This Video Isn’t for Everyone, But If You’re Here, You’ll Get It - One Student’s Struggle with Math

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  • Опубліковано 28 січ 2025

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  • @joshgarcia6344
    @joshgarcia6344 3 місяці тому +46

    I had to make flashcards to memorize every basic integral and derivative, all the trig indenties, inverse trig, application formulas, as well as all of the integration techniques. The hard part for me was the algebra to manipulate the integrals to get them to a form that made them easy to integrate. That came with just repetition, repetition, repetition.

    • @rwharrington87
      @rwharrington87 3 місяці тому

      I've done/continue to do the same thing. Anki is a great free spaced repetition flashcard app I recommend people check out if they haven't already.

    • @arctic215
      @arctic215 3 місяці тому

      same story here, repetition/practice really is everything

    • @chrisp14
      @chrisp14 3 місяці тому

      I am in precalculas right now. Been a LONG time since high school for me. Did you have a hard time with it?

    • @joshgarcia6344
      @joshgarcia6344 3 місяці тому +1

      @@chrisp14 Funny enough, I went back to school after working for a long time. I think it was 10 years after I graduated high school and had forgotten pretty much all of the basics. My first class was pre-calc and I remember being completely lost. I suffered those first couple months but I was lucky that my professor dropped our lowest test. I had to relearn the basics while learning new material. I ended up with an A- in that class. You just have to try really hard. You need to be completely honest with yourself in how well you know the material and if you don't know it well, you need to ask yourself if you really do want an A. I had to be real with myself, and ask myself if I really did everything I could to try and remember the material. With every bit of time that I had, did I really study as best I could? I had to ask myself this question after the first test, which I failed. I knew that I hadn't done everything I could. I knew that I could make extra time and to not be lazy and try my damn hardest to study as hard as I could. This same thought process is what I took with me throughout all my studies. Its not easy. You will make big sacrifices if you really want those A's. So basically what I'm trying to say is TLDR: Be honest with yourself. Do you really want it?

  • @nilavakar8068
    @nilavakar8068 3 місяці тому +86

    If someone wants to pass math exam, creating formula charts and revising them daily should help you to get very good marks, and keep 3 hours to solve problems.. try to solve as many problems as you can in three hours... don't ever go beyond 3 hours, while practicing exam problems.... it does not matter how many problems you can solve given an infinite amount of time, you need to solve as many problems as you can in 3 hours...

    • @sebastiancarreras2964
      @sebastiancarreras2964 3 місяці тому +4

      Great piece of advice. Thanks 👍

    • @1Nahi
      @1Nahi 3 місяці тому +1

      Why specifically 3 hours? Do you start seeing diminishing returns? I’m self studying precalculus and calculus and I try to do 5-6 hours daily

    • @santiqwerty
      @santiqwerty 3 місяці тому +2

      ​@@1Nahi3 hours is the time they often give you for an exam

    • @nilavakar8068
      @nilavakar8068 3 місяці тому

      @@santiqwerty exactly

    • @jacobharris5894
      @jacobharris5894 3 місяці тому +3

      Daily practice tests + doing homework + prepping for class + paying attention in class + productive note taking + attending office hours + health + planning = good grades. Add time + self study into the equation and that equals decent understanding.

  • @user-lm6ro4ec9v
    @user-lm6ro4ec9v 3 місяці тому +3

    “I’m surprised I have any subscribers.”
    So modest! We love you!

  • @ekmackenzie
    @ekmackenzie 3 місяці тому +2

    I'm 55, getting a math degree, and have a terrible long-term memory...we got this! Thank you MS!!

  • @Lolleka
    @Lolleka 3 місяці тому +20

    I vividly recommend the legendary Visual Complex Analysis by Tristan Needham to whoever needs to brush up on trig and geometry.

  • @rwharrington87
    @rwharrington87 3 місяці тому +5

    That's funny you mention your experience with integration of a solid about an axis. I had a very similar experience. Completely baffled me the first time around. When I went back to it a year later it made complete sense.

