I'll take a shot at a few of these questions. As an aside, when I did my A-levels, I took all three sciences - chemistry, biology and physics - along with maths.
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Originally Posted by Liquid Punk  I tend to find I lean more towards Physics and Chemistry than Biology, although I would be interested in pursuing a future in say Biochemistry. |
Why biochemistry?
If you want to lean towards chemistry and physics at A-level, why would you then want to shift to biochemistry at university? (And, believe me, if you come to apply to university, they will be very thorough when asking you that question.)
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Originally Posted by Liquid Punk Is it true that Biology is the simplest of the three? |
Not really, no.
The knowledge you need is invariably different. The equations involved in chemistry and physics can be quite complex (depending upon your proficiency in algebra), whereas you need to know little more than how to be able to multiply and divide (using a calculator) for biology.
However, biology requires far more reading and writing than of mathematical applications - I've heard biology referred to as "the science of long words" before. In the biology exams, you'll be expected to write quite a good amount of information down (considering each modular paper is only one hour only) - the chemistry and physics papers will expect a lot of calculations.
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Originally Posted by Liquid Punk What level of Mathematics is required for Physics? (and Chemistry) |
For both, you'll certainly be expected to be able to apply some fairly complex equations (and you'll encounter many Greek letters). If you can handle these equations and can rearrange them, you should be fine - I'd say the knowledge required is somewhere between GCSE and AS-level standard. In A2 chemistry, expect to encounter logarithms when studying the pH scale in more depth.
To get an idea of the depth of maths (and knowledge in general) involved in these exams, look at some past papers. The AQA publish all of their past papers online here:
AQA Past Examination Question Papers and Mark Schemes Quote:
Originally Posted by Liquid Punk Do Physics and Chemistry compliment each other? or would Physics/Biology or Chemistry/Biology be a better combination? |
Generally speaking, you choose either physics/chemistry or chemistry/biology - an option of physics/biology is rare. Or, like I did, you can opt for all three - but be prepared for the workload.
The two combinations lead to different degree course options available to you at university, so you'd have to decide and then take the more appropriate combination. If you want to aim for biochemistry, obviously taking the chemistry/biology combination is sensible.
If you've any more questions, feel free to ask.
