Naked Science Forum

Non Life Sciences => Chemistry => Topic started by: Simulated on 17/07/2007 21:34:50

Title: Is this the 9th Grade Science or 12th Grade Science...
Post by: Simulated on 17/07/2007 21:34:50
I don't know if I'm taking Physics or Chemistry for my freshman year. I always mess these two up.

Could someone explain the difference? Maybe its good that I'm on a Science Chat site to help me out. I ain't that great at Science or Math..Sad actually, but I'm still getting a 3.966 LoL. The only ones that are not A's..Stupid A-'s.
Title: Is this the 9th Grade Science or 12th Grade Science...
Post by: DoctorBeaver on 17/07/2007 21:57:52
Chemists make things go bang & physicists explain why it happened  [:D]
Title: Is this the 9th Grade Science or 12th Grade Science...
Post by: Simulated on 17/07/2007 22:41:43
So which one do you think a freshman would take? LoL> I wanna make things go BANG! LoL. I heard our teacher lit the table on fire LoL. So which is that.
Title: Is this the 9th Grade Science or 12th Grade Science...
Post by: another_someone on 17/07/2007 23:17:46
Chemistry is almost completely practical, tangible; physics can cover a wide spectrum (but then, so is chemistry, particularly when you add biochemistry), but some aspects of it can be extremely theoretical.

Physicists can make things go bang too (just look at the A-bomb - do you need a bigger bang than that?).

In the long term, I suppose one question is what kind of industry would you like to work for?  Where are chemists working, and where are physicists working (they sometimes work for the same companies, but they also have different niches - like petrochemicals and pharmaceuticals for chemistry, or aeronautics or designing new technologies for the electronics industry, as a physicist).  Ofcourse, this is highly simplistic, and I am sure there are many professionals in both industries who will tell you about the wide range of work in which both groups can lead.  There is also a great deal of further specialisation within both those broad categories, as well as much overlap (physical chemistry, etc.).
Title: Is this the 9th Grade Science or 12th Grade Science...
Post by: Simulated on 18/07/2007 01:31:59
Oh makes since, but I'm still lost. HAHA. Thanks Another_Someone. Only if I knew your name..
Title: Is this the 9th Grade Science or 12th Grade Science...
Post by: kdlynn on 18/07/2007 05:08:58
ryan... i know i'm ancient (lol) but when i was in high school, freshman year was general science, sophomore year was biology, junior year was chemistry, and senior year was physics.
Title: Is this the 9th Grade Science or 12th Grade Science...
Post by: kdlynn on 18/07/2007 05:09:53
but... i graduated in '01
Title: Is this the 9th Grade Science or 12th Grade Science...
Post by: Cut Chemist on 18/07/2007 07:23:40
In highschool...


Chemistry
mainly focuses on:

Units and conversions: volume, mass, concentrations

The periodic table:  molecular mass, atomic number, atoms, isotopes, ions, periodic trends

Molecules: Mole theory (how to compare different molecules), VESPR Theory (different types of molecules, and how atoms bond to each other)

Thermodynamics:  If reaction will go boom and when.  Also, heat transfer, and energies associated with reactions

Phases of Matter:  Gas Laws, Phase diagrams (when a compound will be a solid, liquid, or gas), energy transfers

Reaction Kinetics:   How fast or slow a reaction will occur, or if it will occur at all.  Equilibrium (how far will a reaction proceed)



Physics focuses on:

Units and conversions:  mass, distance, force, acceleration, and velocity.

Forces:  Gravity, Electrical (repulsion and attraction), Centripital and Centrifugal

Energy:  kinetic, potential, magnetic, electrical

Momentum:  the product of the mass and velocity of an object, (Inertia)

Work:  the amount of energy transferred by a force

Power:  the amount of work done or energy transferred per unit of time



As others have stated:
Chemistry and Physics go hand in hand

...and if you are planning to go to college...

If you major in chemistry you will have to take two semesters of physics, and
If you major in physics you will have to take two semesters of chemistry



As far as a career...(I may be biased towards chemistry)

Chemists tend to spend their time in a lab running experiments, or doing tests.  Chemistry focuses on making useful compounds, testing known compounds for purity, developing new analytical techniques, developing ways to make new compounds, or developing new ways to make old compounds.  Also many aspects of biochemistry are not completely understood, so alot of research is going into understanding what we don't currently understand, and developing new ways to counter problems in the health fields (pharmacology, and medicinal chemistry.)


Physicists spend their time doing calculations.  It seems that much of modern day physics is already known, and most of the research going on now in physics has to do with studying the cosmos for currently unknown sources of energy, or different ways of interpreting the laws of physics we already have.  It seems like every physicist is searching for a way to tie every type of energy together into a unified theory of energy, and most of the current research is directed into outerspace (cosmology.)  ...But there are careers that employ ideas of physics that are already known.  Many of them are in the engineering field. 

