hey so im really contemplating if i should take physics 1bb3 next term....and was just wondering if anyone who is taking it this term can tell me how difficult it is and how good the prof is.

Thanks

Hey, I was wondering the same thing, and whether to take this over physics 1ba3, any advice?

I took 1BB3 with Fradin in first semester.

Content: You MUST have kinematics, dynamics and energy as background knowledge, as well as the basic wave concepts, even though the first few classes are review. In 1BB3, you start off with circular and rotational motion, move on to electromagnetism, then finish with quantum mechanics. Quantum mechanics was the thing that tied all the areas of physics together (waves, electricity, rotational motion, dynamics, all of it). It was also the hardest to grasp, so put effort in studying this. Personally, I found the material in 1BB3 more interesting but harder to learn than that of 1B03. The material in 1BB3 was always linked back to something biological, which made it easier to appreciate.

Dr. Fradin: She was all right. Not amazing, but not horrible either. I preferred the 1B03 profs (especially Hughes), but what can you do. Dr. Fradin was a bit quiet, but you could still hear her well. She posts her slides on Avenue, so you could use those as notes if you want to.

The main drawback to Dr. Fradin is that she goes through the material too slowly. We often found ourselves behind schedule because she spent a lot of time taking up the iClicker questions (we even had to skip an entire section of electromagnetism because we ended up being a week behind schedule). Also, she did not explain some concepts as well as she explained others. I am mainly speaking of quantum mechanics, but I guess I can't blame Dr. Fradin for that - quantum mechanics can be pretty hard to grasp. Other than that, she is pretty helpful, and is willing to answer any questions you have.

Tests: Two midterms and a final exam. Both have written components, as opposed to 1B03 where everything was just multiple choice. The first midterm was horrible (everyone did badly), but other than that, the 2nd midterm and exam were much more doable.

Labs: In 1BB3, there are only four labs (compared to 1B03, which had labs every week). However, there are lab reports for each. The labs in 1BB3 are meant to apply your understanding of the course material, while the labs in 1B03 were more designed to help you grasp the concepts. So make sure you understand what you're doing when writing the lab reports.

The lab reports in 1BB3 are a HUGE time-sucker. They often took days for me to complete, and they were inconsistently marked (each of the four labs was marked by a different TA, and they all had different standards). By far, the labs are the worst part of 1BB3. That being said, I did enjoy the fourth lab about the hydrogen atom.

iClicker Quizzes: Each week you will have iClicker quizzes that test you on the textbook readings. Also, a week after each lab, you will have an iClicker lab quiz, which tests you on the material from each lab.

1BB3 vs. 1BA3: If you're going into the "hard" sciences (e.g. chem, physics), then take 1BA3. If you're going into something more biological (e.g. biochem, biology, health sci, etc...), then take 1BB3.

Hope this helped!

1ba3 and 1bb3 are very similar. Take whichever one sounds better but 1ba3 is strongly recommended if you plan to go into a pure physics field.

Thanks so much for the info! It helped make my decision easier! Just one last thing, how are the labs in 1BA3, compared to those of 1b03 or 1bb3?

Originally Posted by AnimeBouse

Thanks so much for the info! It helped make my decision easier! Just one last thing, how are the labs in 1BA3, compared to those of 1b03 or 1bb3?

I believe they are the same labs. I could be mistaken.

saw my friends schedule and he has 1ba3 lab every week which is 3 hours. i dont think 1bb3 is like that so they are most likely very different

1BB3 labs are every other week. From what I remember from taking it last year, there was a lab for every major section of the course (circular motion, electricity and magnetism etc.). In total I think there were around 4. And as mentioned before, formal lab reports due the week after.

So Physics 1BA3 labs are every week then? And in terms of difficulty is there a big difference between the two or are they both relatively the same difficulty?

I'm not sure if anyone knows for sure how different the labs are since you'd usually take one or the other.

Although I can continue to comment on 1BB3 labs. There were pre-labs questions and as always it was a good idea to read the lab beforehand. The instructions on how to operate the equipment was in the lab manual, but you had to come up with something to investigate. In other words, you had to come up with a question to answer in the lab. Once you have decided on the variable you wanted to study, the lab was straight forward. Some times things just got confusing but with some time and team effort you could work them out (yes, labs were done in groups because of lack of equipment). You did the data analysis right after you got your data, where TAs would also be around to help you. Then you took the data and wrote your lab report.