A Level Maths - Blog Posts
Ah yes, the indescribable urge to fall into a coma for the next six months due to the stress of your five A-level subjects and your EPQ. Such a wonderful feeling.
24/08/2024
I was out of the house for a while today, so I had less time to study, but I still managed to do some of what I was aiming for. I did the next section of my biology summer work, so I’m over halfway
Things achieved today:
Done the next section of my biology work
Finished my applied maths summer work (yay!)
Finished a maths paper I started ages ago but stopped because I was freaking out about it. Marked it and got 78%!! Might be a record for me.
I didn’t finish my maths summer work like I’d aimed on the grounds of me losing the paper I’d been assigned to do. Oops.
Things to do tomorrow:
Do a second pure maths paper
Biology ecology revision
Finish the next chapter of “Junk DNA” and take notes so I remember and understand it
Change EPQ question
Hello there.
Sooo this is the start of my blog I guess?? I'm not entirely sure where to start, but here goes:
I'm currently in the summer between year 11 and 12. I got my GCSE results two days ago (I'm very happy :) ), and next year I'm going to study maths, physics and chemistry alevel, and then self-study further maths (don't know whether or not I'm going to do the exams yet, it's a very long story). What else? I have a cat called Luna who is the actually scientifically the best cat ever (no, this is not up for debate).
Interests:
- Physics! (I'm hoping to do it at uni)
- Maths
- Reading
- Chaotic dark academia
- Marvel and Star Wars
- I assure you I do have other interests however I am very much blanking right now oops
I don't entirely know why I'm starting this. Partly for the *aesthetic* I suppose, mostly for motivation and holding myself accountable. As I'm typing this it kind of just feels like I'm throwing my thoughts into the total abyss that is the internet. Well that's about existential enough for one tumblr post. If anyone sees this, I hope you have a nice morning/day/evening(/life if you never see one of my posts again).
Casual Magic: I pressed some of the flowers I got for results day earlier, post incoming about them.
Theorem: Take a circle, the area of this circle is the same as area of a right triangle that has one leg equal to the radius and one leg equal to the circumference of the circle..
A long time ago in a faraway land people led simple lives by the means of agriculture. There was plenty of food to eat and to be merry. They had roofs on their head and fresh river water flowing nearby. Life seemed perfect but it was not. Every year when the rains 🌂 began, the river nearby would flood into the village and destroy their lands and homes. The people in the village would move to a nearby village for shelter with their cattle. When the rain stopped they used to come back and each time they came back they found their place in destruction. Their houses had to be rebuilt and their lands had to be outlined again. Fights were a common scene on how the outline was before the water washed it away. So the concept of the area came to maintain peace.
Finding areas of lands made with straight lines was easy but how to find the area of a land that is a curve ?
Firstly instead of taking a land made up of crazy curves let's take a land made up of the simplest curve, the circle.Draw a circle and fill in its area. Then divide it into large equal parts and arrange them in a rectangle.
It's not yet a perfect rectangle.So divide the circle in parts and try arranging these sections into a rectangle.You'll get a thing that starts looking like rectangle.
Now as you divide the circle more and more and try to arrange those parts you'll get a more nice rectangle. This more and more is nothing but the concept of limits in calculus.
So the area of the circle is the area of the rectangle.The area of the rectangle is Base×Height. Here the height of the rectangle is the radius of the circle and Base is equal to twice the area of the circle. So cut up the rectangle diagonally and you'll get a right-angled triangle with a Base as the radius of the circle and height as the circumference of a circle.
What does FTC say?
It says that if a person takes the derivative of a function and then integrates it over a region on the number line say [a, b] then this is the same as evaluating the function on its endpoints.
What does the Green's Theorem say?
Green's Theorem is the fundamental theorem of calculus in 2 dimensions.Instead of taking the derivative of a single variable function we take the curl of a 2 variable function.Instead of integrating this over a number line we integrate it on the xy plane.Instead of evaluating the function at the two endpoints a and b and taking the difference, we take the line integral of the function and integrate it around the curve in a counterclockwise direction.
What does the stokes' theorem say?
Stokes' theorem is the fundamental theorem of calculus in 3 dimensions. Instead of taking the derivative of a single variable function, we take the three-dimensional curl. Instead of integrating this over a number line, we integrate it on the surface (To evaluate the surface integral one has to dot the vector field with unit normal vectors). Instead of evaluating the function at the two endpoints a and b and taking the difference, we take the line integral of the function and integrate it around the curve on a surface in a counterclockwise direction just like in Green's Theorem.
