Block 1, 2007-2008

Instructors

Text

The required textbook for the course is  Physics: Principles with Applications (6th Edition) by Douglas C. Giancoli.

Online Course Information

All documents related to the course are on the course web page at http://faculty1.coloradocollege.edu/~kmlang/07-08/PC141/Index.html.   Check this page for assignments, the lab schedule, handouts, and solutions.

Class Schedule

The lecture and problem solving portion of the course will meet every weekday from 9 AM until about noon unless otherwise noted on the schedule. The lab will be open from 1:30 PM - 4 PM on the days listed on the course schedule.  Labs will require about 1 - 2 hours to complete. Midterm exams will be given at 9 AM on the day they are listed on the course schedule.  The final exam will begin at 8 AM.  Exams will last three to four hours.

Reading and Problem Assignments

Daily reading and homework assignments are listed in the course schedule.

You should do the assigned reading before class, i.e. the reading assigned for Monday should be read before morning class on Monday.  Morning class lessons will assume you have read the appropriate material.  You should read with a pencil and paper handy to work out derivations and examples that are not clear from just reading them.

For each reading assignment you will find a listing of problems to solve.  You should have read, thought carefully about, and worked or at least tried to work all the assigned problems before class on the day their reading is assigned, i.e. problems pertinent to Monday's reading should be considered before class on Monday.   During class we will discuss these problems or similar ones, and your understanding in class will be augmented from having already thought about the problems.  After class you should then go back and finish any problems you did not complete or fully understand from that day's assignment, before continuing to the reading and problems for the next day.

The assigned problems will not be collected on a daily basis.  This gives you flexibility in when you choose to work them fully- either before or after the class in which the subject matter pertinent to them is discussed.  You should figure out for yourself what schedule best enhances your learning.  However, in the end you should work all the assigned problems fully and understand them.  Prior to each exam you will be asked to turn in your problem sets.  We will grade ten randomly selected problems from those problems sets.  Each of the three problem sets collected will comprise 5% of your course grade.  There is absolutely no late homework accepted.  Problems will be graded according to the following scale:

0 = 0% = little to no effort or a completely wrong answer indicating a complete lack of understanding.
1 = 70% = some effort but answer is substantially wrong or missing important concepts.  indicates lack of understanding of the material.
2 = 90% = a good answer, substantially correct and indicating a substantial effort and understanding of the material.
3 = 100% = a correct answer indicating a thorough understanding of all concepts.

Your learning will often be enhanced by working with a partner or in a group on the assigned problems.  You are encouraged to do this; however, be sure that at the end of group sessions you understand the problems and that the work you turn in is your own.

Answers to the even numbered problems will be posted on the course website.  The odd-numbered problem answers can be found in the back of your book.  Complete solutions to the homework will be posted after the homework has been turned in.

Labs

Lab will meet according to the course schedule.  You will be required to complete two labs per week during these times.  You are required to complete six labs in order to pass the course.

A science lab can have two major purposes: to help you learn and practice standard techniques in the discipline, or to help you understand the concepts you are studying in the course.  In the first case, you are guided carefully through an exercise using a particular machine or standard method.  In the second case you will receive little guidance, since you will need to explore the problem on your own and explain your experience in a way that is useful to you. The laboratory in Physics 141 is of the second type. You will receive no elaborate instructions, just some apparatus and a card with some suggestions. It is up to you to figure out something interesting to do with the equipment and try it out. Completing an experiment includes: figuring out what to do, performing the experiment, collecting systematic information, interpreting your results in terms of physical principles (this might include pictures, graphs, equations, or anything else you find helpful), understanding what you have done, analyzing and explaining any errors, and reporting to the instructor.

There are no written lab reports. When you feel ready to discuss your experiment, go to the instructor for an oral checkout. We'll talk over the experiment and, if I am satisfied with the depth of your understanding, you will be given a quiz. Satisfactory completion of the quiz will complete the lab. If, as often happens, you need some additional work, you may discuss the quiz with the instructor and then retake the quiz until you pass. Please note that this quiz is not graded, it is simply an indicator to help both you and the instructor know if you understood the concepts of the lab.

Science is a social activity, and you can learn much from other people's thoughts, and from explaining your own thoughts to someone else. For that reason, you should work in pairs (no more if possible), and feel free to discuss your experiment with others in the class, the instructor or the paraprof. Choose a lab partner whose schedule and working style are compatible with yours. Both lab partners should participate equally in all phases of the lab, and should understand what you have done.

Exams and Quizzes

There will be two midterms exams and one final exam during this course.  Please see the course schedule for dates.  All exams will be cumulative; however, each will emphasize the material immediately preceding it.  We will give you credit for learning on the midterms; if your final exam score is higher than either or both of your previous midterm scores, we will replace those scores with your final exam score.

There are no makeup exams.  You will receive a score of zero for any missed exams and your final will then replace that exam.  Except under dire circumstances, if you miss the final exam, you will fail the course.  Requests to reschedule the time you take an exam must be made well in advance and will be considered on a case by case basis.   Generally, if your request to reschedule the exam is granted, you will not have access to a professor while you take the exam.

All tests will be closed book.  Calculators are permitted, and you will be provided with an equation sheet for each exam.  We will provide any numerical values or unit conversions that you require during the exam.  Exams will consist of problems similar in difficulty to homework problems.  We will also ask you to explain a concepts in a short answer format and answer multiple choice questions that further test your conceptual understanding.

In addition to the three formal exams, we will also have some group activities and quizzes in class that will test your understanding of material covered that day.  These will generally be unannounced, but not too strenuous, provided you are attending class and paying attention.  These quizzes and activities will collectively comprise 5% of your grade.

Extra Help

A junior or senior physics major is available to answer questions or give help solving the assigned problems Sunday through Thursday evening in the physics lounge Barnes 213.  There is no charge for this service so do not hesitate to use it.  You may also come by your instructor's office to ask questions whenever the door is open.   The quantitative learning center located in the Learning Center in the library also provides tutoring services and can help with a refresher on math skills that may have become a little rusty.  The director of the center is Mark Morgenstern (mmorgenstern@coloradocollege.edu, 227-8289).  The quantitative reasoning center drop in hours for Fall 2007 are Monday - Thursday 2:30 - 4:30, Friday 2-4, Sunday -Thursday 7 -9 PM.

Honor Code

Science is a social enterprise, and we encourage you to work with your peers on homework, labs, studying for quizzes, etc. You should, however, be certain that you have your own understanding of every problem assignment. Lab checkouts may be done with your partner, but the lab instructor will make sure both partners understand the lab. Don’t let your lab partner take over--be sure you understand what you are both doing. Of course, your work on quizzes and exams should be your own: we’ll ask you to sign the honor pledge to that effect.

Grades