Strategy to solve I.E. Irodov

You can refer this answer for a discussion on Irodov, my pattern to solve it, and how you should solve it.

You can find the solutions to Irodov in these books. These are in the latest edition, so you can order them from here-



These are the solutions I consulted, and they are really clear and crsip. Note that the second book might get out of stock soon, so you can use the kindle edition. It's economical, and environment friendly. Also, you must try a question on your own until you really need the solution.

Here is a list of problems from Irodov which are in JEE syllabus(sorry for the sideways orientation) :p.

Also see: Best books for JEE preparation, Organic Chemistry, Mechanics, Algebra, Motivation

College101- An Introductory guide for about-to-be college students

So, exams and results over. Most of you would have already decided whether to take a drop or not. If not, see this. So, this post will guide you about the Do's and Don'ts for college, based on many messages, emails, and comments I have been seeing over the last couple weeks. I'll be doing this as a Q&A session, based on the questions most requested to me.

1. Which college is the best for me? I am yet to decide my choices for counselling.
Well, check this out, this is a complete guide to choose your choices. Also, please consult people from all the choices you are filling. You can discuss your doubts here. This group has people from all colleges. Also, see this post. It will help you. Finally, I must say that it's your choice to go for a particular college/branch. I am not at blame if you end up choosing something you don't like. Consult many people and decide.

2. What should I do in the 1-month break I have before joining college?
Well, you had been studying for a long time, so I suggest you enjoy this time. You can pick up a hobby, learn to code, spend some time with family and friends, etc. In my case, I watched a TV Series called 'The Big Bang Theory', learned to play the Guitar, made up my Facebook page(like it for interesting stuff on JEE, college, and computers), visited a lot of places, etc. This time is precious as it won't come again. I strongly recommend learning to code in this break. It is because it is fun, every college has a course on Programming, and it's a must-have skill today.

3. How to learn to code in this break?
There are plenty of resources out there on the Internet. I strongly suggest you to learn C++ as a first step. You can do it first by seeing this playlist by thenewboston(really nice work). You will not get everything in the first try, but keep on trying. You can use this book along with these tutorials. For problem practice, I recommend you to practice a bit on SPOJ. Go to the basic problems sections, arrange them in the order of decreasing number of users, and solve around a 100. If you do this you will become really good at coding and will ace the first year(irrespective of whether you are in CS or not). You should see these articles-Getting Started with Computer Science- Part 1 and Getting Started with Computer Science- Part 2

4. Should I buy a laptop for college?
Well, if you have a financial problem, then you don't need to for now, because every college has a Computer lab, but still having one is immensely useful. Everything in college depends on your laptop, and you must buy a good one. If you haven't thought of buying a laptop yet, and plan to do it later, DON'T. Get it now, and get used to it, code a bit, play with it. A good laptop must have an i3 or above processor(7th gen or above), 4/8GB RAM or more, a decent Graphics card, and a good hard drive(SSD preferred, or 1TB hard drive at the minimum). Currently, many back to college and cashback offers are available on Amazon, so you might want to buy from these links. I have searched for the best laptops available in every range(arranged in increasing order of price). Some of these(the cheap ones) don't have OS, you can install Windows(paid) or Ubuntu(free)

Asus Vivobook X541UA-DM1358D (Intel i3 7100U (7th Gen)/4 GB DDR4/1TB/Intel HD Graphics/DOS) - Silver

Lenovo Ideapad 320E 80XL0378IN 15.6-inch Laptop (7th Gen Core i5-7200U/4GB/1TB/Windows 10 Home/2GB Graphics), Onyx Black

ACER E5-575G/Ci5-7200U/4/1TB/W10/2GB GRAPHICS/BLK NB (NX.GDWSI.007)

Dell Inspiron 15 3000 3567 15.6-inch Laptop (7th Gen Core i7-7500U/8GB/1TB/Windows 10 with Office 2016 Home and Student/2GB Graphics)

Apple MacBook Air MQD32HN/A 13.3-inch Laptop 2017 (Core i5/8GB/128GB/MacOS Sierra/Integrated Graphics) (If you can afford 60k, do go for it. Apple is a class apart, unless you are into gaming

HP Pavilion 15-CC129TX 2017 15.6-inch Laptop (Core i5/8GB/1TB/Windows/Integrated Graphics), Silver

Microsoft Surface Pro (Core-i5 7th Gen/4GB/128GB/Windows 10 Pro/Integrated Graphics), Silver

2018 Flagship HP Pavilion 14" WLED HD Premium Business Laptop - Intel Dual-Core i5-7200U up to 3.1GHz 16GB DDR4 1TB HDD B&O Play 802.11ac Bluetooth HDMI USB Type-C Webcam Backlit Keyboard Win 10

The list is by no means exhaustive, but I have tried to cover laptops of all range. If you are too lazy to buy one from out, you can order from here, I have taken this list from various tech websites and personal experience. You will find them good. Avoid watching a lot of TV series/movies.

