Bananas (Rick)
The weekend back to Melbourne was extremely busy. First I picked up a friend from her sister’s and stayed over at her place, watching Kill Bill. It was part funny, but with great shots and the sheer quantity of fighters at the end just bizarre. As usual me and my friend watched Rage on ABC TV for a little while, having a laugh at the bizarre video clips then went to bed.
The next day I got up and rushed over to Medley Hall to unpack. Most of the bags stayed on the floor for most of the week until I finally got a chance to put things away. I had lunch and then went to footy training for a game of Medley and JCH vs Trinity seconds. (Our colleges are that small we have to combine and go into the second division.) Saturday night I went to a 19th birthday party in Brunswick for a distant friend from high-school.
Sunday we played footy and won by about 8 goals to just a few behinds. I didn’t exactly do too much to help us win. It started raining but it was all in fun, but made being tackled into the mud kind of fun.
This semester I again get a 9 O’clock start everyday but this time on three days I finish at 5:15pm and another 4:15pm, even though I’ve got only 20 hours compared to 24 last semester. I was dissapointed not to get Marty Ross, who was on Catalyst (ABC TV) the Thursday just before uni started, for Applied Mathematics Advanced, as I had to take the 9 O’clock stream. I remember him from a MUMS seminar from earlier this year, and was great. Maybe for a subject in the future?
I feel glad in some ways that my time table is more spread as it will give me more of a chance to talk to other students and study together rather than just going back to college. There’s been a few Applied maths stuff I’ve been stuck on and would be great to have some people to help me (and me help them).
My subjects for this semester are:
| 136105 | Science, Philosophy and History |
| 620122 | Mathematics B (Advanced) |
| 620123 | Applied Mathematics (Advanced) |
| 640122 | Physics B (Adv) |
Science, Philosophy and history has proved to be extremely interesting and a great contrast from the other subjects in my course. And writing this entry is detracting from my editing of my mini-paper due tommorow. The first Monday I also felt very over stimulated with all the new faces!
On Thursday night we started to play a game called spoons at our college where we are given these (cheap) woodern spoons. We have to hold them in our hands and if someone else from our college taps us on the shoulder while they are not being held in the hands, and says our first and last names you loose your spoon. The aim to be the last holding their spoon. I managed to get SW’s spoon after about 10 minutes when he was on the Medley Hall computers and had the spoon on his lap. He was reluctant to give it to me. About an hour later, I stupidly took SW’s spoon with me instead of my own, someone noticed and I was thus out of the game. (I would’ve but then I would’ve dropped a bowl that was balanced on top of a plate I was going to wash.)
On Friday I took my double bass to the university and into my Maths B Advanced lecture. And did I sweat! I later took it to Newman College for the Intercollegiate Melbourne University Symphony Orchester. (ICMUSO). We practiced some of The Carnivals of the Animals and Carmen. (and something else…) Just so everybody knows we want more string players, and they don’t nessersarily need to be in college. (Just given preference, but shouldn’t matter for string people.) Also it isn’t like we’re playing super hard music either.
On Saturday I went out with my grandmother and her partner to a restaurant in Lygon street and had gnocci with a vegetarian sauce. It was definitely one of the best meals I’d had in ages, but I can’t think of that places name right now.
Later that night I had some high school friends over for dinner and showed them around Medley Hall for those that hadn’t seen the place yet. We later went to ‘The Night Cat’ in Fitzroy which was very busy and smokey. I had a few Hightail Mountain Goat’s which I found out was a very tasty beer. I saw one guy from the intercollegiate orchestra who I’d invited and a few people from college came down later. It was a fun night with lots of fun dancing.
Before I go, I’m just real happy to know that soon bananas will be affordable!
Rick
It’s good to know that there’s other people stuck with applied maths too! It’s so frustrating! We should organise a study group or something…
Cya in maths
Kim
I must say I don’t quite feel the same as you about Applied Maths Kim. It’s an elective for me and although I’ve found it challenging so far, it is still enjoyable.
After every Maths B lecture I’ll usually talk to some people to find out what their doing. We often decide to goto the Ballieu Library or in a student study area in the Richard Berry building. I’m also interested in going to the ERC Library just because the windows seem to have a good view.
If you know who I am, just come and say hi and you could join me and anyone else that is doing something similar. (And more regular times could be formed.)
I shouldn’t be here at all since I’m not a first-year, but I find the blog interesting and thought I’d note that your Applied lecturer is not known for giving particularly good explanations; if you’re in need of help your study group should be your first stop, but if you need a bit more feel free to drop into the MUMS room any time, as I’m sure we’ll be happy to help you. Applied is an awesome subject (and happens to be the easiest maths subject besides introductory), so don’t let a bad lecturer put you off.
(Editor’s note: It’s not just for first years – please keep reading and thanks for your comments!)
Strange, Applied Maths advanced seems so much harder than maths B advanced. The problem with Applied maths so far is that there is so many ways that you can try to tackle a problem and it is often hard to see the correct one. While maths B relies more on proofs which follow from how the formula or whatever it happens to be.
Funny I happen to be in the MUMS room right now. I’ll do some physics here though. Test next week.
Well then, a warning. 😀 Remember to log out when you leave the MUMS room, because Macs suck and don’t close the browser completely when you hit the x, and the MUMS computers never go off. I was nice and logged you out… but I could have done horrible, horrible things.
I guess the difference between Applied and Maths B is that one is applied and one is pure, so you have to think in different ways. I think Maths B is more difficult conceptually, especially as you’re learning about proofs mostly at the same time, but as you said Applied does involve being able to choose the right methods. That’s something you do pick up as you go along; it’s easier if you do it naturally, but it’s not something you can’t learn. And as I mentioned, a lot depends on the lecturer; Lawrence is pretty awesome and good at explaining stuff (though he’s not very good at making paper planes!), while I think Ole is really more of a research person. If you do 233 (advanced Vector Analysis) next year then you will probably have him again.
Good luck for the physics test. I managed to fail one of those in 121.
Yeah, I was a bit silly. But it might also be to do with the way the login session here deletes cookies. I’ve often come back to forums days later and found myself already logged on, along with google services which seems to like to stay logged on unless you close the browser. (I notice the browsers usually arn’t closed there.)
Now I must say I do have some Applied Maths Issues. Bloody Homogenous seperable equations. (Hope I’m naming that right.)
Well, you know how it is, we don’t close the browsers until they crash. 😀 Which isn’t that often even on the antiquated iMacs!
What problems are you having? Separable equations are usually pretty easy to solve once you… separate them and recognise the integrals on either side. At least homogeneous ones are easier than inhomogeneous (which I assume you haven’t yet covered).
I’m definitely coming in for a visit sometime. We can have heaps of fun telling me how to solve the problem!
The MUMS room has been full of Applied students trying to solve said problems lately 😀