  • @kdog3908
    @kdog3908 3 місяці тому +6

    I feel this pain. Understanding the idea is the easy part. Remembering it and making careless mistakes are my twin nemeses! Typically, I could watch a maths subject that's, technically, beyond me and understand it as someone goes through it. Recently it was the W Lambert function. It makes sense. I could follow it through as it was being explained. No problem. If I was asked to tackle a problem using the W Lambert half a day later and i'd be lost.

    • @flashbarry296
      @flashbarry296 3 місяці тому

      Heavy on the careless mistakes! I still struggle with this! It’s so annoying!

  • @georgesadler7830
    @georgesadler7830 3 місяці тому +9

    Learning Advanced Mathematics comes with doing many problems. Memorize all the formulas that you need. Please use Calculus One playlist videos. Professor V, Leonard and the Math Sorcerer have playlist on Calculus One.

  • @CosmicAerospace
    @CosmicAerospace 3 місяці тому +11

    I’ve got a continuous time signal exam tomorrow. Studied hard… Wish me luck:)

    • @hari.sheldon
      @hari.sheldon 2 місяці тому

      How did it go

    • @jimmea6317
      @jimmea6317 Місяць тому

      Im taking that class right now, it’s definitely my favorite area of electrical engineering

  • @LivingTheDreamAcademy
    @LivingTheDreamAcademy 3 місяці тому +1

    What Mr. Phil is experiencing is really something normal. I am one of the students that used to fail math a lot on my lower grades until I took a decision to tutor other students, you don't have to be the best but to be the one who is always ready to seek understanding. Join study groups, allow others to educate you, share your experience and knowledge, don't feel like you are being belittled when you are being corrected.
    MY OPINION:
    No one learns everything in class. As the sorcerer has said, when you have to teach what you have been taught you get to find out new things that you didn't understand back then. My conclusion is that, go teach others this little information you feel like you have. Understand where all these formulas came from.

  • @Bubs.
    @Bubs. 3 місяці тому +4

    My thoughts on this is that you are going to run into stuff that you don’t remember and you’re just going to have to look it up. There are so so many random little formulas and concepts between trig, algebra and geometry that you’re guaranteed to run into something you don’t remember. Just accept that as part of the challenge and look up that info when you need to and do your best to remember it. The more problems you do, the more you’ll run into and the more prepared you’ll be for your exams

  • @diegotorres2101
    @diegotorres2101 3 місяці тому +6

    I'm a math undergrad, and I'm not sure if this isn't applicable to most people, but for me, the best learning tool for me is to construct stuff from scratch, if I can create it myself and I can get the very very fundamental ideas behind it, I have less stuff I need to remember in strictly longterm memory, and moreso stuff that transfers from the level of memory to the level of intuition if that makes sense. Ofc, a big part of this is that I already have a very good idea and practice for making proofs and certain problem-solving skills, but I do think that a very good tool to learn is the ability to find that "core" of a new concept, and generally that core is something that you can then translate down into something simpler or more intuitive, the faster you get at finding (or creating!) those cores, the faster you get at learning, but that's my experience as a math undergrad that has also done mostly self-study cuz math education kinda bad in DR (dominican republic) T_T

    • @aquamanxz2
      @aquamanxz2 3 місяці тому

      Out of curiosity, do you still retain what you learned. I am math major and a lot of it has gone. I want to go back to school and pursue further education

    • @diegotorres2101
      @diegotorres2101 3 місяці тому +1

      @@aquamanxz2 Well, I don't have to retain the whole thing, just by getting at the core concept of something, I can remake it. A good example would be that I have a friend in Comp Sci taking a course in linear algebra, which I have not done in quite a while, however when moving through different decomposition methods and change of basis and such, just the very basic visual in my mind of how a linear transformation warps space and such were enough to help me click stuff pretty quickly, ofc there were things I had to look up, but I can usually pick up the pace pretty quickly, that's the idea

  • @the.overthinking.bee2
    @the.overthinking.bee2 3 місяці тому +1

    a great way to find out by yourself the volume of a sphere is to know how to prove/retrieve it using spherical coordinate system + integration
    (which is a mandatory know-how in undergraduate physics)

  • @martinhawrylkiewicz2025
    @martinhawrylkiewicz2025 3 місяці тому +5

    I would recommend getting some flash cards and write the formulas down, take them with you everywhere you go, and keep reviewing them while studying. It helps.

