Course Syllabus

Lake Washington Institute of Technology

Physics 114

Spring  2016

5 April – 17 March 2016

Matthew Jordan

matthew.jordan@lwtech.edu

Text: Physics, Cutnell & Johnson

Welcome to Physics 114. During the quarter we will be looking at some of the basics aspects of the physical world and attempting to make sense of them using observation and algebra.

Fun.

This class is an opportunity for all of us to meet some new people, work collaboratively, tell some jokes, and delight in discovering new things about the world. You can do physics and have fun at the same time: they can't be separated. We can all have a good time while beavering away at the subject.

“Nature” of the course.

Learning physics mostly requires that you

Read the text: astonishingly I discovered that many students do not read the book. While we will cover most things in class, there may be a few that we don't and for which you will still be responsible.

Attend class: The basic ideas of the course will introduced here and at the gadgets need for solving problems will placed in your tool box; apart from labs I will not take attendance, but you may find that the regularity of your attendance is reflected in your quiz and test grades.

Pay attention: Physics, while often difficult is never impossible: I will try to keep the pace moderate.

Keep yourself from being distracted by electronic devices.

Overcome any aversion to asking questions: There are very few stupid questions, but they do exist-- I know because I have asked many of them-- but you need to ask them because a slight misunderstanding about something can turn out to be a real obstacle. A simple answer to an apparently dumb question will be worth many times the cost of any passing embarassment.

Do as many problems as you can (assigned and otherwise). Physics for most of us is a 'head-banging' subject: you just work, work, work. You really can't learn the subject only by watching someone else doing it: I know this from personal experiences, both good and bad. However, you will be surprised at how satisfying the feeling of solving a problem to which you have devoted some effort and how delightful a new understanding of some aspect of nature can be.

Plan: since, as general rule of thumb you should spend 2 hours outside of class for each hour in class, you will need to make sure you have time to do the work.

Rise to the occasion: LWIT is not high school. No one will tell you to do your work, no one will tell you to come to class. An underlying assumption is that students who come here are mature enough to do what is required of them without prompting.

Just remember: in the long run, a good education, is the cheapest form of entertainment.

THE PLAN. We will attempt to cover Chapters 1-8 of the text. A syllabus detailing 'the Plan' is below.

Manners.

Electronic Devices. Apart from non-telephone, non-tablet, non-computer calculators, please turn off all electronic devices during class. Their presence during class is a distraction to other students and an irritation to instructor, who inevitably sees that you are not bothering to listen, and know that he or she will be approached to answer questions about material talked about during your cyber-holiday. See the remarks about devices during tests.

Talking. Despite popular belief, standing up and talking in front of a bunch of strangers, or near strangers is not always easy, even if it one's job. Teaching a class is often a bit of a performance, requiring a certain amount of concentration, and like other performances, audible conversations constitute a distraction to the performer. Inevitably, there will be some quick questions that are asked between students, but these are qualitatively different than sustained conversations with the conversants' backs turned to the instructor. Moreover, if you are distracting the instructor, you are almost certainly distracting other students who are trying to listen.

If I feel I have to compete with electronic devices and side conversations I will just quit talking until I feel I have undivided attention. If you expect me to deliver physics, it's only fair that you make yourselves willing to receive it. And even though I quit talking, I will not quit writing quizzes and tests and assigning grades and your responsibility for the substance of PHY 114 will remain undiminished.

Course Mechanics

Homework. You will be assigned 8-10 problems after each class. You should make a real attempt to do as many problems as you can. Let me emphasize that the more time you spend at least attempting to do problems, the more likley you are to do well. Doing problems is really the only way to develop your skills and build your insight into physics. Also, the problems on the quizzes and exams will be very much like the homework problems. I will not check homework. But be advised that the amount of time you spend on homework will materially affect your quiz and test results.

Tests and quizzes. There will be 6-7 quizzes, a mid-term exam, and an end of term exam. Quiz and test problems will look a lot like the homework problems; they are, in fact, the best ways to see if you've been doing problems. The end of term exam will cover the second half of the course but some questions will inevitably rely on something you learned in the first half. The quizzes taken together and the two exams will be weighted equally. You will allowed calculators during tests and quizzes. However, NO WIRELESS OR DATA-ENABLED DEVICES WILL BE ALLOWED DURING TESTS OR QUIZZES. If their use is detected during the test or quiz your will be given a '0.'