A Levels 2019 - an update
I’m not dead (yet!), although after my maths exams I’d like to be 🙃
I’m mad at the paper (Edexcel pure maths paper 2) and I’m even more mad at myself - I didn’t have time to think and overcome the obstacles that presented themselves so I came out of the exam facing the possibility of getting less than 20% and just realising my mistakes and how to do some questions. I was upset. There were tears.
HOWEVER, what’s done is done and I know that whatever letter I get at the end is not representative of my abilities. (I’m talking I might get an E or a U when the lowest I’ve got in my hardest mocks was an A... yeah it was bad.) I have done 7 exams and have 6 left. 2 of them are today, 13th June, the day after my most horrific exam yet - I have to pick myself up and move on.
I can do maths. I have learned so much that will be helpful to me in the future and that’s the main thing. I am 100% not stupid and I am ready to kick arse in my last exams.
Also a word of advice: don’t try to revise a whole module of biology the night before your exam. According to my mum, I woke up with a manic look in my eye xD
18/5/19
17 days until my first A Level exam!
Sorry I’m so inactive - I’ve just been getting speaking exams out the way for French and German.
French went amazingly; German not so much - but then my standards are very high so it will likely still get me good enough marks.
But now I can get stuck into my other 3 subjects! Not a fancy set-up this evening; just my favourite notebook and pens and my trademark cup of tea haha
I hope you are all looking after yourself during this stressful period - especially those who are taking exams, whatever level they may be at x
Revision time!
ft tea and toasted hot cross buns
27/3/19
Coordinate geometry with circles!
I love overcomplicating things, apparently! Anyhow, I got the right answer so I’m good.
Happy Wednesday :)
Good morning, sunshine!
My eyes snapped open at 7:30am so I figured I’d have a wash, stretch out my aching muscles and do some maths. After this I’ll go and grab some breakfast :)
It’s finally half term so the pressure is momentarily off and I can catch up on all my outstanding tasks.
I feel like I’ve achieved a lot in the past couple of hours I’ve been up!
Have an amazing day!
20/01/2019
So I bought myself an iPad to save my back because I carry about far too many notebooks but I still like writing my notes. I’m also saving paper haha
I’m still getting to grips with this but I really love it so far!
Sorry for the inactivity - I just needed to take some time off. But I’m back now! I’ve got my mock results back and I’m very happy with them :)
2/1/19
I love the library! Plus I’m spending time with my good friend and am just round the corner from town so... did someone say shopping? x
20/11/18 - 72 days of productivity
I got an interview from Cambridge!
Oh my goodness I’m so excited that I get a second chance to show them I’m up for this. I was whinging this morning that I just wanted to find out and then opened my inbox to find the email I’ve been waiting for :)
So what you see above is the product of a newfound energy and zest for life. I’m writing up some biology notes in advance and also got to play with some logarithmic graph paper (OMG that stuff is so cool!) and did some (heavily tippexed) maths. They were just the examples haha I suck at copying things down
Happy Tuesday folks, I hope today has treated you as well as it has treated me!
8-12/11/18 - 60-64/100 days of productivity
Hello everyone! Thank you so much for >800 followers! Sorry I haven’t posted recently. I’ve been so busy doing preliminary research for my IRP in German.
My theme is women’s lives in the GDR and there’s so much to say about it! So this morning and last night I was making notes on two of my sources - one of which was a very interesting 2005 paper which put everything into one place for me with lots of interesting stats I can use in my presentation.
Speaking of presentations, I’ve got to stand up in front of the class on Friday and talk about enthalpy, so I’ve just finished my snazzy PowerPoint on that.
Today I’ve also been revising stats and making sure I have actually understood the material.
I’m just waiting on my two new books to use as German sources.
Tonight, I’m going to read Selam Berlin (I put it down and now have got round to picking it back up again!) and do some analysis on Der Vorleser. I aim to complete 5 chapters as they are quite short. I’ll also do any homework I’m set today.
Have a great day!
4-5/11/18 - 55-56/100 days of productivity
I love getting the answer right, knowing all my hard work is paying off. Particularly because maths doesn’t come naturally to me and I’m doing it without the help of a teacher.
I’m posting early because I have a long evening ahead and don’t know if I can post later, so I’ve not left for school yet and have just under an hour until I do. I only have two lessons so all should be well.