  • @rodneycummings1456
    @rodneycummings1456 3 місяці тому +1

    My calculus professors always gave the class the geometric formulas needed to solve the problem. We were only expected to know how to do the calculus and of course the algebra needed to solve the problem.

  • @KenCunkle
    @KenCunkle 3 місяці тому +2

    Yeah, I remember having the same problem. I still do. Honestly, there are days when I have trouble remembering the quadratic equation. In the end, all that worked for me was to actually sit down and learn the why's of whatever formula I needed to remember. That, plus repetitive use, was the only thing that would make it stick.

  • @BarbaraPrice-s1p
    @BarbaraPrice-s1p Місяць тому

    Determine what is the smallest number of basic facts you need know, then derive the rest as needed. My memory skills are non-existent. This worked extremely well for me, plus got me very familiar with how things are inter-related. Memorize as little as possible.

  • @pauljarski7590
    @pauljarski7590 3 місяці тому

    Great advice! Also, I’d suggest that instead of just memorizing formulas, you should drill proofs of the formulas. That way, even if you forget the exact formula, you might be able to recover it from what you do know. Also you’ll develop your intuitions for proofs.
    The other day I needed a geometric series formula. My colleagues who had forgotten the formula, 1/(1-a), missed the question, but I had learned a more general version of the formula, involving a limit of partial sums, so I was able to answer the question, with a couple extra steps.

  • @livvielov
    @livvielov 3 місяці тому

    Remembering stuff is hard and understanding is harder but doing something hard is how you learn so if you seek to understand and therefore connect the knowledge together you'll learn it way better than if you tried to only memorize

  • @pikep4816
    @pikep4816 3 місяці тому +27

    The more exercises you do; the better you'll get. You don't need to remember the formulas at the beginning; but learn how to use them.

    • @corbinwilson660
      @corbinwilson660 3 місяці тому

      I’d argue that if you are stellar at the theory, the practice becomes really blatantly obvious. I used to just work the problems. Then slowly shifted over to making sure I know the theory really well, and maybe I spent more time studying, or building these ideas up. But I got way better at taking tests.

  • @jasonthomas2908
    @jasonthomas2908 3 місяці тому

    I just finished an Abstract Algebra course as an undergrad. It was very frustrating, but at the end to learn I got a "credit", wow what a feeling. I think learning maths is an exercise in learning how to back yourself and your abilities.

  • @mgbow-1982
    @mgbow-1982 3 місяці тому

    When I was taking the PE, I was amazed how difficult people make problems out to be. You have to "learn to play the game". Work problems, more problems, and even more problems. It is tempting to see a hard problem and think that it is impossible. Often - we will get more information in a problem than what is needed. It is like anything daunting, it is easier to take things step by step or piece by piece to do an entire task. If you look at it from the piece-wise prospective instead of the dauting overall prospective, it might make life in general easier to deal with. This works for math in general. I also made a lot of cheat sheets in college and also for the PE exam (Professional Engineering exam) - writing out those cheat sheets reinforces formulas. I also know I am a step by step learner, so I would often make myself step by step instructions for each type of problem. That seems to work to accomplish the goal: work problems, problems, problems.

  • @list1726
    @list1726 3 місяці тому

    Thanks for posting

  • @MiroMai
    @MiroMai 3 місяці тому

    Flashcards! After a physics degree I got a little bit lost and started a math related masters degree after a while. Couldn't even remember how to use logarithms. Creating flashcards is slow, but the gain is exponential :) There was a moment when I found a faster solution than the instructor and he is teaching it for many years. I would consider myself one of the bottom third of the IQ range in the classes and I am now on top. You can do it too.

  • @BarbaraPrice-s1p
    @BarbaraPrice-s1p 3 місяці тому

    When I started college, I failed the trig part of my placement test. I had swapped sin and cos. It had been 4 years since I’d done any trig! They wanted me to take remedial trig! I finally convinced them to let me retake the test, which of course I aced. Phew.

  • @solarwinds5114
    @solarwinds5114 3 місяці тому +2

    That was definitely the hardest concept in Calc 1 for me.

