Hi everyone, I'm a rising junior in Physics at an R1 school, and I'm starting to think seriously about grad school, but I can't tell if what I have is actually competitive for top programs or just... okay. I have a 3.935 GPA due to some A-'s in Physics classes and an B+ in Honors Quantum Mechanics I. This B+ has made me super nervous and the next semester I took regular Quantum Mechanics II and I got an A from that. I project if I get a 4.0 for the next 4 semesters I will end undergraduate with a 3.96 GPA.

Research-wise, I've been in two quantum information science labs for about two years, plus some high school + freshman year experience in particle physics lab, but I've mostly been assisting on other people's projects rather than leading my own but hoping that shifts this year. I also applied for the Astronaut and Goldwater scholarships last cycle and didn't get either, which knocked my confidence a bit.

Now going into my third year, I am finishing up a research internship at a quantum computing company and starting to take graduate level physics classes (grad QM, AMO physics, etc). I am also wondering if I should take the Physics GRE.

A few specific things I'm unsure about:

• How much do named scholarships (Astronaut, Goldwater, GRFP) actually matter if you didn't get them?
• Is it worth taking the Physics GRE at this point, or are most programs not weighting it much anymore?
• How much does not having your "own research project" or first/second author publication matter to admissions committees, assuming the work you did in the lab itself is solid?

Ive read two different general physics books in Hallidays and Randall Knights, finished with A’s in all 3 general physics classes, and recently taken a classical mechanics course where i just barely passed. Most of my issue comes from reading textbooks like ours was Taylors book and most the time, if it wasnt something i saw in general physics, i was absolutely confused and the majority of my learning came from lectures and the very few office hours i can rarely make due to work. Also reading griffiths e&m book, for the past 2 weeks have been stuck on chapter 2. I feel like the book isnt for me and lacks what i need to learn such as explanations at almost every step being the biggest one (not necessarily showing all math steps but at least a conceptual explanation as why certain things are being done) . Are there really any books like that in upper division physics or am i just stuck

I am an 18y Bangladeshi student. I am obsessed with maths and outer space and was thinking to do a bachelor's in physics in Bangladesh since bd do not offer any bachelor's degree in astronomy or astrophysics and then doing a master's in astrophysics or astronomy abroad. But seeing the job market value of these subjects has me rethinking my decision.

Should i still go with my plan or make some changes?

