MITx 18.03 Introduction to Differential Equations

I have a BS in chemical engineering. I averaged 96% over the 5 units of study. The material was mostly new to me. Although I had a high average, I only averaged so high because I took copious notes from the lecture notes, practice problems, and videos.

A BS in electrical engineering said in the discussion that this course is too hard for a first time learner. That was his opinion, and he made the comment after a section on imaginary concepts. It was new to me. I found it difficult, but I tend to, so far, do well with mathematics. Still, I took a total of 303 full pages of notes that I referenced often to solve the very difficult homework problems. I find note taking useful since there is no PDF textbook download. Also, it helps me remember the material.

I am an official Friend of MIT. I have been awarded an MIT Infinite Connection account by MIT after I completed numerous MITx courses and completed a MIT Digital Learning survey. Although I am not an alumnus, I can participate in the MIT Alumni Forums. I can also watch, as an example, videos from the MIT Alumni website. In one video about volunteering, the presenter joked about MIT students being used to taking copious notes. I find it useful as well.

As of March 06, 2022, the edx syllabus is not accurate. So, be prepared for a little change in the organization of course topics. I found the material increased in difficulty as the course progressed, with the exception of Unit 5 on nonlinear differential equations graphical methods.

Dr. Jennifer French, MIT Lecturer, agreed with the BS in electrical engineering that the course is hard, it has a lot of material, and it is the same as taught on MIT campus. I have read that 99% of MIT students have taken a MITx course. MIT is no joke. It is high quality material.

There are two homework styles. The mechanics are covered in homework A(s), and homework B(s) are often harder with more mathematics and physics.

I put in the suggested time for completion. I worked hard.

References:

[1] https://www.edx.org/course/introduction-to-differential-equations-2

MITx 18.03x Introduction to Differential Equations Notes

A New Goal: To understand waterjet propulsion via computational fluid dynamics and OpenFOAM

Tuesdays and Thursdays are my short study days. It helps me reset. MWF are my 7 hour days. TTH are 5 hours on average.

After studying my fluid mechanics today, and watching several videos, I feel good about my fluid mechanics path. I am so dependent on feeling good about my studies. It affects my whole day.

Although I succeeded yesterday in MITx introduction to differential equations, it was a grueling day that I didn’t enjoy that much. Was making so many tiny errors, and I got the concept right for a really difficult problem, but failed to simply distribute correctly. A simple algebra error caused me to miss a very challenging problem. Although I got some dopamine rush from getting the concept correct, I felt horrible because I made errors like that all day yesterday. I had to check and recheck my problems multiple times, which drug the day out significantly. Anyhow, it is over.

Today has been a much better day, but I did watch a really boring video on shock waves. I should have chosen a more entertaining video since I have control. Anyhow, note taking went well, and I am learning fluid mechanics well. I have to get through the book so that I can study Introduction to Turbulence.

I am spoiled with PDFs. I don’t like reading from textbooks. My computer and monitor, along with my makeshift desk, is set up for PDFs and not books. MIT Press Introduction to Turbulence is not in electronic format, but it is a great book to work my way into turbulence. Then I can study the bible–Pope’s book on turbulent flows. Most flows in real life are turbulent.

It is quite difficult to properly model turbulent flows in OpenFOAM. Especially if the geometry is complicated. What will all this do for me? Pass time. I doubt anybody will benefit from my studies, but I will have fun. I hope to get published. That way it might be used. I will share it on cfd-online and other open-access document servers. I hope to be sound mathematically and physics wise. I am excited that Dr. Jasak, the creator of OpenFOAM, has offered to supervise me and share his valuable lectures on OpenFOAM. The man is a professor at Cambridge, which has a 21% acceptance rate. Exciting!