28/10 - 3/11/18: 47-54/100 days of productivity
Thank you all for your patience and >700 followers! I’ve been taking it easy for the rest of this week and making time for hobbies because I know my reaction to potentially screwing up my Cambridge test was very unhealthy. I am now “over” it in the sense that if I get an interview, that’s great, but if I don’t, then my life’s worth isn’t defined by not getting in. I had a moment, but now I am back to my old self and thinking positively about the future :)
I still have offers from both York and Nottingham, which are both fantastic universities - I have a lot to be grateful for.
Pictured above: moments! I really dislike mechanics, but not as much as I hate stats. Earlier on I was doing some chain, product and quotient rule questions - I can’t believe I am literally 3/4 of the way through pure maths already! I’m well ahead of the main lessons so I can afford to take it easy if I want to, which is nice.
Next steps: research for my German IRP, preparation for a presentation I have to do for Chemistry in a couple of weeks, and some filing 😩
05/10/18 - 23 days of productivity
Hi all! Today has been a busy one - I only had one free period today and I was blessed with Doppeldeutsch :D
Chemistry involved revising the very start of AS, which was boring since it encases the very basics that have been drilled into you and used so much since the start of GCSEs that you will never ever forget them. Ever. However, I did get to work with people I don’t normally work with, which was fun.
Biology came second, where we started the topic of neuronal communication (I made the notes last month hehe).
Then I had 2 hours of German, where we did some reading, listening and talked about our individual research projects. I’ve decided on women in the GDR vs the BRD.
And then I got to practise a Cambridge admissions test for the maths practice.
When I got home, I made three quizlet sets ready for next week, finished my German and French homework and then did an end of topic test in maths for proof (which you see pictured).
I’m going to curl up with a book now, and yet another cup of tea!
How have you spent your Friday?
26/09/18 - 15/100 days of productivity - studying with a full-on cold :(
Happy Wednesday guys! I had a full day of lessons today. The routine is pretty much the same as Tuesday (and, as you’ll find out, Thursdays and Fridays too). Anyway, this is what my Wednesday looked like :)
06:45-07:20 Up, washed, dressed and out the house
07:35-08:00 Commute to school
08:00 German quizlets in the sixth form work room
08:30-08:50 Form time with my lovely bio teacher! Fun times
08:50-09:50 Chemistry ft a fun rant from my teacher (not really it scared me even though it wasn’t aimed at me!) about how we are all deluded if we think we are going to succeed by putting such little effort into things
09:55-12:25 Double German! (With a half an hour break in between, don’t panic). Half was spent studying Der Vorleser, the other half on grammar
12:30-13:30 French with my favourite teacher. I did a listening assessment and... not much else to be fair 😂
13:30-14:00 Lunch/ form competitions. I represented my form in skittle sorting with one hand. I won my heat but came in third overall so far. The rest of the forms play tomorrow. We are out of the running for the form prize but I did get the bag of skittles haha
14:00-15:00 Biology - the topic was regulating gene expression on the transcriptional level and I LOVED IT. What an amazing way to end the day!
15:40 Arrived home to chill out. Honestly I feel awful so I decided to take a break.
17:00 Tea time :)
17:30-20:00 Maths revision before I move on to A2 stats (ew)
20:00-21:00 A cup of tea for me... plus some Vick’s Vapour rub and paracetamol haha
Night all! I might do another of these when I’m not ill so you can really see my life - this is nothing compared to how I normally work. Yes it’s a lot but I have to plough through.
25/09/18 - 14/100 days of productivity
Hi all! My Tuesday has been fun, although sneezing constantly isn’t. Here’s what today looked like:
06:45 Get up and in the bath
07:00 Get dressed, pack my bag and take my medication (always disgusting because it’s a liquid but you know. Gets the worst out of the way)
07:25 Out the house, waiting for the 07:35 bus.
08:00 I arrived at school and did some German quizlets!
08:30 Form time - I normally read but I left my books by accident.
08:50 Lesson 1 - Biology. We learned about SCNT, embryo twinning and the ethical argument about cloning.
09:55 Lesson 2 - French. We debated whether it was right to allow transgender biologically-male people to join girl guides.
10:55-11:25 Break; I found my chem teacher to discuss my personal statement
11:25 Lesson 3 - free. I did a maths paper
12:30 Lesson 4 - German. We talked about the EU, doing topic work from our text book
13:30 Lunch
14:00-15:00 Lesson 5 - Chemistry. We had to make presentations about orders of reaction and the rate constant.
15:40 I arrived home and took myself to bed because I feel like having a day off today.