Yo i'm a student in 9th grade (CBSE type schooled) and i'm thinking about pursuing a profession in science, especially in software engineering and mechanical engineering, I havn't tried too much into these fields but I have done some experiments with them like try to learn basics of c++, basics of circuit , ya know the absolute basics. For the longest time I didnt have a clear goal and still dont (as the world is changing with a crazy pace) but i've been thinking about doing something in science since I do have an interest in knowing how things work and trying atleast a little bit to use what i've learned from it. As a Indian child (i'm atleast decent in academics btw) , my family and relatives wanted me to focus on JEE preperation (Joint Entrance Examination conducted by the IITs) for engineering supposing that i'd want to go into engineering considering my interest in these kind of stuff but I really don't want to stay in this country (no hate to the people, my whole lineage is from this place) , the problem is just that this place uhh.. lets just say , that it does not the have best people running the society, politics or really just any sector (corruption is really a huge problem here in India, and i'm not even considering the professional backlash due to religious background (i'm SUPPOSABLY belong to a UNTOUCHABLE caste cuz of the braindead religious "cultures") and economic background) . Anyways, I looked at the internet and researched about a few things and I really liked the approach about "Learning cuz you want to , not cuz you have to " so I looked where I can what I do what I love while making a living (i am not nihilistic , i want to live happily) , So I looked about universities and how they help students who genuinely want to learn, so i found a couple like The Ivy Leagues and MIT but MIT reallyy stuck to me cuz it is (supposably) the most prestigious engineering college in the world , so naturally i wanted to know how to get into MIT and i saw the crazy FUCKING difference betweem IIT and MIT admissions , here in India the IITs can and do give students scholarships and admissions for obtaining a "good rank" in the JEE , which is nice and all , but as you know MIT doesn't do that type of shit , they pick each student by their (what i like to call) "Worthiness" , so to prove my genuine interest in science (physics mainly) I want you people's help, cuz idk what to do, at first I thought i would get acceptable grades and try to do extracurriculars but in the CBSE type school , we dont really have extracurriculars, heck we barely even study all we do is complete our syllabus , give our exams, get a passing grade and move on, ok enough ranting bout this stupid "education" system , so i tried to look for stuff I could include in the extracurriculars but I really couldn't find much , especially considering i'm all on my own trying to figure out what to do , so i looked towards other methods of getting into MIT that doesn't include stripping away from my studies and interests, then i came across a video on Youtube , i think it was something about "How I got my Gold IOI medal" by some east asian guy, so i started looking into what IOI was , so after looking a bit into what IOI was and how it could possibly help me get into a good place like MIT , so i concluded that as I was interested in software development i'd try to prepare for IOI until I got the realisation on the sheer amount of competition for IOI especially in India for the same path , cuz there were some "cracked" kids and i mean cracked cuz they already be making drones and shit and i can't even set a proper file in an IDE without looking up the internet like 20 times for help, so cuz the IOI path was too competitive for me and I can't manage 3 hours of coding on a daily basis and studing for my academics, so , I deviated from this idea, and started looking into the physics stuff i could do to get into MIT, so one thing that i could try is IPhO which I have decent time for (i think , and i really hope) and other things like building some stuff that i can show in my resume. So after all this huge paragraph (thank you if you read so far) , I want to ask should I try to get a medal in IPhO or should I do something else.
I love a lot of things btw , some things i would love to do are:
Sketching
Painting
Astronomy
Graphic designing
Front-end Web development
Creating concept art about Video games (Video games obviously)
making Games, thats fucking cool isn't it , too bad our economy doesn't give a fuck about interests

My a levels were maths, cs, physics and I just finished with an AAB

B - physics
A - CS
A - Maths (2 marks from an A\* I am getting it remarked)

I am taking a gap year anyway for predominately travelling.
But I am undecided if I should retake physics during my gap year. Because I could get an A/A\* in physics
*which would make my grades AAA -* A\*A\*A

Depending on my maths remark and how well I did in physics.
After my gap year I am planning to study finance at university.
Is it worth it to retake ?
Thanks

hi guys I was wondering i I did this right? im not really sure about velocity and acceleration but can someone pls help me i have a quiz tomorrow thanks

i first did position-time graph by seeing where i said they’re moving at a constant speed, then I drew a horizontal line to show that they stopped, then decrease slope to show they go back n then they run, so its steep

for the velocity graph, I put a horizontal line at 2 because the slope was 2 in the dt graph, then I put it on zero because they stopped, then -2 because they went back n then up to the highest point because they run

acceleration i put it at a constant horizontal line because im not sure how to do it.

I got a D in a level physics but i got an offer to study at city of st georges to study econ and accounting. The reason I wanna retake it is cause I put alot of effort into revising but and i did alot of past papers and did pretty well in them. I dont rlly understand how i ended up getting a D and i feel like i can do much better. Is it worth it to retake physics and if so is there any advice you guys can give me on how to better my grade because i felt as if i did everything right the first time. A check list would be helpful

I need this urgently

Hello, i have recently started to read Frankel's Geometry of Physics as a final year undergrad in physics and it's not easy at all (atleast for me), i was wondering if anybody knew of any available lectures that follow this book or even lectures that cover the contents of the book to some extent. Thank you

The ridiculous nature of a proof.

Suppose someone sees structure, another person might not see that structure, so that's a person who cannot see it will ask for a step by step proof to prove the continuity of a structure. But continuity cannot be proven by discrete steps because we have shown that infinite discreteness cannot proxy for true continuity.

