FRCR Part 1 Physics rewards precise reading. Many “hard” items are actually language traps: a true statement made false by one absolute word, or two correct-sounding quantities that are not interchangeable.
Absolute language
Words like always, never, only, and entirely are often false in physics. Biological effects, detector behaviour, and safety rules usually have conditions. If the stem leaves no room for exceptions, pause before marking True.
Similar but different quantities
- CTDIvol vs DLP — related, not identical.
- Absorbed dose vs equivalent dose vs effective dose — different units and meanings.
- Spatial resolution vs contrast resolution — both “image quality,” different physics.
- T2 vs T2* — easy to conflate under time pressure.
Modality bleed
A stem about ultrasound artefacts should not be answered with CT beam-hardening intuition. Mentally tag the modality in the first line of the stem before you open the options.
Revision habit that works
- When you miss an item, rewrite the trap in six words (e.g. “DLP ≠ CTDIvol”).
- Keep a personal “trap list” and review it before every mock.
- In Topic Focus, force yourself to predict True/False before revealing the explanation.