Syllabus for PHYS 1401
General Physics I
Spring, 2007
Synonym #47985
Class
Time:
MW 4:15 – 5:30 PM NRG 2242
TTh 5:40 – 6:55 PM NRG 2228
Instructor: Paul Williams, Ph.D.
Office Hours: All
office hours are held in NRG 2153
MW 10:45 – 11:45 AM
MW 3:30 - 4:00 PM
TTh 5:50 – 6:50 PM
The following are available by appointment only
MW 9:30 – 10:45 AM
TTh 4:35 – 5:50 PM
If you
cannot make any of these office hours then we can make an appointment.
Phone: 223-4824
E-mail:
Website: www.austincc.edu/nrgpsc
Text: College Physics, 6th Edition, by Wilson,
Buffa, and Lou (Prentice Hall)
Course Overview:
From the ACC
Catalogue: Study of principles and
applications of concepts in mechanics, energy, heat, wave motion, and
sound. PHYS 1401/1402 is the standard algebra-based physics sequence and
may, in addition, serve as a prerequisite for the calculus-based PHYS 2425/2426
sequence for students who have not taken high school physics. Prerequisites:
MATH 1314 or equivalent.
Instructional Methodology:
A substantial portion of
the course will consist of lectures by the instructor to convey the basic
principles of physics. Students will
also explore the basic laws of physics in the laboratory, using a combination of
hands-on experiments and computer simulations.
The course will also involve demonstrating to students how the basic
laws of physics can be used to solve problems, with an emphasis on situations
students will encounter in their everyday lives. Instructor will make use of collaborative
group activities.
Course Rationale:
This
course is designed for students who are pursuing degrees in scientific and
technical majors other than physics and engineering. It is intended to provide an overview of
basic physics to assist these students in their further studies in science and
technology. Because many if not most
students will be using this course for transfer credit, the course will be
taught at the University level.
Expectations and Roles:
Instructor: It is the instructor’s role to create a
learning environment. This includes but
is not limited to presenting material in lecture and laboratory formats,
providing group activities, assigning homework, lab write-ups, and giving
tests. Also the instructor’s role is to
provide feedback on student work and tests.
Student: Learning is the student’s responsibility –
not the instructor’s. You are expected
to attend and actively participate in class regularly, complete your
assignments on time, actively participate in and complete your lab assignments
on time, be prepared for tests at the designated time, and seek and obtain any
help that you need. In general, what you
receive from any course and the grade you obtain will reflect the effort you
put into the course.
Course Objectives:
We realize that most of our students will not be pursuing
careers in physics. To that end, the
following objectives apply to this course:
·
Students will
understand the basic principles of physics.
·
Students will
be able to communicate these principles clearly.
·
Students will
be able to use algebra and the laws of physics to solve simple problems.
·
Students will
be able to work together in collaborative groups to perform experiments, gather
data, reach conclusions, and solve problems.
Grading System:
You grade will be
determined as follows:
Tests 40%
Final 20%
Homework 10%
Class
Participation 5%
Laboratory 25%
Based on the following scale: A 90-100
B 80-89
C 70-79
D 60-69
F 0-59
Tests – Four one-hour tests will
be given approximately every 3-4 weeks as shown in the course calendar. The tests will be closed notes and books
unless otherwise indicated. No
make-up exams will be given.
However, a student may replace their lowest test grade with their grade
on the final exam.
You must
earn a grade of “C” or better in the laboratory portion of the course as well
as a grade of “C” or better in the lecture portion of the course in order to
earn a grade of “C” or better in the course. If you do not earn a grade
of “C” or better in both the lecture and the laboratory sections of the course,
then your grade for the course will be a “D” unless due to your overall course
average you have earned an “F” for the course.
Course Policies:
Attendance – Attendance is required and
I expect you to attend class regularly.
It is my experience that a typical student will drop a letter grade for
each three to four absences. Each
student must complete every lab.
Class Response System – Attendance
and class participation will be recorded via a class response system. A classroom set of clickers will be utilized
and no additional purchase will be required on the part of the students.