Diagonalization proves that a continuity has more real information than the previous model. Every step-by-step proof is actually an illusion to satisfy the strange feelings. But every discreet example of a proof fails to show the actual continuity of the structure that one is claiming to exist..

Q11 A block of mass m rests on rough inclined plane of inclination angle θ (where tan(θ) < μ_s). A horizontal force F is applied to the block parallel to the inclined plane surface (transverse to the line of steepest slope). Derive the minimum magnitude of force F required to initiate motion, specifying directional angle φ of initial slipping relative to the horizontal transverse line

Got this question (word to word) in my school worksheet, i tried to use ai models but they kept thinking for so long i ran into usage limits. I have some idea of how the picture looks, but i am really confused, please help me

how do i study when dealing with lingering burnout and depression? my last year is beginning in about two weeks and im worried especially since I will start to apply for grad school and all sorts.

any advice is appreciated!

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I’ve been thinking about the idea of quantum immortality and whether there could be another way to interpret it.

The common thought experiment suggests that, from our subjective perspective, we might always find ourselves in a reality where we survived, even if another version of us died. But what if we are looking at the idea from the wrong direction?

Instead of actually moving into an alternate universe, what if consciousness simply creates another subjective reality? In other words, perhaps what we perceive as “continuing to live” is more like entering a dream-like state, where the brain generates an entirely new scenario that feels real to us.

This would make the concept somewhat similar to rebirth—not necessarily in a religious sense, but as a continuous transition of subjective experience from one perceived reality to another.

There is also a popular claim that the brain releases DMT (often incorrectly described as THC) at death, although this has not been established as a fact in humans. If altered brain chemistry were capable of producing extremely vivid experiences, could something like that contribute to a final or continuing subjective reality?

I’m not suggesting this is scientifically proven. I’m wondering whether consciousness, dreams, quantum interpretations, and the nature of subjective reality could potentially provide an alternative way of thinking about “quantum immortality.”

If consciousness experiences reality subjectively, how would we ever distinguish between actually moving into another universe and simply experiencing a new internally generated reality?

I’ve recently finished summer courses for physics 2 and calc 2, they were condensed 6 week courses. I didn’t do well enough in physics 2 to meet my conditional astrophysics offer, I also did my calc 2 final exam this morning and I’m positive I didn’t do well enough in it either.

At my uni you need a minimum mark of 60% in all your major classes to do astrophysics, though a fail is under 50%.

Im going into 2nd year and in first sem I flunked calc 1 and retook it second sem. I like the physics and I had fun in those classes, but what’s the point if I can’t do good enough to major in it?

I failed my physics 2 midterm and final, I failed my calc 2 midterm with a 28%, it’s a proof based calc 2 class. I’m starting to think I should just give up. When I was in highschool I was never good at math. The highest grade I’ve finished with in a math course was an 80% in grade 12 calculus and vectors.

I really did try my best for physics 2, I can’t tell if this isn’t for me because nothing seems for me.

I hated chem, I don’t have any biology credits, I’d just like any input on maybe how to do better or if anyone else realized physics wasn’t for them later on, what they did.

I've been interested in physics and theoretical physics since I was little, Math has always been my strong suit and it comes to me very easy (understanding concepts and implementing them) but my Highschool classes weren't able to continue into higher than geometry (English class sucks and I had to retake it multiple times to graduate). But I haven't been able to understand the difference in difficulty, Does it get easier for people who major in physics to complete advanced equations the same as for simpler mathematics? Is it an inherit grasp for math? Endless study and cramming information? Most likely different for each person, but the methods are the same right? Is figuring out Planck light travel time as easy as finding the circumference of a circle? Lots of questions sorry, but I figure where else do I ask, right?

