A Statement of the Course Solid State Theory for Students Registered by 2019:

I started to teach the course "Solid State Theory" back in 2002. For 18 years, I managed to maintain the standard of this course for students pursuing a career as a genuine physicist. To do so, I maneuvered to undo as much as possible the wrong teachings picked up by students during their entire education: no independent thinking and reasoned thoughts, speaking without logic, arguing without reasoning, losing the touch and sensibility of language (even Chinese language)...... Students were taught not only to merely reproduce what they have learned, but go well beyond in a scientific research manner. To do so, a lot of assignments were given in the way like scientific research. For example, many years ago, when graphene just became fashionable, one assignment was to solve transport with graphene energy spectrum after Boltzmann equation was taught. The mid-term examination, even though consists of only 20% of the total score, always requires a thorough mastery of the course. For example, if classical ensemble was taught, quantum ensemble was examined. For years, around 30-40 students following my course each semester, only half were brave enough to register and among them, only half succeeded in passing the course. It becomes honorary for those who ever succeeded in passing this course. I know there were several students who tried three years without passing this course. I appreciate their persistence.

The situation changes dramatically for the generation born after 1990. Since then, the average score becomes lower and lower and fewer and fewer students can pass this course. For the past 3 years, there has been almost no student passing this course, even though the levels of examinations became terribly low. As an example, in 2018, the mid-term examination was "Prove there is no long-range order for 2D ferromagnetism at finite temperature" and there was no one could answer. Then the final examination was, to me quite offensively, "Prove there is no long-range order for 2D anti-ferromagnetism at finite temperature", again no one could answer. Another bad sign is starting from 2018, the motivations of undergraduate students from USTC become much weaker compared to those of graduate students from other universities with much lower reputation. All these suggest it is time to either stop the course itself or terminate the legend of this course. I decide the later.

In the past several years, many former students, no matter passed or failed this course, expressed their strong opinions against lowering the standard of this course. I know the upcoming downgrade of the course standard would greatly jeopardize the pride/honor and self-esteem of the former students and is unfair to the tremendous efforts made by them. As a compensation, I would like to make the following statement of this course.

For those who registered this course by 2019, no matter passed or failed, they have all the reasons to feel proud of themselves. They knew it would be the most challenging course they ever had in their entire education. But rather than yielded to the fear of failure, they embraced the challenge with courage and hard learning. Every point earned by them is 100%-point, which should never be compared to the one starting from 2020. So in the future, when you tell people you passed this course, always proudly mention it was by 2019! Starting from 2020, the course Solid State Theory, even carries the same name, should be regarded as a totally different one, nevertheless all the same as those courses in the current education system.
 
 
                                                      
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