Title: Is this the 9th Grade Science or 12th Grade Science...
Post by: kdlynn on 18/07/2007 08:02:06
or you could do what i did... my junior year i took physics and the senior boys did all of my work for me, and then senior year i took chemistry and the junior boys did it all for me. lol. i just took notes on the experiments and typed it all up. as i said, i didn't used to like science.
Title: Is this the 9th Grade Science or 12th Grade Science...
Post by: eric l on 18/07/2007 08:30:38
In my career I became somewhat specialized in "physical chemistry", which (put a bit idealistically)studies the relation between chemical structure and physical properties.  So I am rather well acquainted with both.
Physics tend to be close to maths, both on the high school level and as a career.  It is mainly desktop work. 
Chemistry will be benchtop work :  more experimental, or, as a career, starting the development of a process or product on lab scale (volumes in the order of 1 liter), up-scaling to pilot scale (working with volumes in the order of 100 liter) and later production scale (working with tons of product).
Both will involve a lot of theory.  In physics, most of that will relate to things that can be observed with the naked eye.  In chemistry, the theory will be more about molecular and atomic structures, rather than things you can see with the naked eye.
I hope this may help you making your choice, and wish you success whichever way you choose.
Title: Is this the 9th Grade Science or 12th Grade Science...
Post by: lightarrow on 18/07/2007 15:58:57
In my career I became somewhat specialized in "physical chemistry", which (put a bit idealistically)studies the relation between chemical structure and physical properties.  So I am rather well acquainted with both.
Physics tend to be close to maths, both on the high school level and as a career.  It is mainly desktop work. 
Chemistry will be benchtop work :  more experimental, or, as a career, starting the development of a process or product on lab scale (volumes in the order of 1 liter), up-scaling to pilot scale (working with volumes in the order of 100 liter) and later production scale (working with tons of product).
Both will involve a lot of theory.  In physics, most of that will relate to things that can be observed with the naked eye.  In chemistry, the theory will be more about molecular and atomic structures, rather than things you can see with the naked eye.
I hope this may help you making your choice, and wish you success whichever way you choose.
Physics is more difficult than Chemistry, and it requires studying mathematics much more deeply, infact you could end asking yourself if you actually studied Physics or Mathematics. Chemists found a job easier than Physicists, and are usually even better paid.
If you feel a real love for Physics, then do it, otherwise do Chemistry. This is my friendly advice.
Title: Is this the 9th Grade Science or 12th Grade Science...
Post by: Bored chemist on 18/07/2007 20:24:24
I'm intrerested to see that, according to the list, chemistry doesn't seem to focus on analysis or synthesis.
The maths for physics is more complex than that needed for chemistry but there are a lot more facts to learn in chemistry so it's a matter of opinion whether one is more difficult than the other. I'm also uncertain that most of the theories in physics relate to macroscopic things as Eric says. Most of the theories in quantum mechanics, string theory, and relativity happen on too small or too fast a scale for anyone to really see.
In general I agree with lightarrow's advice with one addition.
If you aren't good at maths you will struggle with physics.
Title: Is this the 9th Grade Science or 12th Grade Science...
Post by: Simulated on 19/07/2007 00:13:57
Oh I know its on of the two..Thanks for the information everyone!
Title: Is this the 9th Grade Science or 12th Grade Science...
Post by: lightarrow on 19/07/2007 11:59:01
I'm also uncertain that most of the theories in physics relate to macroscopic things as Eric says. Most of the theories in quantum mechanics, string theory, and relativity happen on too small or too fast a scale for anyone to really see.
Yes, at university, you stop studying macroscopic laws after Physics 1 exam (Classical Mechanics)...
Already with Physics 2 (Electrodynamics) you begin studying fields, microscopic laws and Special Relativity. Then you will study: Theoretical Physics Foundations (essentially, Quantum Mechanics), Structure of Matter, and, depending on your specialization: Nuclear Physics, Elementary Particles, Quantum Optics, Condensed States of Matter, Astrophysics, Sanitary Physics (radioctivity), Theoretical Physics (essentially Quantum Field Theory and General Relativity)...At least here in Italy these are the most important subjects and specializations.
Title: Is this the 9th Grade Science or 12th Grade Science...
Post by: another_someone on 19/07/2007 12:08:44
The maths for physics is more complex than that needed for chemistry but there are a lot more facts to learn in chemistry so it's a matter of opinion whether one is more difficult than the other.

That is why I probably always got on better with physics - I am not good at remembering arbitrary facts, but much prefer to understand relationships, and extrapolate the facts from them.
Title: Is this the 9th Grade Science or 12th Grade Science...
Post by: Simulated on 19/07/2007 14:51:55
This is getting to complicated for me. Its summer. Guess I should have never asked. Oh well. I'll just keep going over it until I get it.

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