How can I succeed in a college Trigonometry class?

Question

I'm currently a physics major and I'm taking trigonometry for my fall semester. What are some tips towards succeeding, in order to get into "calculus"?

Answer 1

• First, forget about triangles! Think of circles instead! Get the intuition that $\cos$ and $\sin$ are just the coordinates of points on a circle.
• Don't memorize values of trigonometric functions nor too many fancy equations! If you need to find out what $\sin{\pi}$ is, you can look it up in a coin!
• Still, there are some formulae that you definitely should memorize, the main one being $\cos^2{x} + \sin^2{x} = 1$ You shouldn't just remember it, but understanding why it is true and what this has to do with the Pythagorean theorem
• Also, complex numbers are your friends!

This is just general advice that would be easily adaptable to any other Math topic. I would need further details on the contents of the course to provide further help. Of course, practicing and reading about the concepts and their applications is what will ultimately lead you to success

Answer 2

I know this question must be asked here on this site, but I'll answer it anyway, maybe it'll help you before someone closes your question.

Understand/Study well/ Practicceeee. YouTube videos help you understand a lot better by the way especially those with visualizations that you don't see in class.

To get more precise to the class you'll study, just keep in mind that the $\cos$ and $\sin$ functions just give the coordinates of a point on the unit circle, and the lines tangent to the trignometric circle from the right and from above represent the $\tan$ and $\cot$ functions respectively so keep visualizing that in your head.

Also complex number have a complex form that they can be written in.

Finally, best of luck and I hope you'll succeed.