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March 29, 2024, 09:52:34 pm

Author Topic: Post for anyone studying for the physics Olympiad 2021  (Read 3237 times)  Share 

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mabajas76

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Post for anyone studying for the physics Olympiad 2021
« on: July 07, 2021, 06:33:17 pm »
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Hey hope everyone is well, I noticed that for the last few years there hasn't been anything on here about the Olympiads... and since it is not a separate forum I thought hey, might as well try to make something.
So, if anyone here has questions about the Olympiad, has previously competed in the Olympiad or wants some help preparing for it then post a question here! At the very least, I will try help haha.
"Don't give up, and don't put too much effort into things that don't matter"-Albert Einstein, probably.

OliBao

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Re: Post for anyone studying for the physics Olympiad 2021
« Reply #1 on: July 16, 2021, 11:16:30 am »
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Hi, I am a year 10 taking the physics olympiad for the first time this year, and would greatly appreciate any advice that anyone may have for taking the exam.

I have done basic mechanics, simple harmonic motion, heat transfer, coulomb's law, electric fields, etc, and have also looked through previous papers. I can expect to get all the multiple choice correct, but the extended response questions are slightly more fo a challenge. Is there anything that I could do to prepare in the two weeks leading up to the competition?

Thanks

mabajas76

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Re: Post for anyone studying for the physics Olympiad 2021
« Reply #2 on: July 16, 2021, 11:50:07 am »
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Hey! Yeah I know the extended response r super tough. If u want some help with one of them post it here.

As for how to do them and prep, what I have been doing was just trying them, then really looking to understand the solutions and how they do it. After a while, some of the problems will begin to be VERY similar (Like conservation of energy and transposing, components, springs etc). I would really recommend just practicing ur thinking and methods for how to solve them, this is because for the national exam is not looking for ur knowledge of coulomb's law as much as ur thinking process and how you would apply it. How you go about solving problems, ur math etc. As a result they generally give a quick explanation in the extended response questions, so having a good foundation of the physics is smart but be aware that practice papers r probably gonna be more worth ur while. So yeah, I think doing Olympiad online and past exam questions, making sure u r really understanding the why behind questions etc will be the way to go!
Good luck with ur studies!
Also, there is almost always a question asking for methods of doing pracs and stuff, for the love of God do have a look at them, they could be an easy 10 marks if u r prepared and carful in ur approach.
"Don't give up, and don't put too much effort into things that don't matter"-Albert Einstein, probably.

OliBao

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Re: Post for anyone studying for the physics Olympiad 2021
« Reply #3 on: July 16, 2021, 09:15:05 pm »
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Thanks so much, I now have a much better overview of how to take the exams.

Also, what would you suggest the method for approaching a question is? Would one such as below leave out important steps?

1. Read question carefully.
2. Understand, make mental simulation of the situation, draw diagrams.
3. Identify which equations or data are relevant, which properties, models I can use.
4. Identify what changes, and how it changes.
5. Express everything using equations and solve for relevant variable.

Or would this approach be completely incorrect?

Thanks

mabajas76

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Re: Post for anyone studying for the physics Olympiad 2021
« Reply #4 on: July 16, 2021, 10:08:43 pm »
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1. Read question carefully.
Absolutely, looking through the comments that markers make on questions, a fair bit of them not that people failed to understand/address the question.
2. Understand, make mental simulation of the situation, draw diagrams.
it is always great to do this, if u draw a diagram correctly, it shows ur understanding and thinking which is what they r looking for. They r not always necessary, and if u don't understand one part of a question and r running out of time, try to bs a few points/working out to show some thinking or understanding.

3. Identify which equations or data are relevant, which properties, models I can use.
This is a good approach but not always required, some questions will be simple explain questions which require precise and detailed descriptions. Beyond that, sometimes it is as simple as taking the tan of 2 components or some simple transposing. They will generally give u any formulas, so u can automatically see which one u need. Just be carful u use the equation correctly. The main property u will use is conservation of energy, momentum etc.
4. Identify what changes, and how it changes.
This one is not actually that important if u r looking for a step by step guide. Sometimes this is def the way to go, but for some questions it will directly tell u that like the kinetic energy changes by this, so evaluate the new momentum after a collision.
5. Express everything using equations and solve for relevant variable.
For the solving questions, they do them in a very specific order. DO NOT use any numbers initially, do all ur working out with the formula first, then sub values in. INCLUDE UNITS, if it is a number answer, units r the difference between right and wrong. But yeah solving for some value is usually the answer, but identifying it is sometimes a challenge. Don't be afraid to go to ur teacher or post here for help, the math/solutions can be pretty confusing.
Some questions I have seen which I feel perfectly show the type of questions are:
2012 question 11 and 14:
2016 question 11
2017 question 14
u need to draw diagrams, make estimations, graph, think carefully about solutions etc. These are not easy, honestly maybe a bit harder than the average question but certainly doable and personally a perfect example of the type of thinking required.
"Don't give up, and don't put too much effort into things that don't matter"-Albert Einstein, probably.

mabajas76

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Re: Post for anyone studying for the physics Olympiad 2021
« Reply #5 on: July 27, 2021, 03:55:48 pm »
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So how did anyone who did it this year do? I think I did pretty bad honestly :(, got hit with some questions which were the exact opposite of what I was good. Obvi no discussing questions till 2morrow but I think we all got different ones anyway.
"Don't give up, and don't put too much effort into things that don't matter"-Albert Einstein, probably.

mabajas76

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Re: Post for anyone studying for the physics Olympiad 2021
« Reply #6 on: October 24, 2021, 11:06:09 pm »
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Hey so did anybody get offers for the summer camp yet? I doubt I got in but I still kinda hope lol. I pulled off a credit which is a rip considering the work i put in, in the end I kinda shot myself in the foot haha.
"Don't give up, and don't put too much effort into things that don't matter"-Albert Einstein, probably.