  • @josiahbrooks-oe6ze
    @josiahbrooks-oe6ze 3 місяці тому

    This will be my third time take a. Mathematics class for college but for I taking brush up classes first before returning in spring semester praying to I get pass this semester classes

  • @tomtackett2853
    @tomtackett2853 3 місяці тому

    I totally understand this, particularly with geometry topics. I do a lot of competition math and a lot of the time I can understand where a problem is going or how to start it, but I can’t remember a theorem or formula from geometry or trig and I’m not able to finish it. It is very frustrating, but I’ve come to terms with the fact that I don’t need to win competitions to be a successful mathematician (or engineer) and that as long as you understand the topics, you can always just look up the formulas if you actually need them

  • @davidhill8163
    @davidhill8163 3 місяці тому

    Can absolutely relate. It gets me down so now I use phased repetition techniques.

  • @FabiansLab
    @FabiansLab 3 місяці тому

    I personally like to write down every section that is covered in the book. I then do a few problems from every section. I then go back to the sections where i didnt do well and look up math videos and read the material again until i am solving them correctly

  • @BabdoSilentMovies-ku1jt
    @BabdoSilentMovies-ku1jt 3 місяці тому

    I think the best way to recall math is applying math on something more concrete that you love ... if you love a sport like badminton apply all the math that you know to your favorite badminton sport. This could be a game changer for you...

  • @ekmackenzie
    @ekmackenzie 3 місяці тому

    AI in the quiz let section REALLY help with this "reworking and re going over" of topics!

  • @anniesizemore3344
    @anniesizemore3344 3 місяці тому

    Some things in math are easier for me to remember than other things. I have to believe the more I do certain math problems-the more likely it will became instinctive how to work the math out. . Mostly right now, its continuity principals.

  • @logicwizard783
    @logicwizard783 3 місяці тому

    I tend to find that things become (especially to me) a LOT easier to memorize, when you see where they come from and how they're created. This heavily goes with formulas. Understanding trig derivatives, just as a simple example, would've been something I think I would've struggled with remembering, but since I looked at the proofs, that made it easier for my brain to link the functions to their derivative counterparts.
    Geometry formulas and algebraic formulas fall under this umbrella as well.

  • @elisabethdabrowski1098
    @elisabethdabrowski1098 3 місяці тому

    you can read formulas out loud into the record app on you phone and then put that on from time to time. That combined with flash cards is worth it. I have severe dyslexia I appreciate the challenge. Start with simple formulas, sine squared theta plus cosine squared theta equals one.

  • @douglasstrother6584
    @douglasstrother6584 3 місяці тому +2

    Be persistent, and do an autopsy on you exam with the Professor and/or Teaching Assistant.
    It isn't any fun; however, it demonstrates that you are dedicated to being successful in the face of set-backs.

  • @KamBha
    @KamBha 3 місяці тому

    I am currently self studying calculus and have found myself being thrown by cylindrical shells and the disc method. Thanks for letting me feel less like an idiot :) I am going to say something controversial and say that I never understood why memorisation is considered so important in STEM. As someone self studying, me not memorising things have never stopped me from learning more complex maths.

  • @josephgrossenbacher7642
    @josephgrossenbacher7642 3 місяці тому

    to really understand something is probably the best way to remember it ;
    but as long as you foremost deal with "formula-maths", nothing really matters ... !

  • @Xponent-nb3he
    @Xponent-nb3he 3 місяці тому

    I just flopped senior maths challenge i strongly relate to the feeling

  • @Pandemonium-n9b
    @Pandemonium-n9b 3 місяці тому

    I tinker from time to time but i can not organize my math I start and discard it because of the clutter it builds

  • @pepperpeterpiperpickled9805
    @pepperpeterpiperpickled9805 3 місяці тому

    Spaced repetition software (supermemo and Anki) are guaranteed to encode information deeply into your long term memory.

  • @AdityaSingh-ol3vb
    @AdityaSingh-ol3vb 3 місяці тому +15

    Brh you looks like newton 💀

    • @Poke-X4
      @Poke-X4 3 місяці тому +2

      🤫🤫🤫

    • @GizmoMaltese
      @GizmoMaltese 3 місяці тому +6

      lol, no greater compliment is possible for a math sorcerer.

