Current Events > So, my college didn't think to put Linear Algebra as a prereq to physics...

(+) Yeah! (+)

... yet assignment 1 for physics due week 2 of class has a bunch of exercises with multiplication of 3 dimensional vectors.

And calculus 1 was a prereq, but the teacher assured us that there is no calculus in the course.

Seriously, they should totally fix those prereqs to actually match the courses...
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i teach linear algebra. my students said the same thing in the first week, that they wish they had learned about vectors before being thrown into physics / their engineering courses involving vector quantities.

I think its a fair point.

I didn't understand linear algebra until I applied it in physics, so maybe it can be a "lemonade out of lemons" situation.

There's an excellent series on YouTube by 3Blue1Brown about linear algebra.
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Learn it on your own - why does the university have to hold your hand for you?
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REMercsChamp posted...

Learn it on your own - why does the university have to hold your hand for you?

this
don't expect universities to teach you anything
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You just have to bite the bullet and learn it on your own.

I have a friend who did physics undergrad and I remember him telling me about times he had to learn math for a physics class that he hadn't actually seen yet in his math classes. They just expect you to be able to figure it out.

Thankfully there's tons of shit on the internet these days.
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REMercsChamp posted...

Learn it on your own - why does the university have to hold your hand for you?

While that's a viable solution, he has a right to be upset. He's probably spent thousands in tuition, the least the university could do is have its curriculum in order. That's literally its reason for being there.
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perukid796 posted...

REMercsChamp posted...

Learn it on your own - why does the university have to hold your hand for you?

While that's a viable solution, he has a right to be upset. He's probably spent thousands in tuition, the least the university could do is have its curriculum in order. That's literally its reason for being there.

The university isn't there to teach you things, it's there to take tens of thousands of dollars from your pockets. Check out my other thread on academics for more info.
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REMercsChamp posted...

The university isn't there to teach you things, it's there to take tens of thousands of dollars from your pockets. Check out my other thread on academics for more info.

maybe in murica
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It's fucking bullshit but the sad truth is that at a lot of universities, the professors are there more for research than for teaching. So the undergrad curriculum can be often neglected.

It needs to be more about learning and less about being a degree factory that tries to extract as much $ as possible from each family.
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Link HT posted...

REMercsChamp posted...

The university isn't there to teach you things, it's there to take tens of thousands of dollars from your pockets. Check out my other thread on academics for more info.

maybe in murica

On Earth, actually
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REMercsChamp posted...

The university isn't there to teach you things, it's there to take tens of thousands of dollars from your pockets. Check out my other thread on academics for more info.

I've taken courses where that's what it feels like, but I've also taken courses where the professor genuinely cared and I've learned a lot. It's what you make of it.
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REMercsChamp posted...

The university isn't there to teach you things, it's there to take tens of thousands of dollars from your pockets. Check out my other thread on academics for more info.

Bro get outta here with this bullshit. Guy's got a legitimate concern and you're sittin' here advertising your pathetic thread about your insecurities with higher education and people who have a different opinion than you.

Get outta here. Nobody cares.
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ZMythos posted...

REMercsChamp posted...

The university isn't there to teach you things, it's there to take tens of thousands of dollars from your pockets. Check out my other thread on academics for more info.

Bro get outta here with this bullshit. Guy's got a legitimate concern and you're sittin' here advertising your pathetic thread about your insecurities with higher education and people who have a different opinion than you.

Get outta here. Nobody cares.

https://www.gamefaqs.com/boards/400-current-events/75752415
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REMercsChamp posted...

perukid796 posted...

REMercsChamp posted...

Learn it on your own - why does the university have to hold your hand for you?

While that's a viable solution, he has a right to be upset. He's probably spent thousands in tuition, the least the university could do is have its curriculum in order. That's literally its reason for being there.

The university isn't there to teach you things, it's there to take tens of thousands of dollars from your pockets. Check out my other thread on academics for more info.

Why are you mad at TC for also taking issue with a broken system?
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Dragonblade01 posted...

REMercsChamp posted...

perukid796 posted...

REMercsChamp posted...

Learn it on your own - why does the university have to hold your hand for you?

While that's a viable solution, he has a right to be upset. He's probably spent thousands in tuition, the least the university could do is have its curriculum in order. That's literally its reason for being there.

The university isn't there to teach you things, it's there to take tens of thousands of dollars from your pockets. Check out my other thread on academics for more info.

Why are you mad at TC for also taking issue with a broken system?

I'm not, I'm just given him some practical advice. No point in getting upset - just have to accept that you're on your own to learn the stuff.
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REMercsChamp posted...

Link HT posted...

REMercsChamp posted...

The university isn't there to teach you things, it's there to take tens of thousands of dollars from your pockets. Check out my other thread on academics for more info.

maybe in murica

On Earth, actually

My university was basically free, dude. It's the same way basically everywhere in Europe.
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Link HT posted...

REMercsChamp posted...

Link HT posted...

REMercsChamp posted...

The university isn't there to teach you things, it's there to take tens of thousands of dollars from your pockets. Check out my other thread on academics for more info.

maybe in murica

On Earth, actually

My university was basically free, dude. It's the same way basically everywhere in Europe.

You're paying for it with your taxes or borrowed money from other countries
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REMercsChamp posted...

Dragonblade01 posted...

REMercsChamp posted...

perukid796 posted...

REMercsChamp posted...

Learn it on your own - why does the university have to hold your hand for you?

While that's a viable solution, he has a right to be upset. He's probably spent thousands in tuition, the least the university could do is have its curriculum in order. That's literally its reason for being there.

The university isn't there to teach you things, it's there to take tens of thousands of dollars from your pockets. Check out my other thread on academics for more info.

Why are you mad at TC for also taking issue with a broken system?

I'm not, I'm just given him some practical advice. No point in getting upset - just have to accept that you're on your own to learn the stuff.

Then maybe don't word your advice in a way that suggests universities shouldn't have their curriculum in order.
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I've heard it's far from free over in the UK, but I could be mistaken about that. So it's not just 'Murica that has this issue, but probably it's the most severe in the US.

It's fucked. The incentives are all messed up. The more "highly ranked" universities actually care more about research than teaching. I transferred from a lower ranked to a much higher ranked school and the teaching was actually better at the lower ranked school in a lot of cases because the professors' jobs were actually oriented towards teaching and not research.
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REMercsChamp posted...

You're paying for it with your taxes or borrowed money from other countries

Sure, but they're not for-profit institutions like they are in the US and you're paying a fraction of the price. It's night and day.
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Use your homework board if you need any help ;)

In this case the professor seems genuinely bewildered that very few people in the class took linear algebra. In the first day of class he was doing a "quick review" of vectors and he was very surprised that nobody knew off the top of their heads that i x k = -j and j dot k = 0
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Ummm that's high-school level knowledge what university is this... lol

I never took linear. Prof just had to teach us the stuff we needed to know. Honestly she was better at teaching some concepts in math than actual math profs.
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