5. How to survive in college?
Every college has a different culture of study, extracurriculars, etc. Talk to seniors and develop a healthy relationship with them. Ask them about the study patterns. And talk to many people. And try to adjust against feelings like homesickness, lack of friends,etc. Develop confidence and avoid bad habits.

This was all. If you have any more doubts, feel free to comment here.

Coordinate Geometry, 3D, and Vectors

This is usually counted among the tough topics. Because it involves a lot of formulae and calculations(at times) and hence costs a lot of time during exam. You might wanna be very fast in calculations before moving here. So prepare your algebra well!

So, the topics will be 

1. Straight Line and Basics- This is the most important chapter because this forms the basis of other chapters. There would be various forms of lines, and you must be familiar with each and everyone of them. There would be lots of definitions in this chapter(orthocentre,incentre,etc.)Lots of formulae, learn them all by heart.  Shift of origin and family of lines are two important topics which will help you solve questions fast. Practice a lot, and different types of question, don't solve 10 questions of the same type. Solve 10 questions of 10 types(i.e.1-2 questions of each type).

2. Circles and Conic sections- You must be well prepared with formulae of equations in standard form, parametric form, positions of foci, vertices, length of latus rectum,etc. tangent, normal, etc. Joint equation of curves and lines is very helpful at times. There are a few special results(e.g. reflection properties of parabola and ellipse). It's tough to remember them all in one go. Take your time and try to apply them in questions to learn them. Do a lot of locus problems. Again, lots of types, and solving many problems of different types will help you.

3. Vectors and 3D- 3D is just a continuation of 2D Geometry. Have a good thinking of the problem in 3D. It will help you. Again, formulae-remember them. You won't face much problem in 3D. Vectors would give you problems :p. Well, try to think of vectors in terms of 3D when in trouble. There are a few standard techniques(taking dot product, cross product with something, etc.) try to implement them and see if they help. Keep on solving a variety of problems. Various lines forms get confusing. Tricky questions can be easily formed in vectors. Try to think of all the formulae available to you. It will surely help. Again, this is mostly based on revising and practicing. 

So, Coordinate Geometry, Vectors and 3D are mostly calculation based, with a handful of central concepts which apply to all the problems and situations. If you study it deeply you would find beautiful connections between various formulae and situations. I'll leave them for you to discover(NCERT style :p).

BOOKS

As usual, if you go to a coaching, follow that book. If you don't you can take this book from Resonance. I can't find the link for other books, so you'll have to take the ones mentioned below(I was from Resonance and found their study material pretty good).

If you want more practice, go for Arihant coordinate geometry and Vectors and 3D.

S.L. Loney is another beautiful book, with some very good questions. It is surely worth solving, if you have time. Apart from this, A. Das Gupta has some really nice questions in 2D coordinate geometry. Do solve them if you want a very good grasp and rank.

So, do well in coordinate and Vectors and 3D. They carry a huge weightage. They need some revision and practice. Give your best, and let me know if you have any doubts by commenting below.

All the best!!!

Also see : Calculus, Algebra, Trigonometry, Best books for JEE

Mechanics

Many of you would have started with mechanics by now(class 11 people I mean). New nightmare right? (:p) But trust me, this is an area which is hated by many by the time it starts and is loved by the time your course is about to get over. However, JEE has got a reputation for asking some really mind-boggling questions from Mechanics. But don't worry, I am here to guide you through a step by step analysis of Mechanics.

It starts with Kinematics. Be clear with Vectors and Basic Math, and you are done. Practice a lot at this stage because you would have an early practice of solving equations fast.

So, the next chapter is NLM. It might be seeming very tough to you, but don't worry, by the end of your course you would be really comfortable with it. Practice a lot of questions. I can't emphasize it more. Be thorough with concepts like friction, strings, and pulleys, Normal force, Circular Motion, etc. Practice till you are perfect.

Then comes Work, Power Energy, and Gravitation. Practice conservation of Energy a lot. It is very important in Physics. Gravitation is linked to this. Again, look out for Energy conservation and Kepler's law when solving Gravitation questions. Work-Energy Theorem is another important concept. Make yourself comfortable with the topic.

