Posted by alexandra_k on April 20, 2014, at 18:26:20
In reply to Re: thought i was over it... but not, posted by alexandra_k on April 20, 2014, at 18:02:48
So... Things really are getting a lot more math-sy...
I think... The key is for me to think of it like having a map (or not).
A lot of (especially graduate students) used to express amazement at how some of the senior professors could (appear to) doze throughout much of seminars then magically wake themselves up for the 4 or 5 minute crucial bit then ask the most penetrating of questions during the question time...
I thought of it is as their having a map of the terrain already. Say it is a talk on representation in philosophy of mind... They have a working knowledge of the main issues, the 3 main positions on this, that, and this other issue. They have a working knowledge of the virtues / vices of those positions and how they play. They have a working knowledge of different moves that people have made to try and keep the virtues and eliminate the vices and they have already worked through the ramifications of various of the effects...
So when they hear a supposedly 'novel' talk it doesn't require much cognitive effort for them to... Locate things... On the landscape. And hone in on the particular idiosyncratic features of the particular talk -- and engage with those.
As for the rest of us... Well... When everything is new... The whole thing can seem a bit overwhelming.
It comes with time... And a hell of a lot of hard work, too, of course. Thinking about the many hours I spent pouring over XX's book 'here's a term, let me define it thus, here's another, so defined etc etc etc NOW!! look what we can do!!' and then the theory rolls out...
Of course... He was trying to emulate physics. Or at least... Physics does that too. But physics has math instead of logic... So we have... Equations. And equations freak me the hell out. Because they are novel and new. And I don't know how to read them. And I have no practice getting my head around them...
Just the simplest ones of the form a=b/c
Freaks me out.e.g., density = mass / volume
or whatever. then blah blah blah about cross multiplying and things were awful confusing... Then someone showed me this little triangle thing and you put them in there and you multiply across to get the one on top and you divide the one on top by either of the bottom two to get out the other ahahaha.
I think I'm mostly worried because... I stare and stare and things don't make sense. And I'm not entirely sure what to do... And asking for help is problematic. There is heaps of extra help offered on campus... By second years who have done a second year course in 'how to tutor maths'. And they don't know the 'why's' or whatever that I need... I... I don't know.
I guess I just do my best and have some hope / faith that things are so hard now because I'm just developing an outline of the terrain. Things will get easier down the track as I'm slotting things in.
Thinking back.. Some of the chemistry stuff I'm finding the easiest / feeling most comfortable now is the stuff that was causing me severe headaches at the start when it was all new. I remember being amazed at... Boiling and Melting... I never really thought about them... ANyway... Whatever... It is going to be okay.
Unit conversions.
ffs.
:(
poster:alexandra_k
thread:1058481
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20140312/msgs/1064541.html