halocline
Contributor
I can't believe some of the replies here, GET OFF THE GUY'S BACK!
He's trying to understand some pretty complicated material. I use analogies to simplify concepts all the time, and I teach stuff that's way more abstract than recreational diving. And in terms of explaining these concepts to students in the future, especially in a situation where a student asks a DM about something during a OW session, a simple "bumper sticker" response that provides some insight is exactly what you need. Try a long winded "I'm so smart you'll never understand me" explanation and watch the student tune out and the instructor get annoyed.
Talk about self righteous. And the bit about "competent and knowledgeable with students", believe me most of the PADI instructors I know could very easily be stumped by some of the material in the encyclopedia. It's a reference book, not an exam guide. You're not supposed to know everything in there from memory.
I don't know who's taking the test, mksmith or naplestreasures, but I would encourage you to do as many of the practice problems as possible and try to apply the concepts in real-life scenarios, or examples of possible ones, in order to better understand the underlying physics. Find someone who's kind of a science geek and a nice guy, and that person will help you.
He's trying to understand some pretty complicated material. I use analogies to simplify concepts all the time, and I teach stuff that's way more abstract than recreational diving. And in terms of explaining these concepts to students in the future, especially in a situation where a student asks a DM about something during a OW session, a simple "bumper sticker" response that provides some insight is exactly what you need. Try a long winded "I'm so smart you'll never understand me" explanation and watch the student tune out and the instructor get annoyed.
Talk about self righteous. And the bit about "competent and knowledgeable with students", believe me most of the PADI instructors I know could very easily be stumped by some of the material in the encyclopedia. It's a reference book, not an exam guide. You're not supposed to know everything in there from memory.
I don't know who's taking the test, mksmith or naplestreasures, but I would encourage you to do as many of the practice problems as possible and try to apply the concepts in real-life scenarios, or examples of possible ones, in order to better understand the underlying physics. Find someone who's kind of a science geek and a nice guy, and that person will help you.