Withdrawals and Incompletes – The
instructor makes no commitment to withdraw a student who stops attending. If you decide to not complete the class at
this time, you must withdraw yourself by the drop deadline April 23, 2007. Failure to do so will result in a failing
grade which will not be changed.
Incompletes are given only for exceptional circumstances and only to
students who have completed the preponderance of the course work.
Scholastic Dishonesty –
Standard ACC Policy: Acts prohibited by the college for
which discipline may be administered, including but not limited to cheating on
an exam or quiz, plagiarizing, unauthorized collaboration with another in
preparing outside work. Academic work
submitted by students shall be the result of their thought, research, or
self-expression. Academia is defined as,
but not limited to tests, quizzes, whether taken electronically or on paper;
projects, either individual or group; classroom presentations and homework.
Adding your name to a group lab that you did not complete in its
entirety nor that you contributed to in a significant way will be viewed as
scholastic dishonesty and will result in a grade of 0 for that lab
activity. Also using a classroom
response clicker assigned to another student will viewed as scholastic
dishonesty and will result in grade of 0 for the class period.
Academic Freedom – Students are free to
disagree with instructors on matters of opinion or personal philosophy, and
will incur no penalty from doing so.
However, instructors will judge student work based upon its relation to
the current state of mainstream scientific fact and theory.
Student Discipline – Matters of student disciple
will be adjudicated by the instructor on a case-by-case basis, in conjunction
with the Task Force Leader or Dean.
Students will want to consult with the Office of Student Services or the
Associate Dean at their campus on such matters.
Students with Disabilities
– Standard ACC Policy: Each ACC campus offers
support services for students with documented physical or psychological
disabilities. Students with disabilities
must request reasonable accommodations through the Office for Students with
Disabilities on the campus where they expect to take the majority of their classes. Students are encouraged to do this three weeks before the start of the semester.
Help
– If you need help, get it. I hold
office hours to help students and you should view me as a primary as a primary
source of aid. Also, free walk-in
tutoring is provided by the Learning Labs, and I highly recommend this
service. You are encouraged to work on
homework assignments with classmates.
However, regardless of the source of help you receive you are
responsible for your own work. If you
copy someone else’s homework without doing it yourself, you will not understand
the material and despite having a good homework grade will not do well in the
course.
Problems – If some problem arises causing
you to miss an assignment, please see me in advance if at all possible and I
will try to make accommodations.
Incompletes are not given except under extreme circumstances.
Time – You
should expect to spend 2 hours outside of class for each hour in class. It is expected that you will keep up with
the reading assignments and you should expect to read 5-10 pages per night in
the text. I believe whole-heartedly in
homework. Physics requires a different
type of thinking than other classes and this though process must be developed
through practice. Homework will be due
approximately every week as shown in the class schedule.
Homework Grading
– Your homework grade will consist of two pieces. One piece is a completion grade for each
assignment that will range from 0 -5 depending on the number of problems
attempted. Following the return of each
assignment a two question take home assignment will be given over that
assignment which will be graded 0 -5 based on correctness. The primary form of feedback I give on
homework assignments is answering questions in class or during office hours.
Assignment Due Dates
– Homework assignments are due on my desk without my asking for them at the end
of the class period indicated in the course calendar or as directed in
class. Lab assignments are due at the
end of thee period the assignment is completed unless otherwise directed.
Organization
– Please keep your assignments so that any possible errors in my grading
records can be rectified. It is a good
idea to keep your homework in a loose leaf binder for reference.
Late Homework
– Homework is an integral part of this course.
You need to work on assignments regularly and turn them in a timely
fashion. Late homework will be given 3
points for completeness but will not be graded. Also no assignments will be
accepted after Monday of the last week of class.
Laboratory
– A major component of this course is the laboratory. You will perform laboratory exercises
typically twice per week. Each will
require a brief write-up which will be due at the end of that class period
unless otherwise directed.
