im in the 8th grade and want to be a mix between a physicist and a chemist. what do i do?

Question

what do i take in high school? what college should i go to? i have mostly a's on my report cards

I would really appreciate any advice that anyone could offer to me; I know I am a little too young but I think it is good to get a head start on things.

Answer 1

keep an open mind and open eyes.
the brain is a use-it-or-lose-it machine...you get the idea...

you go kid!!!

Answer 2

Definitely do take physics and chemistry and as much math as you can handle while in high school. If your school has advanced placement or AP courses in these subjects, take them as they will give you a great headstart in college.

Talk to your teachers about how they got interested in these subjects and see if you can talk with some physicists and chemists as well. You might want to check out some books written for the general public by prominent physicists and chemists. These will all be good tests of your passion and commitment for the field. If after reading or talking to these folks, are you still excited about this career?

The fact that you get A's on your report card tells me that you definitely have the intellectual horsepower to handle this demanding courseload and future career.

With these grades, you should aim high and consider going to Caltech, MIT, Stanford or any of the Ivy League schools that have a good science program such as Princeton. If your high school college counselor is worth his/her salt, he/she should be able to help you narrow down the list of schools you'll want to apply to.

You are absolutely right. It's never too early to start thinking about your career. The more information you gather early on, the more certain you will be that you have made the right career choice. The more preparation you do in high school, the better chance that you will avoid the problem of not knowing what you want to major in once you get to college.

As an aside, if you want to get a doctorate, think about taking Russian or German as a second language as many scientific texts are written in these languages. Not to mention that learning different languages will make your travels more interesting later on.

With such a technologically complex world we live in, we need more engineers and scientists. Best of luck to you!

Answer 3

An interesting combination, I taught HS kids physics and a bit of chem for about 30 years.
Emphasize math to begin with.
UNDERSTAND the concepts, don't just memorize the steps.
Train yourself in logical thought and observation. (Geometry is a good place to start, be meticulous about your proofs.)
In physics, and chem UNDERSTAND the concepts don't just memorize the steps.
A lot of people pass courses but don't understand the material when they get done.
LEARN the basic steps in the 'problem solving' process to the point that they are automatically a part of every question that you ask or is asked of you.
Expect to put in a lot of time and effort.

Nothing happens in the natural world that is not supposed to. (It may or may not be what we expected)
You must ask or understand 'why' it happened.

Look for the schools that offer an emphasis in your specific interest area and have a good reputation in THOSE specialties.
Ask the guidance people to show you the catalogs of "Challenge Schools". They are the best, but also the toughest. You can always back off, but you should start your search with the best.

Answer 4

first off, you are never too young to think about the future...

im a senior... and i wish i would have planned ahead...

im thinking about the same things...

I wanted to be anything in the science field...

it is just interesting to me...

people always told me to pick a job i could live with for the rest of my life that was interesting and not to worry too much about the money...

then others told me that it doesnt matter what you choose... after a few years... it is just going to be "a job" and you have to go, etc... and it wont be as interesting as when you first started...

so i figured id still go with what i originally wanted... and pick veterinarian tech... cuz they make a butt load of money and it is interesting to me...

gl though...

if ya need help with colleges... you could ask a high school counselor if you see one...

or do some researching online...

if ya need any help... let me know...

gl

-Josh

Answer 5

Take chemistry and physics. You're probably taking about a physical chemist. You'll need lots of math as well - try to take calculus while you're in high school.

Answer 6

I do agree with the previous posts that you should take calc and experiment with chemistry and physics courses or AP courses if they are available. Get in touch with your teachers so that they may help you and act as a mentor. I'm sure that you'll find which suits you best even if its a combination of the two. Understanding both will allow you to understand how elements react and calculating the forces such as gravity affect them like in asto-physics. As suggested Cal-tech and MIT are great. I know UW-Madison has its own miniature nuclear reactor for research purposes.

Anyway this will give you an idea of the concepts that you'll face in chemistry and physics. Chemistry deals with the composition of everthing and how they interact with everything else. In order to do well, you'll need to have solid algebra skills and a good knowledge of the periodic chart of elements. The chart arranges the elements in groups that you'll later learn share common characteristics. For example you'll learn that certain gases like Helium and Neon gases are in a particular group because they do not react under normal conditions and are therefore known as noble or inert. This is important because when it comes to understanding how elements react when you take A+B to get C, you'll understand that based on the periodic chart and grouping certain elements will react differently or require a certain proportional amount to react with another element.
To demonstrate this, we know that water has two Hydrogen and one Oxygen atom per water molecule. However, a keen knowledge of the chart will tell you that both Hydrogen and Oxygen are diatonic elements meaning that they always travel in pairs and hence we refer Oxygen as O2 rather than O. So going back to the water equation, because Oxygen travels in pairs and there is only one Oxygen atom in a water molecule, you'll need to make two water molecules to balance the equation. Therefore you'll end up with 2 pairs of Hydrogen + 1 pair of Oxygen = 1 pair of water molecules or 2(H20). I'm not trying to scare you, but that's the reality of chemistry is knowing this chart and how to balance the equation when certain elements work only in certain proportions.

I found physics on the other hand requires more abstract thought processes, because in some situations you'll calculate how much force and why a certain force will act upon an object in a particular way. You'll also learn the mechanics behind electricity through Ohms law and how wavelengths work. This will initially use algebriac variables, but eventially it will require firm trig and calc understanding to properly solve how a particular force like gravity acts on a object or solving wierd variables such as lambda for light and radiation wavelengths.

I wish I could be more specific on examples other than what force does what, but my teacher taught us how to fight off a shark attack and how to survive ripe tides than actual principals.

Answer 7

physics! physics covers everything from math, biology, and chemistry.

i dont know much about chemistry but like what i've heared from friends, they usually tackle about electrons, photons, etc... everything in atomic level. but the basic principle behind this comes from physics. like the idea of having your processor of your pc. the idea of the atoms jumping from one level to another can be quantified and explained in physics.