Labs. There are 8-10 labs scheduled. Labs are 20% of your grade. In practical terms this means that if you are just above the middle of a grade bracket, getting the full load for the labs will push you into to the next bracket up. See the chart Labs are considered a vital part of the course. You will not be able to make up labs without arrangements prior to the day you miss. There will be two parts to the labs.

 The first 50% (of the points) is the actual lab that you will do in the lab room. These labs will allow you to use some cool modern gadgets and give you a real feel for the ideas and phenomena that we talk about in class. After each lab you will be asked to turn a brief report of your activities.

The second 50% (of the points) of the lab is a one paragraph note about the current topic of physics (i.e., whatever chapter we are on). This note can be about a newspaper or internet article, an ad, or personal observation as long as

you provide some reasonable pitch for its relevance. Please, do not make these too long!

Grades.

Your grade will be determined by quizzes, tests and the labs. At the moment I am figuring that there will be 450 points available.

Points

Each test is will be worth 120 points

The quizzes taken together will be worth 120 points

The labs taken together will be worth 90points

Final Grades

A: 90% and above

B: 80% or greater but less than 90%

C: 70% or greater but less than 80%

D: 60% or greater but less than 70%

E or F (depending on where you come from): less than 60%.

Code of Conduct.

All students should conduct themselves as adult members of an academic community. This means we are all expected to be honest, polite, and to respect the rights, privileges, and property of others in the community.

Honesty means, among other things, that all individual work presented by a student is his or her own and not someone else's. Any act of cheating or plagiarism will be subject to discipline as set forth in the Student Code of Conduct and referral to the appropriate academic authorities.

Politeness means, among other things, that during class telephones are turned off, no distracting side conversations are conducted, watches don't beep,...(you get the idea).

Special needs.

If you are a student needing special accommodations because of a disability or other condition please speak to me in private. If you believe you qualify for course adaptations or special accommodations under the American Disabilities Act, please contact the Disabled Students Services Coordinator.

Office hours.

I don't have an office, so it's a little difficult to have office hours. I will normally be found near the coffee stand at about 4:00 pm on class days. If I don't have any takers for the first few weeks, I'll start repairing to my cubby-hole in the recesses of the West Building. I will stay on after class as long as necessary to answer questions or will, with arrangements, meet with you before class on Tuesday or Thursday.

 

 

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Week 1
4 & 6 April
Chapter 1: Introduction and Mathematical Concepts
Chapter 1 problems 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 11, 12, 16, 19, 20, 23, 29, 31, 34, 36, 39, 42, 47, 48
Lab 01 Tremors

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Week 2
11 & 13 April
Chapter 2: Kinematics in One Dimension
Chapter 1 quiz
Chapter 2 problems 3, 5, 9, 11, 15, 17, 19, 25, 27, 29, 37, 45, 49, 57, 61, 63
Lab 02 Acceleration

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Week 3
18 & 20 April
Chapter 8: Introduction to Rotational Kinematics
Chapter 2 quiz
Chapter 8 problems 3, 7, 11, 17
Lab 03 Initial Velocity

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Week 4
25 & 27 April
Chapter 3: Kinematics in Two Dimensions
Chapter 8 quiz
Chapter 3 problems  3, 5, 7, 9, 13, 19, 25, 27, 29, 31, 33, 37, 43, 53, 57, 61
Lab 04: Static and Kinetic Friction

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Week 5
03 & 05 May
Chapter 4: Forces and Newton's Laws of Motion
Chapter 3 quiz
Chapter 4 problems 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 15, 19, 21, 25, 27, 35, 41, 49, 53, 57, 65, 73, 79, 85, 89, 117
Lab 05 Centripetal Forces

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Week 6
10 & 12 May
Chapter 4: Forces and Newton's Laws of Motion
Chapter 4 quiz
Lab 09

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Week 7
17 & 19 May
Chapter 5: Dynamics of Uniform Circular Motion
Test on Chapters 1-4
Chapter 5 problems 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, 17, 25, 27, 31, 37
Chapter 8 problems 21, 31, 41, 51, 57
Lab 06

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Week 8
24 & 26 May
Chapter 5 quiz
Chapter 6 problems 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, 19, 25, 29, 33, 37, 41, 45, 55, 63
Lab 07 Bouncing Ball

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Week 9
31 May & 02 June
Chapter 7: Impulse and Momentum
Chapter 6 quiz
Chapter 7 problems 1, 3, 7, 13, 19, 25, 31, 35, 41, 45, 49, 51
Lab 08 Momentum

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Week 10
07 & 09 June
Chapter 7 quiz
Lab 10

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Week 11
14 June
Test on Chapters 5-8

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