Laboratory Make-up
– You may make up a total of three missed laboratory periods. To make-up a laboratory obtain a copy of the
missed activity from the instructor and then schedule a time to make up the lab
with the laboratory coordinator. You
must make up a missed lab within two weeks or a grade of 0 will be assigned for
that lab activity. Typically make-ups
are held on Friday mornings. There may
be one or two times during the semester that a lab can be made up during the
normally scheduled lab time.
Lab Groups - Students
are free to choose their own lab groups.
If a space is available a student may change a lab group. However, lab groups may not exceed four
students without permission from the instructor. Instructor reserves the right
to adjust lab groups if necessary.
Cell Phone
– As a courtesy to your instructor and your classmates, please make sure that
your cell phone is turned completely off before class. If you are expecting an urgent phone call,
then please place the phone in a silent mode.
Privacy - To
protect student privacy I will not give information about grades via email or
phone.
Tentative Course Outline /
Calendar:
In
the calendar below the date is the Monday of that week. For each week, the first row gives
approximately the sections of the text to be covered and second row gives the
lab activity for that day. The
instructor reserves the right to adjust the calendar to meet the needs of the
class.
Week Date
of Monday |
Monday |
Assignment
Due |
Wednesday |
Assignment
Due |
1 1/15 |
MLK
|
|
Introduction
to Course 1.1 -1.4 |
|
|
|
|
Safety
Orientation, Motion Diagrams |
|
2 1/22 |
1.5
– 1.7, 2.1 -2.3 |
|
2.4
- 2.5 |
|
|
1
– D Kinematics |
|
Free
Fall |
|
3 1/29 |
3.1-3.2 |
HW
#1 |
3.3 |
HW
#2 |
|
Vector
Addition with Force Table |
|
Projectile
Motion |
|
4 2/5 |
4.1
– 4.4 |
|
4.5 |
HW
#3 |
|
|
|
Test
#1 Review |
|
5 2/12 |
Test
#1 Chs. 1-3 |
|
4.6,5.1 |
HW
#4 |
|
|
|
Work
and Energy |
|
6 2/19 |
5.2
– 5.3 |
|
5.4-5.5 |
HW
#5 |
|
Conservation
of Energy |
|
Impulse
and Momentum |
|
7 2/26 |
6.1-6.3 |
|
6.4,7.1
– 7.2 |
HW
#6 |
|
1-D
Collisions |
|
Introduction
to Rotational Motion |
|
8 3/5 |
7.3-7.5 |
|
8.1
– 8.3 |
HW
#7 |
|
Rolling
without Slipping |
|
Test
#2 Review |
|
3/12 |
Spring
Break |
|
Spring
Break |
|
9 3/19 |
Test
#2 Chs. 4 – 7 |
|
8.4-8.5 |
|
|
Torque
and Angular Acceleration |
|
Conservation
of Angular Momentum ILD |
|
10 3/26 |
9.1-9.2 |
HW
#8 |
9.3 |
|
|
Hydrostatic
Pressure |
|
Archimedes’
Principle |
|
11 4/2 |
10.1-10.3 |
HW
#9 |
10.4,11.1-11.2 |
|
|
Boyle’s
Law |
|
Heat
and Temperature |
|
12 4/9 |
11.3-11.4 |
HW
#10 |
12.1-12.2 |
HW
#11 |
|
Heating
Curves |
|
Test
#3 Review |
|
13 4/16 |
Test
#3 |
|
12.4,13.1 |
|
|
Thermal
Conductivity and Emissivity |
|
Simple
Harmonic Motion |
|
14 4/23 |
13.2-13.4 |
HW
#12 |
13.5,
14.1 |
|
|
Introduction
to Waves |
|
Wave
properties |
|
15 4/30 |
14.2-14.3 |
HW
#13 |
Test
#4 Chs. 11 -13 |
|
|
Test
#4 Review |
|
Standing
Waves |
|
16 5/7 |
Final
Review |
HW
#14 |
Final
Exam |
|