1,001 questions about the ASTB (post your scores & ask your questions here!)

[ea6bflyr]

I originally had this same line of reasoning, but fixed pulleys don't have as much of a mechanical advantage as movable pulleys.

Seeing both pulleys are moving the same weight across the same distance on the same ramp, I'd figured the one with the greater mechanical advantage would require less force (i.e. pulley B because it's a movable pulley with a MA = 2 (the two string segments) whereas pulley A has an MA of 1 (fixed pulley always has MA = 1)

The fixed pulley will make the weight more difficult to move. The moveable pulley will make the weight easier to move.

Movable pulleys give you a mechanical advantage, which is measure of performance for machines. Having a mechanical advantage means the force applied by the system is greater than the force you put in. In a pulley system, this means the pulley can lift or move the object with a greater amount of force than you apply to the rope. This allows you to lift or move heavy things more easily.

Here’s the catch—even though the moveable pulley system and the compound pulley system let you lift or move a heavy object with less force than you’d have to use with a fixed pulley, you still had to move the rope farther. The force exerted on the weight may have been increased, but you still had to perform the same amount of work on the rope. What this means is that even if the weight felt half as heavy with a moveable pulley, you’d have the pull the rope twice as far to raise it the same distance as a fixed pulley would!

 

[sevenhelmet]

The question wasn't about work, it was about force. The pulley on the right should require approximately half the force of the one on the left in order to move the weight up the ramp. Whether you're pulling the rope "uphill" or "downhill" to move the weight is irrelevant.

 

[Andre12]

But the pulley in the second one is not fixed.

 

[GunnarB]

Let’s say I only get a few question on Mech Comp correct and do well on the rest of the ASTB, is it possible I get at least a 777. I am going for SNA, but I cannot come to comprehend a lot of Mech Comp. And does your OAR go into play for SNA?

 

[NKMess]

Let’s say I only get a few question on Mech Comp correct and do well on the rest of the ASTB, is it possible I get at least a 777. I am going for SNA, but I cannot come to comprehend a lot of Mech Comp. And does your OAR go into play for SNA?

My understanding is that the OAR score isn't that important. With that said, if the board is close, your OAR score will become more important if the board needs to edge one candidate over another. I would just take the time to learn the concepts in the mech comp.

 

[NKMess]

I just got done with my ASTB a couple of hours ago. Many thanks to the posters here, and especially TwoScoops for his excellent app. I scored a 55 on my OAR, and 7/8/8 on the ASTB. I don't really have any useful information that hasn't been posted here recently, but the test had me quite worried during the mech part as I saw some concepts I hadn't heard of before. With that said, the app is essential for practicing the PBM portions.

 

[Wyattnelson04]

I am getting ready to start studying for the ASTB. any suggestions for study guides to be prepared?

 

[NKMess]

I am getting ready to start studying for the ASTB. any suggestions for study guides to be prepared?

I used Barron's and the ASTB app mostly.

 

[Wyattnelson04]

I used Barron's and the ASTB app mostly.

thank you, how did you get access to Barron's? I recently joined this website and im still trying to figure out how to use it.

 

[NKMess]

thank you, how did you get access to Barron's? I recently joined this website and im still trying to figure out how to use it.

Barron's is a book. You should be able to find it in the same study book section at your local book store. I think I used the 2018 edition, and it was fine for reintroduced old concepts that I hadn't seen since high school (my BSc wasn't very STEM heavy in the traditional sense).

 

[GunnarB]

I just got done with my ASTB a couple of hours ago. Many thanks to the posters here, and especially TwoScoops for his excellent app. I scored a 55 on my OAR, and 7/8/8 on the ASTB. I don't really have any useful information that hasn't been posted here recently, but the test had me quite worried during the mech part as I saw some concepts I hadn't heard of before. With that said, the app is essential for practicing the PBM portions.

How was the mech comp, did you need to know all the formulas and were the ASTB app mech comp accurate to tes

 

[NKMess]

How was the mech comp, did you need to know all the formulas and were the ASTB app mech comp accurate to tes

So my methodology for study might be the reverse of what a lot of other people might do. Basically I started with practice tests to identify my weaknesses. While that sounds fairly intuitive, I think that left me with some knowledge gaps in terms of spring physics and angular velocity. For all I know I got them right, but it wasn't something I studied at all. With that said the app should cover those. I suppose it's just a warning to not forget things you haven't covered in practice exams. More importantly though about halfway through my studying I switched to the PBM section to prioritize my time after realizing it's much more important.

 

[GunnarB]

So my methodology for study might be the reverse of what a lot of other people might do. Basically I started with practice tests to identify my weaknesses. While that sounds fairly intuitive, I think that left me with some knowledge gaps in terms of spring physics and angular velocity. For all I know I got them right, but it wasn't something I studied at all. With that said the app should cover those. I suppose it's just a warning to not forget things you haven't covered in practice exams. More importantly though about halfway through my studying I switched to the PBM section to prioritize my time after realizing it's much more important.

Thank you! Did u use the gouge, and if so was it helpful and did you purchase any books?

 

[NKMess]

Thank you! Did u use the gouge, and if so was it helpful and did you purchase any books?

I purchased the Barron's book, and purchased the ASTB app. I reviewed the Gouge, but I also had some doubts about some parts about it. For example, in the ANIT flashcards that are posted around here, one detail I noticed about John Glenn was that he was described as being the first American to enter supersonic flight (which is false). Also I figured that some details in the gouge, much of which is near 5-6 years old in the drives might be out of date by now (not fundamentally, but for circulation). Overall I think the drives shared around can cover some key concepts but like any resource it shouldn't be what you lean into entirely. With that said there are recent posters who have higher scores than me that probably have higher opinions of the drives shared around, just my $0.02.

Another important strategy to me personally is that I like to make my own notes, with my own style and tone - so I'm also less inclined to use someone else's notes. Not sure if that's helpful or not. It's just the same strategy I've used for my enlisted advancement exams and warfare pin.

 

[GunnarB]

I purchased the Barron's book, and purchased the ASTB app. I reviewed the Gouge, but I also had some doubts about some parts about it. For example, in the ANIT flashcards that are posted around here, one detail I noticed about John Glenn was that he was described as being the first American to enter supersonic flight (which is false). Also I figured that some details in the gouge, much of which is near 5-6 years old in the drives might be out of date by now (not fundamentally, but for circulation). Overall I think the drives shared around can cover some key concepts but like any resource it shouldn't be what you lean into entirely. With that said there are recent posters who have higher scores than me that probably have higher opinions of the drives shared around, just my $0.02.

Another important strategy to me personally is that I like to make my own notes, with my own style and tone - so I'm also less inclined to use someone else's notes. Not sure if that's helpful or not. It's just the same strategy I've used for my enlisted advancement exams and warfare pin.

Were the mech questions pretty simple or were the test in Barrons fairly similar, I’m only worried about the mech