very common. Less than half the original class was left at that point (kinda like the way it was for Intro to C programming).

It's a well-known fact that if you're used to getting A's and B's in high school, expect to only get B's and C's when you get to university (except for gender studies and other liberal bullshit, of course...)

effective field theory + QCD

so hard I took a year long smoke break away from college lmao

>>11172485
Yeah, half my class is gone and a friend of mine just went ahead and switched majors because things got so bad lol. The professor even asked, "where is everyone" because it is so empty now.
>So, again, don't feel bad.
Thanks, anon. It's really weird because I'm able to handle physics and organic chemistry but apparently not molecular biology for some reason. Even my mother had the same experience because molecular biology was the only class she ever dropped in university.

>>11172424
i think it's like CS + statistics and it's their PhD program so it's pretty good. Even Google and Rentec recruits from there.

Digital Logic
Mostly because the professor had bullshit exam questions and 10-20+ hour labs every week. The material itself isn't very difficult but requiring you to make significant modifications to a processor the professor designed, only providing the block diagram of said processor (on several pages with no organizational structure, is bullshit on an exam.

>>11172523
>...Even my mother had the same experience because molecular biology was the only class she ever dropped in university.

It's too bad that undergrad Biology degrees have become so 'beefed up' over the years, in terms of what is needed to know to graduate, that most of the original wonder and fascination is lost in the stress of now having to know all the "finer details." I'm sure it has taken a lot of the fun out of learning it for a lot of people.

Still, I wouldn't trade the knowledge for any other. Being /at least/ bio-literate has helped me make more-informed, life-oriented decisions, not just in terms of my own health, but also in terms of being 'eco-conscious', as well (i.e. being a responsible steward of the planet, and all that. No, not a 'tree hugger', per se. Just respectful of the 'Natural Order', if you will...).

Knowledge of CS and programming, OTOH, has helped me understand things from the whole 'tech' side. Being literate in this regard I think is absolutely essential now in making sense of the modern world, not to mention being /functional/ in it.

Sorry for soapbox, but that's how I feel...

Real Variables (The kind with measure theory and banach spaces) I hadn't had more than a couple rigorous math courses in my undergrad, so that really killed me. Managed to pull an A somehow (take home exams and an iron will not to give up)

>>11164469
Chemistry. Man, I always sucked at biology and language classes in high school due to memorization but chemistry was relatively balanced when it came to understanding vs. memorization so I got 10's. But this class is on another level, never even mentioned sigma and pi bonds in hydrocarbons but it shows up on the final exam. And this was the class everyone slacked on due to the workload in other classes, amazing. Now people are suggesting suing the final exam, thank god you can retake the test though (at a cost).

>>11172307
Getting shot in the head is also good practice for the real world. Doesn't mean it's good.

>>11164469
Physics 1 was the hardest I'd say for...Physics II was an easy A+ though. Pchem is pretty but my teacher is pretty easy with the exams. Most math courses like DiffQ and linear algebra are always tough and hard to understand for me

>>11172615
>It's too bad that undergrad Biology degrees have become so 'beefed up' over the years
I'm not sure what a Biology degree plan looked like in the past but you're probably right.
>that most of the original wonder and fascination is lost in the stress of now having to know all the "finer details." I'm sure it has taken a lot of the fun out of learning it for a lot of people.
Yeah, I've definitely learned a lot with how complex we really are but learning the steps of say, the Kreb's cycle or glycolysis has really been a pain haha. Next year, I'm taking anatomy and apparently it's memorizing basically all the muscles and bones. That's gonna be fun.
>Sorry for soapbox, but that's how I feel...
Nah, it's cool. It's nice to learn about someone else's experiences especially when we have a commonality between us.