Coming to Centre of Mass, and Momentum. One of the toughest chapters after Rotation. Tough nut to crack. Step one could be trying to remember all concepts and equations. It helps a lot. Be thorough with vectors. Momentum conservation relies a lot on it. Collisions has some interesting problems. Be thorough with the main formulae. Conservation of Momentum and Energy are central here. Remember positions of COM of various objects. It will be very helpful in future. Remember some basic cases in collisions(small object, heavy object, same masses, etc.) Spring questions are common. Be aware of springs in parallel/series, and basic equations.

Rotation is a real tough nut, and JEE asks some really awesome questions from this section. This is tough and has got a good weightage. You must give a good amount of time to it. It begins with Moment of Inertia. Learn the MI of various standards objects, and be thorough with the derivations. It will help you in case some questions based on calculating MI comes in JEE. Then there is a discussion of angular velocity, rotational Kinematics, etc. Pretty easy if thorough with basic trigonometry and Kinematics. Then comes torque, angular momentum, etc. This seems tough, but it will come naturally to you with time if you are clear with NLM. Remember there are only few equation, T=I(alpha), and L=Iw. Try to remember these using a correlation with NLM. Conservation of Angular momentum is very important. Lots of questions are asked from this topic. Be clear with the axis of rotation and the point about which you are trying to conserve it. Massive problem solving will help.

Then comes SHM. Another basic and important topic. Remember the derivation and equations of SHM. Remember the Time Period formulae. It will save a lot of time on the final day. Questions involving finding the Time Period of any mechanical system are common. Be thorough with them.

Fluid Dynamics and Elasticity- Not very important but few easy questions come for sure. You don't wanna miss them. Continuity equation, variation of pressure with depth, and Bernoulli equation are important. Try to do some questions of Surface Tension too(JEE has asked some really tough questions from this topics). Elasticity has a graph of Stress vs Strain. Remember it well. These chapters have a bunch of long equations. Try to remember them. There might be a few questions at least in JEE(Main) where you would need to evaluate the expression.

So, this was the chapter Synopsis. Coming to the preparation strategy, first of all listen to your coaching lecture/online lecture and do homework, and discuss in class if you are in a coaching. This will help you clear Mechanics.

Coming to books(and hence the self-study guys too) HCV is the god-book for Mechanics. Read every line(irrespective of whether you are in a coaching or not), understand everything and solve each question. Solutions are available somewhere on the Internet I guess(don't know if they are copyrighted or something, so beware). Discuss with teachers. If you sincerely solve all questions of Mechanics then no one can stop you from being a Master of Mechanics. I also recommend reading NCERT. It gives a wonderful insight into the subject and will prepare you for JEE(Main) and Boards too. If you need more objective practice, go for DC Pandey Problems book. Deb Mukherjee's book is really good for conceptual questions. And then comes the GOD- I.E. Irodov. This will prepare you for Olympiads, and for facing any question in JEE(Advanced). Solve this only if you have time and are done with the above stuff. Better do it during Holidays. But trust me, Irodov will give you an upper edge if you are aiming for a top 100 rank or so.

You can buy the books at a cheap rate from these links -

1. HC Verma                                             
2. DC Pandey Problems book
3. DCP Mechanics Part 1
4. DCP Mechanics Part 2
5. Irodov
               
    


This was Mechanics. I'll cover more things with time. Feel free to comment any doubt/suggestions.

All the best!!!

P.S.- Guys, do follow the blog(using the option of the left) for regular updates. I'll be adding a lot of information in my summer vacations.

Also see: Best books for JEE , Electromagnetism,Motivation, A complete JEE preparation guide, Organic Chemistry, Algebra,

Some Quora answers for exams

Motivation:

A motivational answer and must read, cause it means a lot to me.

My JEE story

For those who think of themselves as 'weak' students

How to stop being average

Perks of being at an IIT

Increasing productivity

Motivating yourself to study

Life at IITB

Some advices for students in class 9-10



Strategies:

Avoiding Social Media

Must have skills for any competitive examination

My schedule during JEE preparations

The best way to prepare for JEE

Some common mistakes during JEE preparations

Making a timetable

Some study hacks

Clear every exam in one click



Tests:

Must avoid mistakes during any exam(read a day before the exam too)

Analyzing test papers

If you are in Class 11:

For students at in the beginning of class 11.

Read it if you are are about to start class 11 or 12th exams

A year and a half left for JEE

For class 12 students:

JEE(Main) with just NCERT

Read it if you are are about to start class 11 or 12th exams

For students in the beginning of class 12.