    • @AdityaSingh-ol3vb
      @AdityaSingh-ol3vb 3 місяці тому

      @@GizmoMaltese for real !

    • @FabiansLab
      @FabiansLab 3 місяці тому

      He's about on the same level as Isaac newton

    • @angleth
      @angleth 3 місяці тому

      @@FabiansLab he's maybe just a bit higher

  • @kennyborek615
    @kennyborek615 3 місяці тому +5

    I’m in my first year of graduate school as a masters student, and I’m struggling a lot in Topology.
    This may be due to the fact that I’m also taking Functional Analysis and Intro to PDE’s.
    I failed my first exam in topology which was the first time I failed a math test in 3 years. I recognized all the problems from previous homework’s but I froze up and forgot how to apply everything. Thankfully she drops the lowest exam.
    I have been behind in all of my classes as when I first started them I struggled with a method to retain the information from lectures/ the textbook.
    I noticed I’m doing better than I did originally so I’m taking the improvements as they come and I am going to review the exam with my professor.
    I hope everyone going through a similar situation knows they aren’t alone and can get through it!

    • @TurinShroud
      @TurinShroud 3 місяці тому +1

      Functional analysis is pretty damn hard. Lmao.

  • @nazombie7935
    @nazombie7935 3 місяці тому

    I struggle with long term memory in my pure mathematics courses, I cannot remember definitions too well when trying to write a proof and sometimes I find it hard to comprehend mathematical terms in abstract algebra, linear algebra, and proofs courses. I have to create a basic example and sometimes with the terms I cannot see a example that fits the concept or term

  • @wannabeactuary01
    @wannabeactuary01 3 місяці тому

    with hindsight there are a lot of tricks which save time and memory - decades too late for me but repetition is great for fun but inefficient for exams
    exp(ix) = cosx + isinx
    exp(i(x+y)) = cos(x+y) + isin(x+y)
    =exp(ix)expiy) = cosx cosy - sinx siny +i cosx sin y +sin x cos y
    So
    cos (x+y) = cos x cos y - sin x sin y
    volume sphere V = 4/3 pr r^3
    surface area sphere V' = 4 pi r^2
    Not always works but
    area of circle A = pi r^2
    circumference A' = 2 pi r
    etc People who are much better than it than me will have better tricks.

  • @marlanarsi2590
    @marlanarsi2590 3 дні тому

    I doesn't matter you failed ..you still learnt stuff and in real life when solving problems you would have access to formulas and calculor 😊😊😊, also it easier to remember stuff if you know how they came up with it😊😊😊

  • @CriticalCurves
    @CriticalCurves 3 місяці тому

    Not giving the volume of a sphere equation on that exam is criminal! Then not giving any points is even worse! What a terrible professor

  • @medicisounds1384
    @medicisounds1384 3 місяці тому

    I wish exams weren't all about memory.
    If they give you the formula and you know how to manipulate the formula then it shows you know.
    If you have to memorize everything it's just memory prowess

  • @JJ-bj6hg
    @JJ-bj6hg 3 місяці тому

    If it's the same things he needs to create a memory palace of the formulas.

  • @ravenecho2410
    @ravenecho2410 3 місяці тому

    I used to have problems remembering things in math, but i think fully understanding the gists of the proofs the rationale and why - instead of a collection of facts its more like...
    I remember this and this, i know yhis identity so this must be this...
    Like for instance on the expansion for cosine like i know sine must equal its derivatives and i know that the sum must get smaller and i know it had a buch of x^k/k! And it alternates and cos(0)=1
    Cos = 1 - x**2/2 + x**4/4! + ...
    Sine = x - x**3/3! + ....
    Similarly for e i know it has all terms and it is strictly monoincrease so its all positive terms
    Its things like this to where u might need to double check but yeah. Reduce it down to like a couple of parts.

