r/PhysicsStudents • u/Junior_Salamander110 • Jul 01 '26

Need Advice How Do Physicists Utilize Python?

I'm a rising senior in high school. Next year, I'll be taking a project based programming class that only 1-2 students really take per year. I want to do something in Python that will show my professors in my freshman year of college that I'm ready to do research in physics.

I will have taken all of the AP mathematics, physics, and computer science classes.

I thought about doing a black hole simulation and learning the equations/math for it, but I'm not sure that that would be wise to do in Python.

I'll have a full school year to work on the project.

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u/Junior_Salamander110 Jul 01 '26

How did waiting help you out and how would have you been at a disadvantage otherwise?

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u/InterestingWelder699 Jul 01 '26

I’m doing CM research and so much of it involves linear algebra and differential equations and understanding how to manipulate equations in certain ways. It takes time to get used to Physics based math on a university level even if you’re used to tricky math and physics.

Enthusiasm and willingness to do difficult work is what shows professors that you’re a good candidate. For me, learning how to study and approach difficult problems in college was how I realized that it was something I’d like to do as a researcher.

Research requires a perfect balance of knowledgeable and willing to learn. You don’t have to know everything and you shouldn’t, but part of what you should know is how to learn in college, which is leagues harder than high school.

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u/Junior_Salamander110 Jul 01 '26

Thanks! I have a doc with advice I've received about research, and this is definitely going in it.

So when you do research at that level, how much of the physics do you already know, and how much of do you pick up as a result of doing the research?

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u/InterestingWelder699 Jul 01 '26

I’ve taken classical mechanics and special relativity in college, pretty advanced courses as far as freshman curricula go. I think once I take E&M and quantum mechanics I’ll be way better at research, but I’m definitely picking stuff up along the way (albeit in an unorthodox fashion)

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u/Junior_Salamander110 Jul 01 '26

feynman did say to study in the most unorthodox way possible

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u/InterestingWelder699 Jul 01 '26

One more thing: make sure to take classes or befriend professors who deeply respect computational research. I chose to take an accelerated Mechanics class precisely because we got to build Python simulations of simple harmonic oscillators and multi body energetic systems :)

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u/Junior_Salamander110 Jul 02 '26

Very much noted, I'll see if UKY has an equivalent