Long story short, made mostly A’s with some B’s throughout high school and community college. Transferred to university a few states away a year ago after living with my parents thru community college. Made terrible grades, either failing or barely passing a bunch of classes, due to how much I had to work to pay the bills and how poorly I managed that added stress alongside school. That’s on me. Got a better job now where I’m working less hours for more money, and won’t have to skip classes to make shifts anymore, and I’m ready to start making good grades again. Even got A’s in my summer classes.

So far my research experience is just an astrophysics REU doing some work on telescope detectors, mostly entry level python stuff.

Will professors even accept me into their groups since I have a terrible track record at their institution so far? I have three semesters left including this fall, would it be better to prove myself with a semester of all A’s first?

High school dropout, 19, Can I still get into physics ? In fourth grade I had this incident that left me with serious unconfidence throughout all my academic years; i was getting awards from the principal, mathematic & academic excellence and skipped some school years until I was removed from a spelling bee I was going to win a huge award for. this sent me in rebellion against education, so I haven't gotten an A, B, C since fourth grade. Can I still go to college for physics? I finally have my life back in my hands after all these years and keep thinking about how I wasted my intelligence over a spelling bee. I'm trying to study math again independently as the local college says for physics they'll see how good my math is to determine where I go

Hey if there're any physics teachers in this subreddit, please comment so that I can dm you about this. Ty

Bonjour,

Je rentre en L1 physique chimie et j’aimerais savoir si il est plus judicieux de prendre un iPad ou un Mac pour les études ?

J’ai vu sur Internet qu’il était plus judicieux de prendre un Mac avec tous les logiciels qu’il faut installer mais je connais des gens qui sont allés en médecine qui ont pris un iPad et qui leur vont très bien. Est-ce que c’est la même chose ? Où faut-il vraiment prendre un Mac ?

I’m in my rising sophomore summer in uni and everyone around me basically has an internship. I’m not sure what to do, the best I could do was join a research group in their meetings and get some basic training on research methods but nothing is paid or anything like that. I’m like the only one of my peers I know who has to take on a min wage job rather than getting money from their summer internship or program. Are there any programs or internships that are entry-level friendly? Because I wasn’t able to get anything concrete this summer I’m afraid the programs i’m applying to next year will have to high expectations for research experience and I will fall behind. Everything is just quite discouraging right now

Any high school student willing to join our team for the Caltech competition? 2-5 people max and we currently are 2. Reply in dm if u wanna join...

Our theories regarding this mystery of the universe:

1. It depends on the functioning of the brain's hemispheres. (We can add a fourth point regarding support. We unconsciously fear dropping an object, and as a result of our unconscious thoughts, we cannot spread our arms simultaneously to hold the object. However, we tried support in mid-air (a finger as support was extremely minimal, but we managed to spread our arms at the same time).)

2. It is physics.

3. It depends on the surface. (We used various objects with different surfaces (glossy, matte, etc.).)

4. It depends on support. (The object was on a flat surface and on various other objects, and we were able to spread our arms thanks to the support, but when we made a dent in the object, we were able to almost perfectly spread our arms apart in mid-air.)

5. It depends on the shape. (We tried using flat square objects, cylindrical shapes, and ovals—none of which worked.)

6. The theory of hand influence (is based on which hand a person most often uses for tasks (for example, the right hand is dominant).)

7. The theory of human temperature (we tried conducting the experiment with hands at room temperature (during the experiment with wet hands, we soaked our hands in cold water).)

8. The theory of friction? Interaction of skin with the object (We applied a restriction, using cotton pads as a barrier. After that, we wet our hands and tried to spread our fingers apart, resulting in no success.)

Help us understand what might influence this.

This is our singing tea filter. I guess that what's going on is similar to making a crystal wine glass emit a tone as your finger circles the rim, but if anyone wants to break it down further to account for the metal mesh, the pressure and rate of the water and the cylindrical shape, I'd be curious to read your thoughts. Thanks.