Give me a challenging equation, please!

[ironizer]

I'm at the end of high school, and I want to pursue engineering, maybe mechanical or *maybe* aerospace/aeronautics. I have heard that they physics isn't that hard, but the math is HECK OF. I heard that some equations are like LONG @$$, like 12 foot long when the professor writes them on the board. I need to look at some real examples of this kind of stuff, see if it freaks me out.

Anyone how has some equations that sound like that, paste 'em in.

 

I'm not the math whiz kind of person, I can understand anything we're doing in math class, maybe not the first time around, but when I do a couple of problems I get the hang pretty quickly. Any suggestions also appreciated.

 

Thanks.

[ecoli]

this is a strange request... You just want to freak yourself out?

 

lol... kids these days will do anything for a buzz. ;-)

[bascule]

Here you go

 

[math]q\delta^3(\vec{p'}-\vec{p})=\langle p'|Q|p\rangle

= \int d^3x\, \langle p'|J^0(\vec{x},0)|p\rangle

=\int d^3x\, \langle p'|e^{-i\vec{P}\cdot\vec{x}}J^0(0,0)e^{i\vec{P}\cdot\vec{x}}|p\rangle

=\int d^3x\, e^{i(\vec{p}-\vec{p'})\cdot \vec{x}} \langle p'|J^0(0,0)|p\rangle = (2\pi)^3\delta^3(\vec{p'}-\vec{p})\langle p'|J^0(0,0)|p\rangle[/math]

[ecoli]

latex error, bascule. could you try splitting it into two different tags?

[ajb]

I heard that some equations are like LONG @$$, like 12 foot long when the professor writes them on the board.

 

Thanks.

 

This is true! But then how big is the blackboard and how big does the professor write?

[the tree]

latex error, bascule. could you try splitting it into two different tags?

Do it yourself you lazy bugger.

[math]q\delta^3(\vec{p'}-\vec{p})=\langle p'|Q|p\rangle

= \int d^3x\, \langle p'|J^0(\vec{x},0)|p\rangle

=\int d^3x\, \langle p'|e^{-i\vec{P}\cdot\vec{x}}J^0(0,0)e^{i\vec{P}\cdot\vec{x}}|p\rangle

=[/math]

[math]\int d^3x\, e^{i(\vec{p}-\vec{p'})\cdot \vec{x}} \langle p'|J^0(0,0)|p\rangle = (2\pi)^3\delta^3(\vec{p'}-\vec{p})\langle p'|J^0(0,0)|p\rangle[/math]

Not that I recognise that, but it looks like it probably means something.

[ajb]

Not that I recognise that, but it looks like it probably means something.

 

It is a quanum mechanical matrix element. Without knowing what [Math]J[/Math] or [Math]Q[/Math] is, that is all I can say. So yes, it does mean something.

[ecoli]

Do it yourself you lazy bugger.

 

I would have, but I'm not really that good at reading latex tags.

[ironizer]

Dude... :eek: :eek: :eek:

 

How many hours does it take to solve that stuff? My algebra sucks, I make stupid mistakes all the time. In an equation like that, I'm almost guaranteed to mess up. Just want to know if I should bail out of engineering and get a psychology degree for crying out loud.

[ecoli]

Dude... :eek: :eek: :eek:

 

How many hours does it take to solve that stuff? My algebra sucks, I make stupid mistakes all the time. In an equation like that, I'm almost guaranteed to mess up. Just want to know if I should bail out of engineering and get a psychology degree for crying out loud.

 

here's a hint... it's not algebra

 

it's calculus.

[PhDP]

I need to look at some real examples of this kind of stuff, see if it freaks me out.

 

It will probably freak you out, when you don't understand what the symbols mean, even a simple differential equation can look challenging. If you can understand the basic concepts of calculus, math wiz or not, you're probably going to be ok in engineering.

 

I'm not the math whiz kind of person, I can understand anything we're doing in math class, maybe not the first time around, but when I do a couple of problems I get the hang pretty quickly.

 

Then you're probably going to be ok, college and university-level mathematics look a lot more complicated than they really are. It's very important to be able to understand the concepts; you won't be able to pass simply with a good memory. More advanced mathematics generally requires less calculation as you're going to use computers programs so you can concentrate on translating your ideas into mathematics.