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Physics solver’s mosaic First Circular

What is needed to be able to solve problems so well that you could get a gold medal at IPhO? Is it enough to be just very gifted? Second Circular
Of course not, there are other students, who have solved a lot of problems – while you are thinking hard trying to "invent a Third Circular
bicycle", they are already writing the solution, because they had solved a similar problem earlier. Is it enough to solve a lot of
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problems and read a lot of problem solutions? Most often, no. Just solving or reading solutions, of course, will increase your
technical skills, but you also need to think over, what were the main ideas which made it possible to solve the problem, and take Program
these ideas into your permanent arsenal; if you solve too many problems, you don't have time to think over. Is it possible to learn Leaders and observers
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"the art of problem solving" and if yes then how? Well, 99% of the Olympiad problems are solved using a rather limited set of
ideas (for mathematics, that set is somewhat larger). So, if you acquire those ideas well enough – so that you can recognize Opening Ceremony
them even if they are carefully hidden – then the IPhO gold will be yours! Do not worry, no-one expects you to discover a solving Lecture: Sir Harold Kroto
technique which has been never seen before, because that would be an achievement worth of a Nobel Prize! 
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Since we started the topic of Nobel Prize – is it enough to be the absolute winner of the IPhO to get, at a later stage, a Nobel
Problems
Prize? (Each year, there is one Nobel Prize in physics – similarly to the absolute winner of IPhO.) Of course, it is not; however, Solutions
you'll have better chances than anyone else. Becoming a great physicist requires several components, one of which is having Experimental apparatus
brilliant problem solving skills (tested at IPhO). Another one is ability to make solvable models –  formulate problems which can
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be solved and which reflect important aspects of reality. Third component is ability to distinguish, which problems are Gold medalists
important and which are not. You can be very skilful and smart, but if you study problems of marginal interest, no-one will pay Silver medalists
Bronze medalists
attention to your research results. Finally, you need a considerable amount of luck. Indeed, that particular field of physics in
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which you start your studies, eg. start making your PhD thesis, depends on somewhat random decisions – it is almost Special prizes
impossible to foresee, where are the biggest scientific challenges after five or ten years. Also, in order to perfect yourself in Statistics
regard of the above-mentioned three components, you need excellent supervisors and excellent lab; although you have some Steering Committee
freedom in choosing your supervisor and lab, you still need to be very lucky to find outstanding ones! Academic Committee
Organizing Committee
I coined to name this section as "mosaic", because we shall describe here a set of solving techniques, fragments of the whole
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arsenal needed for a perfect problem solver. With a large number of pieces, the picture would become recognizable, but we
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need to start making it piece by piece … While some "tiles" will be  useful for solving a spectrum of problems, other tiles are Statutes
aimed to give more insight into certain physical concepts. Syllabus

Jaan Kalda, Academic Committee of IPhO-2012

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Tile 1: minimum or maximum?
Tile 2: fast or slow? Invitation movie
Short version
Tile 3: force diagrams or generalized coordinates?
Long version
Tile 4: Tile 4: are trojans stable?
Tile 5: 5 images or roulette? Sponsors
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Additional resources (under development). Estonia
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IPhO 2012 Eestis

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Competition “Physics Cup –
IPhO2012”
Formula sheet
Frequently asked questions
Physics solver’s mosaic
1. Minimum or maximum?
2. Fast or slow?
3. Force diagrams or generalized
coordinates?
4. Are Trojans stable?
5. Images or roulette?
Problem 0
Solution
Problem No 1
Results after Problem 1
Solution
Problem No 10
Intermediate conclusion
 Solution
Problem No 2
Results after Problem 2
Solution
Problem No 3
Results after Problem 3
Solution
Problem No 4
Results after Problem 4
Solution
Problem No 5
Results after Problem 5
Solution
Problem No 6
Results after Problem 6
Solution
Problem No 7
Results after Problem 7
Solution
Problem No 8
Results after Problem 8
Solution
Problem No 9
Results after Problem 9
Solution
Results
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