In my first day of calculus I – the chalk was flying. That professor started with the fundamental theorem of calculus, probably said “if it exists” a hundred times, and never let up from then on. It got worse from then on and never better. I, with others – I’m sure – sat there in disbelief and in a fog. I was 50 years old that day. I remember 3 semesters later I turn to the guy next to me and ask, “What the hell is a derivative?” He whispers, “I think it’s an angle of a line or something”.
Try it yourself go up to any one of your friends, ask them first if they’ve taken calculus and then ask them what a derivative is, and see what the say or don’t say. That’s the way all of my professors taught in my experience of college, I never enjoyed one class. If it was me – and my inability to learn in a class – that kid would have told me what a derivative was without any question as well as others in the class, however nobody knew (I asked several others after that kid) they didn’t know either. We were all three semesters into calculus and didn’t know what a derivative was. What the hell is that? Isn’t knowing what a derivative is, in no uncertain terms, more important than the fundamental theorem of calculus???
I’ve had classes where we use the whole tetxobok plus stuff not covered in it. I’ve had classes where the tetxobok was pretty much worthless to buy. I’ve had classes where they only use one or two chapters. It depends on your teacher, how well he/she conveys the knowledge to you, and how organised they are. If they just jump all over the place, make you buy a worthless tetxobok, or teach completely different information, then don’t even bother getting a book. To be honest, I would suggest you NOT buy the book until you start the class, get the syllabus, and see what’s on it. Yes, it’s normal. It’s just a pain because you’re buying crap you don’t even use.
that and i don’t believe it. some stduied his brain, but physicists know mainly because his achievements, not how he got them. we’d separate physicist einstein and celebrity einstein. will you waste time to check if newton really sat under an apple tree, or galileo threw iron balls from tower during their great discoveries? einstein was jobless for a year after college. for 4-5 years, he got married, had to work as a patent clerk to support wife and son, and worked alone on physics part time. he had to lit up firewood in stove, sometimes very smoky. you only look at his fame, but his personal life is miserable. the thing is : eistein is a lonely man, both in science and personal life, and he enjoyed the loneliness. i don’t think today’s students, professors can enjoy that kind of life. even woit and smolin have better personal lives.