  • @climito
    @climito 3 місяці тому

    The title is in propositional logic

  • @tmann986
    @tmann986 3 місяці тому +1

    I just got out of a differential equations exam, I barely got an 80% 😅

  • @saberlite8809
    @saberlite8809 3 місяці тому +4

    Blink and breathe manually

  • @jonathanlomeli-romero6125
    @jonathanlomeli-romero6125 3 місяці тому

    I completely bombed my first Calc 1 exam, even after studying day and night. Because of this, I have felt less confident in myself and haven't been studying as much for the second one. I feel like my long-term memory played a part in why I failed.
    What do you recommend I do to get my confidence back up?
    Love your vids🤘

  • @wasabi102
    @wasabi102 3 місяці тому

    I’m in calc 1 and I’m really really struggling right now and I’m at a dead end. I just want to give up. I’m not getting the proper help and I just feel like I’ll never understand these concepts…

    • @lepidoptera9337
      @lepidoptera9337 3 місяці тому

      Do what university students do: learn in a group. Chances of finding somebody who already has a particular concept figured out are fairly high in a group. That student can explain it to the others and other students will know other stuff in return. That way you are all learning together how to explain these concepts better to yourself and others. Sharing also makes it easier to remember the material.

    • @wasabi102
      @wasabi102 3 місяці тому

      @@lepidoptera9337 I tried that and no one wants to communicate.🥲 it’s a fully asynchronous course and I sent messages to everyone in my class to form a group but no one was interested and everyone in this class is struggling too😭 so yeah

  • @dj2turnt278
    @dj2turnt278 3 місяці тому

    Im not sure you will see this, however, If you do, I am having trouble organizing my work for calculus 2. When a specific problem calls for us to integrate a function two or more times using trig subs or IBP, I lose myself in my work. I would greatly appreciate any ideas. I tried using different color ink or lead, however, that cost me points due to having to cross out mistakes. Without wasting a lot of paper, is there any technology or paper formatting ideas that could help me organize my work more efficiently? Thank you for everyones time.

  • @GizmoMaltese
    @GizmoMaltese 3 місяці тому

    Don't just memorize formulas. Moreover, if you asked the teacher during the exam he might have just put the formula on the board if he's a fair guy.

  • @AverageYoutuber6615
    @AverageYoutuber6615 3 місяці тому

    Hi math Sorcerer can you do a video showing us your degrees thank you.

  • @happywifehappylife-u2x
    @happywifehappylife-u2x 3 місяці тому

    Ironically you said you have a bad memory but in other videos when you talked about biology you said you have a good memory…

  • @Haki-dd4ix
    @Haki-dd4ix 3 місяці тому

    I choose math as a subject in school, but im struggling😅. My main problem is that math feels so abstract, like when will i ever use it and why would it be good to know math? Therefor i lack that desire to want to learn like i do in other subjects, but i still discipline myself to do it. Do you have an answer to why you should learn math and what it’s used for. Like why do you like math so much😃?

  • @TIMO-lt7mj
    @TIMO-lt7mj 3 місяці тому +3

    If you shave your head, you would look just like Jeff Bezos

  • @Saiphysics6626
    @Saiphysics6626 3 місяці тому

    me like math

  • @rupertbollywood1190
    @rupertbollywood1190 3 місяці тому +1

    Don't listen to this guy. People are naturally good at different things - you could be naturally good at cooking and become a top chef with training, for example. Likewise, you could be naturally good at maths and become a maths teacher. The question should be why, if you're a natural at cooking, would you try to become a maths teacher instead of a trained chef? It's ALL genetics. Talent at maths is extremely rare and highly prized. Either you've got that natural proclivity or you haven't. I haven't. Most people haven't.

    • @loicboucher-dubuc4563
      @loicboucher-dubuc4563 3 місяці тому +1

      I really don’t believe this. I think the average person can definitely conquer most of mathematics, at least definitely at the level of calculus, with the appropriate commitment.

  • @acid_8
    @acid_8 3 місяці тому

    Not for nothing but if there was only a way to replace Bezos with the Math Sorcerer.

  • @drwsld
    @drwsld 3 місяці тому

    Sorry for spamming, but I solved quantum gravity on my UA-cam channel.

  • @Harlyn-g7c
    @Harlyn-g7c 3 місяці тому

    Sir, check your mails, ive been trying to contact you in every possible way