>>11170172

man, fuck college. you are forced to go through the motions in some babby class so you can get to the upper level work. sure labs are necessary, but if you can make $ it should be straightforward. I was in statics and i kept quarelling with the teacher that's not how this works, lo & behold Roark's formulas for stress & strain reveal it's not just axial stress but also bending and shear and lo and behold it is not just a function of the force but instead integration of simultaneous equations involving the moment of inertia & the modulus of elasticity (& sometimes other things)
but what I couldn't bear was the design classes "ignore him" when i interjected our drawings would be useless unless we took into account light's curve around objects.
then welding. the jackass would eyeball the weld and say nope or yep to basically the same welds, we didn't learn testing.
i dropped out and had the most productive year of my life. I read everything in engineering & up to finish graduate level physics (and a few bio topics).
i plan on making tons of cash & buying science equipment on my own
but that's not to say i'm ready, i still have to read SO much in physics past the graduate level

>>11172615
go back
>>11172727
I hate you so much

>>11168940
He goes through everything too fast and skips explanations. So yes, I'm having to do independent studying to understand what he is doing in class.

>>11165328
What in the nigger fuck does one study in "Black Masculinity"?

>>11173602
> I plan on making tons of cash
> plan

I, too, am a future rich man

IB Economics back in high school

nothing was ever harder than that, not even in uni

>>11164812
This
Uni's more about hard work than just smarts
Unless you're developmentally challeneged, hard work is enough to take you through university. Being smart just (often) makes it a smoother ride
Stick your nose in the books anon we're rootin' for ya.

>>11168600
>literally
I don't think you know what that means
Anon was talking about observable factual differences. Your entire disagreement is that your personal ideology disagrees with theirs
It's obvious you're a brainlet now

>>11164469
everything related to Biology

I hated economics because I just couldn't visualize curve shifts well.
Give me an A->B sort of problem where I have to figure out an answer and I'm fine, but give me a riddle where the language isn't exactly clear and I have a much harder time. At the time it was amazing to me I was enjoying chemistry way more than economics.

>>11174374
>It's obvious you're a brainlet now
Of course he is, he is a conservative guy. The more you are left-wing, the more you are smart, it's not even a meme, studies everywhere confirm it.

>>11164536
just read the textbook and do the homework and try to get your hands on some previous years tests to practice, if you are good enough at those three things you don't even need to attend the lectures

>>11164795
its okay anon, i got a 57 in first year calc and now im getting As in every class (in third year). my problem was that i wasn't as prepared as everyone else. it takes a while for your brain to absorb information and stress makes this much harder. just try to pass and pour over the books over this summer coming up.

>>11172270
BTFO’d

Guys im doing my BSc in Geoscience right now and still had free time to spend. So this semester i started doing the BSc in Chemistry aswell. You think this is a good idea or should i just focus on one subject first? I plan on going into materialscience and for the master i would only need one of both BSc degrees. I really fancy the idea of getting two things done at the same time. Like a test for myself.

>>11164469
the hardest i took was a law paper that was required back when i was a business major

>>11165328
>Black masculinity
Goddamn I wish the right side had won WW2.

>>11164795
I got a B in that class,. The reasons that I didn't get an A in that class were that I rushed through my studies and was self taught. All I can recommend is taking the time to study harder. Take a few months to a year to deeply analyze it if you can. I know that some memers on /sci/ will claim to have mastered Calc I in a week, but blindly memorizing how to use the power rule or some shit is not the same thing as deeply understanding elementary Calculus. If you devote extreme concentration to it, you will develop a rock solid foundation, which is exactly what you'll need to be comfortable in Calc II and Calc III.

>>11164469
drop out its not worth it

>>11164469
FUCK Chemistry

>>11176157
show me on the periodic table where chemistry touched you

>>11164814
>it's like i'm forced to lie just to get a pass.
Welcome to the adult world, junior.

>>11165328
>college algebra

>>11165328
For a board with so many massively arrogant users as /sci/, it's quite telling how many of them happen to be too retarded to spot a shitpost. Either these people are genuinely autistic, or living proof that studying natural sciences requires no more than a double digit IQ.