Term 2 Reflections

In Term 2, we learnt about Optics under Physics. To me, optics was about drawing, measuring and calculating. Optics requires one to draw the ray diagrams accurately, without leaving anything out. Also, Optics requires one to calculate angles, such as the critical angle. Calculating critical angles requires trigonometry, which at that time we have not learnt yet. Because of that, I was unable to manipulate the numbers and hence could not find out the critical angle in the test, costing me 2 marks. Overall, I still did okay for my test, scoring 73/100. I really wanted to score an A1 for this term, and tried to study really hard, but I just could not get enough marks to score that A1. Optics to me is actually quite simple, once you have mastered the techniques of drawing the ray diagrams.

Sabbatical Reflections

In Term 2, I attended a sabaticcal called "Environmental Science Studies- Green Learning Journeys". It seemed interesting as it was all about Ecology which is one of my favourite topics so I opted for it. This is the course schedule for the 5 days of Sabbatical week:


Day 1- Introduction. Presentation on adaptations followed by a movie "Day after Tomorrow."
Day 2- Visit to the Science Centre Omni theatre to watch two IMAX movies in the Omni-theatre. The movies were about Coral reefs and Caves.
Day 3- Guided Tour at Marine Barrage
Day 4- Presentation on Solar Panels in HCI
Day 5- Guided Tour in Senoko incineration plant

This Sabbatical enriched me with bountiful knowledge about the environment and how we are trying to save it. My favourite day was Day 2, where we went to the Science Centre as it was the most informative and visually appealing. Also, it was about Coral Reefs, which are one of Nature's beauty yet are extremely delicate.

Optics

Reflection

1. The incident ray, the reflected ray and the normal to the reflection surface at the point of the incidence lie in the same plane.
2. The angle which the incident ray makes with the normal is equal to the angle which the reflected ray makes to the same normal.
3. The reflected ray and the incident ray are on the opposite sides of the normal.

Refraction

1. Occurs when light passes through a different medium 
2. Angle between incident ray and normal as compared to emergent ray and normal is the same
3. Refractive Index = sin i / sin r OR 1 / sin c
4. Critical Angle = sin^-1 (1/Refractive Index) 

*i=Angle between incident ray and normal; r=Angle between refracted ray and normal; c= Critical angle

Lenses

These are the 6 different positions for lenses which will produce different types of images, like whether it is real or virtual, inverted or upright and magnified, diminished or the same as before.

Acids and Bases

This is basically the differences between acids and bases in a nutshell. It is full with content and yet very aesthetically pleasing. It is very useful for last minute revisions as it is simple yet informative.

Term 1 Reflections

I found that the content taught in Term 1, which is Chemistry, was the hardest for me to grasp and understand. I was confused for most of the Term, only when there are 2 weeks left before the test then everything became clear. The bonding between the atoms was extremely confusing and I had many questions. But after in-depth reading of the notes and other materials, I realised that chemistry was not really that hard and was actually understandable. Only at that point of time I finally managed to understand majority of the content. However after understanding the topic, another obstacle was presented in front of me. I had to memorise the various chemical proton and neutron number and the various charges for ions. I really had a hard time memorising all of those information. But luckily during the test, a periodic table was given which really helped a lot as I need not memorise too many things. For that test, I scored pretty decently as I scored 71/100, seeing as I spent most of the time left confused. Hence, scoring an A2 was not too bad for me.

Atomic Structure

This is just a picture showing the various parts of the atoms and their relative charges with each other. Neutron and Proton both have a relative mass of 1, while electron has a relative mass of 1/1840. Each atom have the same number of protons and electrons, so that they would be neutrally charged as there is an equal positive and negative charge, cancelling both charges out.