Tips & Tools

Super Helpful Resources

Here are some video lectures from MIT professor Yen-Jie Lee. These videos cover topics you will be introduced to in PHYS 4C, but they demonstrate the concepts with exciting demos. playlist

Here is another video on "The procedure". This is done by my old physics teacher and it is how you solve problems having to do with Newtonian Mechanics! So, many of the problems in PHYS 2A and 4A.

Here are the steps:

Use given, find, solve with a picture.
Draw a free body diagram
label the x-y axis system
Use Newton's 2nd law for the x and y directions.
Solve for the unknown.

Don't know where to start?

If you often find yourself reading a problem over and over again, unsure where to begin, here is a short problem starting exercise! It gives six problems, each with several prompts that should help you figure out how to approach the problem.

Here is also a video on the "Given, Find, Solve" method and an example problem!

Physics - Problem Starting Exercise.pdf

This channel goes through Physics 2A/2B problems step by step. The problems are very similar to the homework students receive.

(Sometimes they are even the same problems!!!)

WNY TutorWNY Tutor provides full-length video solutions to questions in physics, mathematics, chemistry, and other subjects! WNY Tutor is the ONLY channel that offers...

Khanacademy Newton's Laws

Are you struggling with forces and Newton's laws? Khan Academy offers a lot of videos that go in depth on each topic and offer practice problems to review and test your knowledge!

Forces and Newton's laws of motion | Physics library | Khan AcademyThis unit is part of the Physics library. Browse videos, articles, and exercises by topic.

UNder pressure?

Watch this video to relieve some of that stress and learn more about "Absolute & Gauge Pressure"! This is a topic you should be seeing if you are in PHYS 2a or 4a. If you are confused about any other topic, we highly recommend Organic Chemistry Tutor on YouTube as a resource.

Friction Forces

This video explains some different types of friction forces, like static friction, fluid friction, kinetic friction, and rolling friction.

FBD Practice with Friction

If you're struggling with free body diagrams and friction forces, this video works through some problems in detail, and we think it could be helpful if you're struggling!