• Question: We have a science test on Thursday about Forces, Separation Techniques and Food Glorious Food....... Any tips on them

    Asked by Faye Garrity to Billy, Louise, Naomi, Rachel, Urvashi on 16 Mar 2015.
    • Photo: Naomi Green

      Naomi Green answered on 16 Mar 2015:

      Hi Faye,

      We spoke this morning didn’t we? That is a lot of things to cover in one test! It sounds like a difficult one. It is a bit hard to give you advice based on what you have said. Forces could mean a lot of things. As a mechanical engineer I use forces everyday. I’d say if you learn the basics of Newton’s Laws you’d be doing well.

      Newton’s first law effectively says that an object will stay at rest, or continue to move at the same velocity unless an external force acts on it. The second law says the the Force acting on an object is equal to the acceleration of the object multiplied by the mass of the object F=ma. The third law says that every force has an equal and opposite force acting in the opposite direction.

      As for separation techniques I assume you mean separating different mixtures? Here is a good GCSE Bitesize link for more info http://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/ks3/science/chemical_material_behaviour/compounds_mixtures/revision/9/

      As for food glorious food I have no idea what that is going to cover sorry! It is just making me think of chocolate. Hmmm chocolate 🙂

      All I can suggest is to do some careful revision before the test but don’t worry too much about it because that won’t help. Read your textbooks and notes from class a few times and write down some revision notes that you can glance at before the test to jog your memory.

      Finally good luck! I’m sure you will do great! 🙂

    • Photo: Billy Hicks

      Billy Hicks answered on 16 Mar 2015:

      Hi Faye,

      That does seem like quite a random collection of things to have a test on! I’m trying to think of where they might all be used together…
      I think Naomi has got forces covered so I’ll see what I can add for separations. I’m a chemical engineer so I make use of separations fairly often. I believe the key is to think about the physical properties of whatever you are trying to separate. For example, if there is a difference in boiling point, density, size or even colour then there’s a way to separate whatever you have. Also think about what phase (solid, liquid, etc.) you are trying to separate and if you get two different phases then there’s another way to separate.
      It might not be terribly specific, but my biggest tip on food is to make sure you eat well before your test. If you’re like me just thinking about food when I’m hungry will make my tummy rumble and lose concentration!
      Good luck on Thursday!

    • Photo: Rachel Pallan

      Rachel Pallan answered on 17 Mar 2015:

      Hi Faye

      I think the Naomi and Billy have given you some great advice! The thing that got me through my exams was practice papers just doing as many as you can so you recognise them when you are in the exam and know what kind of answer they are looking for! Also read the question at least 2 times as I always missed something the first time. And finally as soon as you start the exam write down all the formulas you have learnt because mid way through the test when your brain has been working on lots of different things its harder to remember them 😀

      I hope this helps and good luck with your exam

    • Photo: Louise France

      Louise France answered on 18 Mar 2015:

      Hi Faye

      Everyone seems to have covered everything really well, so I will just say try your best and I’m sure you’ll be fine!

      Good luck!

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