17:00 Tea time - I love me some tomato soup when I’m ill haha
17:20 Cup of tea, documentaries and chill. I’d normally stick my headphones in but my ear aches so I’d better not :(
24/09/18 - 13 days of productivity // Day 1 of 7 in my life
Despite the raging cold, this is what my Monday looked like!
07:10 Wake up!
07:15 Brain training using Peak while having a bath
08:20 Finally got out the bath... don’t judge it was cold outside haha
08:30 Dressed and ready to knuckle down. I had taken my meds and made a cup of tea.
08:30-09:00 Chemistry homework!
09:00-09:30 German quizlets
09:30-11:20 Maths
11:20-11:45 Lunch!
11:45-12:30 More Maths
12:30-13:00 Break with my mum
13:05 Bus to school
13:30 Arrival at school - their lunchtime
14:00-15:00 Biology lesson
15:00-16:00 French lesson
16:16-16:30 Bus home
16:30-17:30 Chill (Skyped friends today)
17:30-18:10 More maths! Arithmetic progressions and all that jazz
18:10-18:30 Tea time! (Or dinner, depending on where you’re from)
18:30-19:10 French homework
19:10 Pack my bag for tomorrow, relax in my room with a cup of tea and Le Père Goriot
21:00 My bedtime - non-negotiable haha
22/09/18 - 11/100 days of productivity
I’m in the library today, currently doing maths. I’ve already gone through 4 sets of quizlets for German and next up once I finish this will be to finish my chemistry homework.
My friends are going to turn up at some point, too. I’m going to help one of them with a personal statement and then I’m going to read Le Père Goriot
Juggling 5 A Levels: a week in my life
Hello all! I’ve been getting a lot of questions based on how I balance school and home life, so I’ve decided I’m going to break down my days, hour by hour, over the course of the week beginning Monday 24th September 2018.
I’m mainly doing this because I love finding out how people use their days - and because I would personally benefit from really analysing how I use my own. Is this something you’d like to see?
19/09/18 Maths notes!
Heya! I finished chapter 12 of Analysis 1.It was I think the toughest chapter so far but it's not that tough that I'll loose my sleep over it.I also got the above book from Amazon today.The title is sexist but so is history 🤷🏻♀️I started from the last chapter and made some notes on it.I also revised chapter 8 today.Otherthan that it was a pretty chill day.I also answered an ask on Tumblr.I thought it was important to answer the question correctly and so I tried to the best of my ability 🐰
Now Nighty Nighty you guys
I hope you had a good day <3
Heya!!
Today I revised some stuff (90% of the day lol) and did chapter 10.Chapter 10 is about the scenic viewpoint theorem,Bolzano-Weierstrass theorem for real and complex numbers.
Fun fact: Bolzano- Weiestrass theorem for reals makes use of the scenic view point theorem and monotonic sequence theorem but both of them are not valid in the complex numbers because complex numbers don't have order.
This chapter also discussed about Cauchy sequences (it has to satisfy a condition to be called that),some facts (and proofs!) about when it is bounded and such and finally the Cauchy convergent criteria.
I also did chapter 11.It is about the convergence of series.It initially told me what series means and some popular series ( telescoping,harmonic,geometric etc) and what do we mean when we say a series is convergent.It spoke about some nice theorems (involving series of non negative terms,comparison test,cauchy criteria,absolute convergence) and some examples based on the theorems.I did get one basic doubt and I'm sure my friend will be able to clear that out as well.He really has my back when it comes to these silly doubts ^_^
21/05/2021
👋 Hello
It's around 10 pm and I'm not yet sure If I want to sleep in early or just chill around with my phone a little longer .Today I completed the following tasks
Revised Group Theory
Revised stats for 15 minutes
Revised chemistry for minutes
Studied Bayers Strain Theory in chemistry
Complete 10 problems from group theory
Little bit of Duolingo (I'm learning French)
I also submitted my chemistry assignment today
I'm quite happy with how today turned out.In the afternoon I was thinking that I can't get it all done but some I managed so a little proud of myself today.
Tomorrow I'll be starting the Schaum's series for Abstract algebra.I'll not be doing it entirely now.I will just be focusing on the group theory part that is the first 10 chapters.I'm planning on doing 1 chapter a day for the next 10 days.If anyone wants to join me in solving the Schaum's series please let me know, we can do it together and keep each other accountable and help if doubts arise.It'll be just for 10 days so a very short period of time.
That is all that is there in my study part of my life right now.
I hope today treated you well as well😊If not, there is always a tomorrow🐣
Good Night 🌟