gfish: (Default)
gfish ([personal profile] gfish) wrote2010-04-25 05:50 pm

(no subject)

Tomorrow I'm taking a physics test to see if I can be a Princeton Review teacher. So this weekend I'm reviewing what is basically an entire freshman physics course. Which is kind of fun -- I always did like this stuff! I never actually considered doing physics as the maths just get way too crazy, but the really basic stuff is awesome. And useful! It's been mumble13plusmumble years since I last studied this, but a lot of it I've ended up using on a semi-regular basis, so I don't feel too lost. I'm pretty sure I could teach it convincingly, just worried about being able to recall it all at once to pass the test. It's a lot of material to cover in a single weekend. My brain is feeling a bit squishy right now.

I also have to give a 5 minute teaching audition, on something from the material. I'm thinking of using the mechanics of a rocket launch to look at basic issues of how an orbit works -- and how much harder it is to get into LEO than just get to LEO altitude. Pretty sure I can sell that.

[identity profile] vixyish.livejournal.com 2010-04-26 02:16 am (UTC)(link)
I'm so excited for you!

[identity profile] neuro42.livejournal.com 2010-04-26 03:38 am (UTC)(link)
That sounds like **massive** overkill for your audition. Just FYI.

[identity profile] gustavolacerda.livejournal.com 2010-04-26 05:33 am (UTC)(link)
When I tutored high school students, IB physics was definitely the funnest subject! Tangentially, I also have Vol. 1 of the Feynman Lectures, which is a great philosophically insightful book, but which was a total failure at teaching Caltech freshmen when it first came out.

mechanics of a rocket launch

[identity profile] bigbumble.livejournal.com 2010-04-26 09:41 am (UTC)(link)
A most excellent topic for a lecture. Good luck squeezing it into 5 minutes. I have found the 5 minute time slot for a talk is the most difficult. Good luck!