How to score really well in JEE(Main)

Last days(after board exams):

3 weeks before JEE(Main)

10 days before JEE(Main)

Strategy after your JEE(Main) is over(40 days before JEE(Advanced))


Also check : Best books for JEE , A complete JEE preparation guide, Organic Chemistry, Mechanics, Algebra, Motivation

Last minute tips for JEE(Advanced)

It's all (almost) over. Around one week left for JEE(Advanced).

Time to add the finishing touches.

Nothing much can be done now for the study part. I would recommend seeing your formula book/ revise notes of all chapters. Don't try to study anything new. You can try learning chemistry for sure though. Inorganic Chemistry can be revised completely, and trust me, you MUST do it because final week revision is very important for Inorganic. Read the notes/book and try to recall everything(and maybe solve a few questions). You should also go for revising Organic Reactions and important mechanisms.

You must try to give at least 3 full-length tests in the last week if your syllabus is over. And in the same duration. Below are few things(many of them follow from the JEE(Main) article I wrote, cause they are used here too) which I feel must be followed on the exam day-

1. Before entering the exam hall:

• Make sure you bring all your documents, admit card, etc and reach before time.
• Drink enough water, have adequate food(not too much), stop studying by 8 P.M. or so on a day before the exam(have at least 7–8 hours of sleep).
• Go to the washroom before entering if you feel the need(you don’t want to go during the paper)
• .Many students study outside the exam hall. I don’t recommend that, and I also recommend ignoring such people if you aren’t one of them.
• Talk to your parents/guardian/teachers if they are present. Avoid talking to your ‘friends’. I remember my physics teacher saying that I should not worry, as he was pretty confident that I would go beyond expectations. These things ease out pressure.
• Be positive.

2. In the hall before the paper is distributed:

• You would be given an OMR sheet. You don’t want to mess with it. Fill all the details(please forgive me if the exam is online, just click the bubble in that case).
• DON’T FILL THE DETAILS(SPECIALLY ROLL NUMBER) WRONG.
• Do not mess with the invigilators in any way.
• Make sure you have filled everything correctly. You would still have around 30 minutes before paper commencements.(don’t remember the sequence, it might be before OMR distribution).
• Now, avoid talking to people around you. They would be unknown mostly. A self-talk helps at this time(I was pretty good at it).
• Relax and take a heavy breath(and all that kind of shit), but don’t sleep.

3. After Paper-1 is distributed:

• Don’t dive straight into the paper. Spend some time(5 minutes or so) looking at the questions. Try to get an idea as to what is tough and easy.
• Based on what is easy and what is your best subject, decide where to start.
• Attempt only a few easy questions in the beginning. Attempt 3-4 very easy questions from all the subjects first instead of attempting 15 questions from, say physics. This is where a lot of people go wrong. This builds confidence, as well as makes sure you attempt more.
• Don’t get stuck on a question for long. You can always do it later. This is a huge pitfall. JEE(Advanced) is meant to be tough(usually), and you must learn to move ahead if you get stuck.
• Fill the OMR section carefully and don’t keep it pending for the end. That sheet shows years of hard work. If you fill it wrong or you could not fill it(i.e. the exam gets over it before you fill it), then it would be really bad.
• Don’t answer without knowing(fluke).Choose the best option when in confusion. Don’t rely on ‘bonuses’.
• Use rough space wisely. It comes less in quantity(maybe they would provide some rough sheets, be careful whatever happens).
• Solve fast, but don’t solve things wrong. Cross check quickly before bubbling, if its possible. Use objective approach whenever possible(specially in mathematics). Differentiating options, considering equilateral triangle, eliminating options should be used as much as possible.

4. After Paper-1 and before Paper-2:

• Make sure you DON'T discuss the paper with anyone. Better stay away from everyone. Go to your parents/guardian/teachers. 
• Have some LIGHT food. Don't eat too much, else you'll feel sleepy(and don't stay hungry as well). Take some rest in a car or something if possible, and don't fall asleep. Do something relaxing(meditation,etc.). Stay energetic, and use this time to recover your energy.
• Don't get affected by performance in Paper 1 in any way. You might get overconfident or underconfident. Avoid it under all circumstances.
• Go back to the exam hall before the allotted time(30 minutes or as instructed).

5. During Paper 2:

• All points mentioned in Paper 1.
• Be energetic and unyielding irrespective of what happened in paper 1.

6. After the paper is over:

• Head straight home, and enjoy. You have been studying so hard for all these years. Time to chill!!!

You all must realize that JEE(Advanced) is one of the toughest exams out there, and you should respect that. Leave a question for later if you don't know/can't do it. Make the best out of those 6 hours. This is your last fight(for some time, of course), give your best shot.

It’s your moment, squeeze it and make it golden.

All the best!!!